At the outset of the season, getting rid of the NOISE was supposed to help. When we get to the time when the whistle blows and it is your eleven against our eleven, perhaps the football world will make a little more sense or at least we can turn our eyes away from so much nonsense for a while. As we roll towards the end of the football season, glory is becoming more costly than expected. Seems football wants to make things more difficult than just football.

Lane Kiffin. Bless your heart. You got folks in Indiana wanting to know what is up with you. Sure, as you mentioned this week, your players may not be affected by this like they used to. They understand the free agency of college football you spoke of so eloquently last season. The players aren’t the ones paying you, Lane. Trust me. This looks and feels bad in Brookhaven, Oxford, Senatobia, Pelahatchie, and even Bloomington, Indiana.

Anybody out there been to Oxford, Baton Rouge, and Gainesville? I have. Take me to Oxford. The Stones said it best, Lane. You can’t always get what you want. If Lane Kiffin doesn’t choose Oxford, and I think he will as he enjoys all the attention and drama, too bad for him and many others. The SEC is the best soap opera going, since Days of Our Lives left NBC. Then in the late afternoon into darkness you have The Paul Finebaum Show. Paul is akin to the old wresting manager Jimmy Hart. He gets the SEC fanbases all riled up and leaves them to their consequences. Translation: They will be back tomorrow. Paul should be up for an Academy Award. He is that good with his large pot and large spoon that just means stir more.

This sign seems appropriate these days, doesn’t it? What we don’t know when we take a picture in 2018 will come back to haunt us.

The first time I walked into the clearing on Rosemont Avenue and saw this place my knees got weak.

I can’t imagine UCLA not playing their home games in The Rose Bowl. With the news that the team intends to move to SoFi Stadium and all of its luxury amenities for folks that can pay up, they in turn alienated the true fan base that doesn’t eat the catered food in a suite. The truest fans are out there reliving their good times and trying not to burn a steak. Too many sad and upset fans out there. This is written by a guy in Southern Indiana. I have the fall of 2028 circled on an imaginary calendar. The year I turn 60 is the year I was going to go back, and watch UCLA host the Indiana Hoosiers in The Rose Bowl Stadium.

Spending time in an empty Rose Bowl on a Thursday with a brand new turf being prepped for the USC game on Saturday was moving experience for a football fan steeped in Midwest tradition that used to land The Big Ten vs. The PAC-10 against each other on January 1st. That was THEE game of the year. Nothing compared.

I kicked two field goals (2-2) over the goalpost to the right of the press box. The end zone with the clock atop the stands. A week earlier, I was given the blessing of the Rose Bowl CEO and the Field Superintendent to bring not only a ball and a tee, but to also bring my left foot cleat and my right footed square-toed kicking shoe. When I walked onto the field with Will Schnell, the field superintendent, I saw that this was a completely new turf being prepared for the USC game. I looked at Will and said, “There is no way I am going to plant a cleat on this field before Saturday.” Will looked at me, nodded his head, and said, “I appreciate that.” He knew I got it. Will is a midwestern boy too. We shared some great memories. I kicked in my Brooks from PAT range. I had wanted to uncork one at 50 years old. I’d been practicing. Though I swore against posting this picture again, here it is.

So, I didn’t make it out to The Rose Bowl Stadium for a game this year. Tim Brando did. He was on the call for FOX SPORTS during the Nebraska-UCLA game earlier this month.

This photo will also be a source of good memory moving forward. Hope you don’t mind that I used this picture without asking, TB. Great picture of you and your crew. You guys are the best.

This was the Indiana-Washington game last year. This is the one I enjoyed the most from 2024. The last Saturday in October is always a thing a natural beauty in Southern Indiana. ESPN Gameday was there with Lee Corso. What a special day. Final score Indiana 31 Washington 17.

Seeing the Washington Huskies in Memorial Stadium as a conference opponent? Yep. True.

Only a kicker would get excited at a ball bag under the goalpost waiting for pregame. This was before this year’s last Saturday in October game. Indiana 56 UCLA 6. Good times.

Since the transfer portal era in college football started, my ability to be emotionally invested in players has mostly gone away from me. For the first time in my life, I am watching football games with what seems like movable parts. Back in the day, when Indiana signed a kid out of St. Louis, MO like QB Trent Green, or DT Nolan Harrison out of Flossmoor, IL we watched closely and we waited patiently and hoped for the best. Never in this equation was the possibility that one of these guys would sit out a bowl game and find more money in the SEC. Some things have changed faster than some of us have changed. Nowadays, when I am asked about specific position players, I can’t answer like I used to. Once upon a time, I knew every stat and mention in the media guide. I don’t trust who will be on the field from week to week anymore. I root and report about who was out there today. I still love the game. At least the game is still out there to transcend us for three and half hours at a time like we remember.

Watching Coach Cig line up with players and their families on “Senior Day” was a nice gesture. The players are still putting in the work on the field and in the weightroom. Senior Day seems like a thing of the past. Some of these guys haven’t been on campus in Bloomington long and are enjoying a great deal of online coursework. Keep scoring touchdowns number 24, whoever you are.

HOT OFF THE WIRE! Dylan Raiola, Nebraska QB, expected to enter transfer portal. See.

On a BRIGHT NOTE!

The stat you won’t hear about anywhere else. This one is telling. First Downs given up by penalty through 11 games of the 2025 season. Indiana has just 4. That is a great deal of mistake free football. Compared to their contemporaries, Indiana has the upper hand when it comes to being a well-disciplined team. That includes their general comportment when one of the players makes an exceptional play. None of the players draw attention to themselves like they are running for public office. They are still having fun!

Finally, a shout out to the Brownstown Central Braves. They will play Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium against Andrean for the Indiana Class 2-A Championship. Good luck to the Braves.

My 5th grade BCHS gym bag made it out to The Rose Bowl with me the day I kicked there. Go Braves!

Last week I picked 11 winners and 3 losers. I did not get them published. Life happens. This is saddest week of the season. The last one. It sure has gone quickly. That means through all the grief, we still love it.

This week’s picks:

Iowa beats Nebraska… In the Two Mules Fighting over a Turnip Bowl.

Ole Miss beats Mississippi State… Even with the Lane Kiffin noise.

Georgia Tech beats Georgia… This will make the CFP more interesting. Watch Tech play mistake free and make the most of a Georgia fumble or oskie!

Indiana beats Purdue… The Hoosiers 12-0 for the first time. Oh, Auntie Em, there’s no place like home.

Texas A & M beat Texas… Rooting for Arch as usual. His uncle made football in Indiana.

Arizona State beats Arizona… Great rivalry game. When Indiana finishes off Purdue, I’ll tune in here and watch and listen in on TB and Deven Gardner.

Clemson beats South Carolina… Tigers find a way to salvage something.

Kentucky beats Louisville… The Cats will be more inspired, and I hate to say that. 7-1 to 7-4 came in an ugly hurry for the Cards.

Pitt beats Miami… Gonna be cold at Pitt now.

Ohio State beats Michigan… This will set up # 1 vs # 2 in The Big Ten Championship Game.

Texas Tech beats West Virginia… As long as the Red Raiders don’t get too cold. Hey, I remember a highly ranked Southern Miss team in the early 80s coming to a COLD Louisville Cardinal Stadium, the old one, and getting whipped.

Oklahoma beats LSU… The Tigers won by a score of 13-10 over Western Kentucky last week.

USC beats UCLA… Hurts me to pick this way.

Alabama beats Auburn… The Iron Bowl. Classic game to watch.

Enjoy this last not so regular Saturday of the season.