Wisconsin and Minnesota sports today

posted 12/06/2011
commentary by Monte Stewart, Sports Editor and Pete Vukelich, Contributor

Wisconsin sports: is there something in the water? Monte Stewart What a dominant year it has been for the sports teams of Wisconsin. The Badger state has been rocking since this past February when the Green Bay Packers took home their fourth Super Bowl victory as well as their 13th overall Championship. Can these squads continue rule over other sports teams? From a die-hard Wisconsin sports fan perspective, I think it has been great to see these teams do so well. I know, as much as the person next to me, that these great teams cannot continue to reign supreme over all of sports like they have this year. I mean I obviously think that the Packers are going to be great for the next 5 to 10 years depending on the durability of the man at the helm, quarterback Aaron Rodgers. The Packers are currently out to their best start in Franchise history, 11-0. Yes, the Packers are a team that I could see being very successful for the next decade, but then what happens? Once Aaron Rodgers retires, do they get another superstar QB like Rodgers or will they end up in mediocrity, getting a string of Ryan Leafs in the draft? For fans like me, we have known only great quarterbacks on our team, having had only Brett Favre and Rodgers. Will all these fans still be there cheering if the Packers have quarterbacks like they had back in the 80s? I know I will cheer for them no matter what, but it makes you wonder when you have a current generation that does not know what it is like to be cheering for an unsuccessful Packer team that would have a less than average QB. Now onto the Badgers, who have had one of their best seasons offensively. It has been a whirlwind of a season for the Badgers as they were once hoping for a potential Bowl Championship Series (BCS) National Championship Game run, which was ended on a last second Hail Mary that would forever put a taint on this season. Despite all the setbacks of the two losses, the Badgers found themselves in the Big Ten Championship Game last Saturday, December 3 where they got the chance to seek revenge on the team that tainted their season, Michigan State. With a win against Michigan State, the Badgers now make the trip to Pasadena to play in the Rose Bowl, in a game that could salvage what was once thought to be a letdown of a season. I love the fact that the Badgers can still put themselves in position to finish better than last year. After the back-to-back losses, I figured that the Badgers would have to chalk up their season, but they showed the world how dominant a force they still are this year when they shredded Penn State recently, 45-7. This gives me and the rest of Badger nation one thing: hope. Because come New Year’s Day, all Badgers want a reason to be able to Jump Around! Now, I move onto baseball and the Milwaukee Brewers. The Brewers, a team whose franchise is known for the exact opposite thing of the Packers: losing. That changed this year when the Brewers set a club record, winning 96 of their 162 games, as well as winning their first division title since 1982. It was great to see the Brewers finally make the playoffs. This is a team I have cheered for my whole life, a team that has been less than mediocre most years. The Brewers made me get extremely high expectations in the playoffs. They won their first round series and played the Cardinals (a team they beat out for the division title) for a chance to make the World Series for the first time since 1982. The World Series… something the Brewers have never won. I couldn’t believe it, but it was too good to be true as my Brewers lost to the Cardinals. But hey, there is always next year right? As I look back at the year of 2011, I can’t help but think WOW; this has been a year to remember for Wisconsin sports. Not only have the Packers, Badgers, and Brewers done rare, if not unprecedented things, but they did all these things in the same calendar year. So to all the Wisconsin fans, cherish this year because in the future, you will look back and remember how this was one of the greatest years in Wisconsin sports history. I think this is a lesson for all sports fans: Treasure the moments when your team is having success and be a part of something great. Because greatness, no matter how brief, stays with a man.

The frustrations of a Minnesota sport fan (Male Orientated) Pete Vukelich Where can you even begin to start to with the frustration of being a Minnesota sports fan? Do you start with the Minnesota Twins? Or how about the lovable losers, the Timberwolves?  One could try to take a walk on the wild side by cheering for the Minnesota Wild but you will find a lot of the same reaction watching them. Disappointment. Any way you look at it our mens professional teams are fading fast. Let’s start with the Vikings. Last year they brought in a 6-10 record, a year after being seconds away from a Super Bowl appearance they follow it up embarrassing not only themselves but their loyal fan base. The Vi-queens are a mere 2-10 so far this year, with nothing going for them, and a reeling fan base. How about those Twins? Looked like a bunch of Twinkies out there this past year, again like the Vikings the Twins posted a phenomenal season in 2009; again, like the Vikings, they lost in the playoffs. The Twins had the third best record in the league, and they followed that performance up by having one of the worst records in the league and dead last in the A.L Central. They threw in the towel early in the season and brought up a lot of minor league players. That did not treat the fan base too well, as it saw a lot of losses. The Minnesota Wild were one of the few bright spots in Minnesota, but still pretty dim. The Wild were 12 out of 15 in the Western Conference last season. Even though this is the state of hockey, the Minnesota Wild sure are not giving us much hope.  Yes, they are doing very well this year but remember people: It’s a LONG season. If you have been paying attention so far, the past two teams have set you up for nothing but failure. Last, but not least, the lowly Timberwolves. Can you say die hard sports fan? If you follow these guys year after year, you have to be a die hard fan. Since the 2005-2006 season the Timber-puppies have racked up 387 losses. They have not made the playoffs since the 2004-2005 season where they lost in the playoffs. In the teams 22 years of existence they only have eight playoff appearances, seven of those appearances resulted in the team packing their bags early and losing in the first round. A common factor with all these teams is.... Losing. Whether it be in the playoffs or in the regular season, our 3 main sports teams in Minnesota have been losing since 1991. The last year a men’s team brought a championship home. Year after year they get your hopes up, and year after year you are crushed by their loss. After all we are Minnesotans; so don’t give up, some day we will prevail; all good things come in time!