Rusty’s CFB Week 13 Card
THE STORY
Here’s how I remember it. In the mid-2000s, a small football team in rural Illinois made it to the high school football state playoffs for the first time in 20 years of the school’s football seasons. The team had a “tough” regular season road and gained traction with every win. They weren’t a “football school” and their soccer team had much more success historically. So you’ll understand why by the end of the season, they had the unwavering support of their parents, friends, sports boosters, local football guys, and surrounding region. Everyone was drinking the Kool-Aid. Don’t get me wrong, it was a special team for the school.
At the end of the season the team gathered at the coach’s house on a Friday night and listened to the radio announcement with quiet anticipation for who they would be matched up against in their historic playoff game. For their first-round game, the small-town team traveled north to a school who had a well-established history of making the playoffs and winning. High school football success was part of the culture. It’s safe to say they’d been there before and equally safe to say they were a clear favorite.
Our underdog team took the field first for warmups and ran through their usual pre-game progression as they had all year, just with some added nerves. Halfway through, the volume of the PA system abruptly doubled and the unmistakable intro of “Hells Bells” by AC/DC began to ominously enter the airwaves of the stadium. And right behind it, the home team did so as well.
This team ran jet sweeps and they ran them with scary efficiency. So, on the first play of the game at the outside linebacker position, I was waiting for it. What I wasn’t waiting for was the brain rattling hit I got from a slot receiver as I turned to my right to take a containment angle. I was so surprised, I couldn’t believe the touchdown wasn’t called back for a penalty on the block. Surely it was illegal in some way.
It wasn’t. I’ve still got the game tape to prove it. We got our asses kicked and that was the end of our “historic” season. A tale as old as time. They were clearly a better team than us and the scoreboard showed it. The only thing I’m still not sure of is if we should’ve been on the same field as that team.
This week the Hoosiers are scheduled to travel West to the Shoe in Columbus. The media has done their best to hold up the team from Indiana as the shining example of an underdog all week long. Hopefully it’s a better game to watch than the experience fans received 20 years ago on a fall Saturday in rural Illinois.
LAST WEEK
Rusty’s Picks 5-5 (-0.4u)
Full CFB card 7-8 (-1.28u)
First rule, we don’t dwell on the past. Good or bad. The fire is still burning. They expect one of us in the wreckage, brother!
This week
Second rule, we don’t bet with our hearts. That’s why we’re not betting Illinois this week or any week even though we may love the game. The experimental system of falling totals continues this week with the USC/UCLA over. It went 3-1 last week, we’ll see if the success continues. The picks are listed in ascending order according to my confidence level at the time of publishing which will undoubtedly change by kickoff.
10. Iowa @ Maryland u46
9. Arizona St -3 vs. BYU
8. USC @ UCLA o51.5
7. Notre Dame -14.5 vs. Army
6. Vanderbilt +7.5 @ LSU
5. Wisconsin ML @ Nebraska
4. Kentucky +20.5 @ Texas
3. Wake Forest at Miami o64.5
2. Alabama -13.5
1. Ohio St -13 vs. Indiana
“Peace has cost you your strength. Victory has defeated you.”