football Archives - Life’s A Tripp

Iowa: Waving Goodbye to Noah Fant

When Alexander Hamilton Swan decided to establish a stockyards operation just South of Omaha in the late 1880’s, he had no idea it would create the greatest Nebraskan’s to ever live. The meatpacking industry drew thousands of European immigrants looking for work and they immediately created their own territories throughout South Omaha. FGI’s roots are firmly entrenched in South Omaha. All but one of our founding fathers attended Omaha South High school and most of us managed to graduate as part of the illustrious class of 1992.

South Omaha may be best known for the stockyards and meatpacking plants, but the community has also produced several transcendent athletes over the years. I know when you hear transcendent South Omaha athletes your mind automatically goes to Spring Lake Football League (SFL) Hall of Famers; however, I am speaking of actual athletes that played at the highest level and made history.

During the mid-1960’s the gifted signal caller Marlin Briscoe dazzled Packer fans and befuddled opposing defenses earning him the nickname the “Magician”. Marlin was drafted by the Broncos in the 14^th round of the NFL draft in 1968. The Omaha South and Omaha University standout entered a September 1968 game with Boston at quarterback with about 10 minutes to play. He started under center the next week. In doing so, he became the first black starting quarterback in modern pro football history. established a Denver rookie record of 14 touchdown passes that season.

Every self-respecting Husker fan is familiar with Dave Rimington. A 1978 Omaha South Graduate who went on to become a consensus All-American, finishing fifth in Heisman Trophy voting in 1982. Dave is considered the greatest college football center of all time and is who the Rimington award is named after and is awarded the best center in college football on an annual basis.

Noah Fant seemed destined to be the next great athlete from Omaha South. A talented two sport athlete that shined brightly on a Packer football team often overmatched against Metro powerhouses. In 2015 Noah’s pass catching ability and overall athleticism caught the eye of Division 1 coaches. Most Husker fans felt Noah signing with Nebraska was a foregone conclusion. Unfortunately for us fans, Nebraska was under the control of the Pelini regime. Noah made it clear during the recruiting process that he desired to play offense. The only explanation I can give is Carl Pelini made a cocaine binge induced argument to Bo to recruit Fant as a defensive end. Bo was subsequently fired, Riley’s sprinkles for everyone plea didn’t work, and Noah signed with the enemy!

Although it felt like Noah committed an act of treason signing with Iowa, as a fellow South High graduate I wanted him to succeed. And succeed he did! Fant saw the field as a true freshman hauling in 9 passes for 70 yards and a touchdown. In his sophomore season Noah put the Big 10 and the rest of the country on notice. Fant finished 2017 with 30 catches for 494 yards and 11 touchdowns including a beatdown of his home state Huskers.

A preseason All American in 2018, Noah seemed destined to join Tim Dwight and Brad Banks on the Mount Rushmore of Iowa football. Fant’s and Iowa’s season started off well… maybe too well. Another soft schedule led to a 6-1 start and had Hawkeye fans ready to use their Super 8 rewards points in Indianapolis. You could see Ferentz was troubled. Whenever Iowa managed to move inside of the opponents 40-yard line, Kirk would hear a voice inside his head, “Go for it Kirk”, “but it’s 4^th and 2 on the 38!” “You have Noah Fant, the best tight end in the country GO FOR IT!” “I can’t!” Kirk screamed, drawing strange looks from his assistant coaches. “It’s not the Iowa way.”

Kirk had to figure this out. He sought the counsel of legendary Iowa coach Hayden Fry looking for answers. “Why am I having these naughty thoughts?” he asked. “Biscuits and Gravy” replied the now 89-year-old Fry. Kirk left the meeting even more perplexed and confused than before. Upon returning to Iowa City, Kirk set up shop in the team’s film room hoping to find answers. He poured over hours of film starting with the first game. Everything seemed normal at first. An unimaginative and archaic offense for the most part. But one player began to emerge. An incredibly athletic tight end that “specialized” in beating opposing defenses and catching 50-yard touchdown passes. Game after game Noah found his way to the end zone. Kirk heard it again, “that’s him idiot!” “throw Fant the ball!”

An immense sense of relief washed over Kirk as he exited the facility. “I now know what needs to be done.” He said to himself. Iowa was still clinging to hopes of winning the Big 10 West when they took on Northwestern at home last week. This is when Ferentz would implement his plan. The plan went off without a hitch! Iowa punted on 4^th down from the Northwestern 38, Fant only played 9 snaps in the second half and had 1 catch for 0 yards! The Wildcats went on to win 14-10 and celebrated a Big 10 West Championship on the Iowa 50-yard line.

Even though Ferentz was satisfied, Hawkeye fan was less than satisfied. May took to Twitter to voice their displeasure. “Fire Ferentz!” “Why didn’t Fant play more?” the fans demanded. A few fans drunk from years of Iowa mediocrity offered up this reason. His blocking isn’t up to the “Iowa Standard”. A quick check of the stats shows Iowa is currently 11^th in the Big 10 in rushing average a mere 1 yard more than Rutgers for 12^th. It seems Iowa isn’t up to the Iowa standard.

I have a few sources close to the program that tell me Fant has been admitted to the Iowa Children’s Hospital near the stadium to see a “specialist”. Noah will be forced to attend daily sessions lasting one hour and retrained in the Iowa Way. It is unknown how long Fant will remain admitted but there is a plan to have the crowd wave to a dejected Noah Fant staring out of the hospital window after a punt from inside of the Husker 40 during the Nebraska game.

The Legend of Farnsworth

Wynot Nebraska: Population 176. A sleepy village in Northeast Nebraska known for producing overly breaded chicken fried steak and rough and tumble men. What you may not know however is Wynot also produced a legendary 8 man football player simply known as Farnsworth. This is the story of a fictitious farm boy who through hard work and grit earned a spot on the roster and in our Husker Hearts.

The Farnsworth’s are a family of farmers. Five generations planted, plowed, and harvested the fertile soil in America’s breadbasket. The family lived by a strict code of Huskers, God, family, and country.

The love of Husker football started early for little Farnsy. Every Saturday the family would gather around the radio to listen to Kent Pavelka scream “Touchdown Tommie Frazier!” After each game he and his dad would light up a cigarette and play a light game of catch in the shadow of their barn.

Playing the game came naturally. Farnsworth dominated his flag football league as a 6 year old and quickly earned a name for himself. He idolized western Nebraska heroes Danny Woodhead and Don Beebe. Even wore the same protective helmet as Beebe in high school.

During his senior year Farnsworth developed a mean streak that college recruiters salivated over. Farnsworth took advantage of the oversized helmet and used the helmet as a weapon. His 22 spearing penalties set the all time Nebraska single season record.

After graduating from high school Farnsworth had a decision to make. He could take over the family farm and live a simple life or he could chase his dreams. Farnsworth was heavily recruited by South Dakota and SDSU but his heart was with the Huskers, so he walked on instead of taking a full ride.

The University of Nebraska was a much different beast then his one room K-12 school in Wynot. Back at home; Farnsworth could always get by with a wink and a smile or by performing certain “favors” for his teacher. Allegedly.
Unfortunately in the classrooms of UNL, Farnsworth quickly realized that a well-defined jawline and chiseled abs couldn’t solve complex mathematical equations.

As spring approached in Lincoln, Farnsworth’s excitement returned. Buckling the chinstrap of that helmet with the Red N was a dream come true. He was back in his comfort zone. Time to do what he did best. Play football!

On Day 1 of practice, Coach Held handed out the playbooks to the players and it might as well have been a quantum physics textbook for Farnsworth. “What on earth is a Double Y split Red banana sluggo?” He whispered to Ozigbo. He had the physical tools coming out of Wynot but just could not grasp the complex offensive scheme of Coach Frost.

Fast-forward 4 years to his senior year. In his first 3 seasons he never took a snap or even dressed for a game. Any other player would have transferred or quit but that’s not in the Farnsworth DNA! He kept grinding, fully bought in, and trusted the process! His patience was rewarded the Sunday after the Minnesota game when he learned he would dress for the Bethune Cookman game.

When I found out Farnsy would dress I tried to rally support for him in the Husker Power Group on Facebook. I wanted to start a chant of “We Want Farnsworth 👏👏👏👏👏 We Want Farnsworth” between the first and second quarter of the Bethune Cookman game to show our support. I figured 76k Husker fans in the group would rally behind this but needless to say, not everyone was a fan of Farnsworth!
Group member Faye had this to say:

“I have No idea who in hel Farnsworth is,,so googed to ask what position he plays..the response showed 141 players photos, numer and position,,Hoebver NO Farnsworth,,Loks like he is NOT opart of the teamm at thiis point,,so pease do NOT enbaress whomever plays his position by chanting at the game…Maybe at half time and NOT just b4 starting a new quarter..I don’t want us to lose whoomever plays his same posoition,,Enough trouble wiht this team getting their STUFF togther, and your terirble idea could just cause another problem….” Greatest fans in college football?

This negativity did not deter me. My long time friend Brad and myself attended the game Saturday and when the time came we started the chant that echoed throughout Memorial Stadium! Link to the live chant below!

https://youtu.be/q0SLTmfQoFw

Although Farnsworth didn’t see the field Saturday It was plain to see what this gesture from the fans meant to him. I saw him wipe away a few tears and give a simple nod of the head while waving to the crowd. Our support of Farnsworth will never waver!

He might not score on the field but those chiseled abs will endure he always scores with the co-eds.The

Iowa: Swiping Left on Excellence

A chilly fall Saturday during college football season. The chili’s in the crockpot, the coffee is poured, and you are strapping in for an 11 o’clock kickoff between Iowa and Rutgers with Beth Mowins on the call. A slate gray sky producing a light drizzle as 29,000 faithful watch their beloved Hawkeyes.

It’s late in the third quarter with Iowa clinging to a 10-7 lead. A series of unimaginative play calls has Iowa staring at 4th and 2 from the Rutgers 34 yard line. Without the slightest hesitation Kirk sends out the punt team. The sparse crowd goes wild, showering the field with dollar bills as a raucous cheer of “one more year!”echoes through out the half empty stadium. Iowa will find a way to scratch out this win in route to wrapping up another 7-5 season prompting a four-year contract extension for Kirk.

Fast forward to the present. I’m driving on Interstate 80 to a friends house in Waukee Iowa just after 11 AM listening to the Husker pregame show on AM 590 radio. Initially, I wanted to write a heart warming story about the Hawkeye fans waving to the kids at the Children’s Hospital during their home games, but the deeper I drove into enemy territory the more this thought entered my head. The Hawkeye football program reminds me of whenever I open my Tinder app in the greater Des Moines area. As each potential candidate pops up, I find myself constantly dipping my head to the side saying “ehh” Not bad but not great either. Basically, if 7-5 was a state it would be Iowa.

Let me paint you a picture. It’s late Friday night in Waukee, I am finishing off a 12 pack of Busch light from Casey’s, and begin scrolling through Tinder. Through squinted eyes and an elevated blood alcohol content I swipe right on this 36 year-old from Fort Dodge. Boom it’s a match! After a series of what do you like to do for fun messages spanning 2 days, you decide to meet at Applebee’s for happy hour drinks and endless appetizers.

We agree to meet at 8 so I throw on some Buckle jeans with a button down and head out. I’m still a little giddy after watching Nebraska get Coach Frost his first win so I decide to arrive a little early. The hostess seats me where I can watch the Purdue vs Ohio State game when I see Deborah walk in sporting a Hawkeyes sweat shirt. After shaking my head and muttering “Christ”, I walk over to greet her as a true Nebraska man would.

The meal was less than memorable as you would expect from Applebee’s but they did have a beer they called Hawktoberfest that intrigued me. I inquired about the taste and the waitress said, “ehh, it’s not bad.” Even their beer is 7-5. The dinner conversation between Deborah and I is going pretty well. She’s throwing out some over the top sexual innuendos and invites me back to her place.

It’s about a 15 minute drive to her 3 bedroom ranch which allowed me to catch a few minutes of Big Red Overreaction. By the way, I am a complete gentleman and this is something I never do. Deborah and I settle in on the couch and after a few minutes of discussing how great I think Adrian Martinez will be, Deborah leans in for a kiss. Even though it’s not in my nature to move this fast, I meet her half-way for a sensual locking of the lips.

I feel a slight tingle and say to myself, “It’s 4th and 2 and you are in scoring position.” I was born and raised in Nebraska, lived through the Husker glory years, and am accustomed to greatness. We play with no fear of failure and take chances. I’m definitely going for it! However, Deborah is from Iowa. She grew up with empty trophy cases and years of mediocrity. It’s 4th and 2 for Deborah and without hesitation she punts. We end up watching Double Impact on Netflix and I leave with a hug and thanks for dinner.

The moral of the story is this. Iowa football will always swipe left on a chance at greatness.

Making Brownies with Scott Frost

Nobody in Husker nation is happy with being 0-6 right now! I myself never thought I would see a season like this. Let’s be honest, if you actually watched all six games you know we should at worst be 3-3. Am I abandoning ship? No! Am I trusting the process? You’re Go Big Red I am!

I attended my first game as a one-year-old child in 1975. Opening game in Memorial Stadium against the LSU Tigers! You remember that one, Jarvis Redwine running wild in route to a 10-7 victory! What I remember most about the game was sitting with this beautiful redhead Farrah. My dad had a series of extramarital affair‘s and Farah was his current side piece. She tore pieces of Runza bread and fed me while cheering loudly for Big Red! I put my trust in her to feed me pieces small enough where I wouldn’t choke. Sound familiar current Husker fans?

The Huskers were a dominant force in the early and mid 90s. Their confidence was at an all-time high, they took what they wanted, and looked good doing it. In 2001 something changed all of that. Was it the 62 to 36 shellacking by Colorado? Was it the firing of Solich that sent us spiraling into mediocrity?

The rise and fall of the Huskers is almost a direct parallel to my life in my mid 20s. I was single, In great shape, and dominated the Omaha dating scene. I was confident and had my pick of those fine West O Honey’s. Like the Huskers though, I got cocky and complacent. I didn’t prepare as hard, I changed my pick up lines, and changed my cologne. It was an utter disaster.

I could have given up. I could have settled for some methed out tweaker from Council Bluffs. Ie. Callahan, Pelini, and Riley. I kept grinding though, and after 20 years of bad dates and failed relationships I’m back on top… literally. We have to trust the process!

There will be some bumps in the road. This team is loaded with young talent. Guys like Martinez Washington and Farnsworth are too good to fail! Do you ever make brownies and notice there are some lumps? Did you toss them in the trash? Hell no! You eat them because they are brown and delicious just like our Huskers! I actually have a great recipe on Pinterest if any of you are interested.

I want to keep this brief. Back the Big Red, bundle up for the incoming Frost Warning, and for the love of God stop making those terrible Frosted Husker t-shirts! GBR!