Amazing Sports Weekend

I have been writing my sports column off and on for five years now on this website. In those five years, I have NEVER experienced a sports weekend like this as a Wisconsin sports fan. It’s one of those weekends that I will look back on years from now and think to myself, did I truly enjoy it!

Let’s start the recap of the weekend with the unlikeliest of teams to be talked about in the month of October, the Milwaukee Brewers. The Brewers are making their fourth playoff appearance not this decade, but in my lifetime (or another words four decades). In my opinion, they are one of the worst professional sports franchises in the history of American professional sports.

So here are the Brewers in the playoffs for the first time since 2008 and the second time since 1982. And unlike three years ago, they are actually winning. Saturday they got an incredible outing from Yovanni Gallardo in a 4-1 win. And then Sunday, the offense took over in a 9-4 victory. And suddenly the Brewers are one win away from their first trip to the League Championship Series in 29 years.

But as we all know, football is the #1 sport in this country now. So even though the Brewer post-season victories are nice and refreshing, we are mainly concerned with our football teams. And boy, did they come through this past weekend.

The Wisconsin Badgers were 4-0 and playing incredible football but even I would admit that they hadn’t really played anyone yet. That all changed Saturday night when Nebraska came to town in the Huskers‘ first ever Big Ten game. With Wisconsin #7 and Nebraska #8, the nation was awaiting which team was the real deal. After toying with the Huskers for most of the first half, Heisman Trophy candidate Russell Wilson and the rest of the Badgers took control and demolished Nebraska 48-17.

The Badgers rose to #4 in the poll on Sunday placing them in National Championship contention. That same day, the world champion Packers took the field and did to Denver the same thing Wisconsin did to Nebraska. After a slow start, the Packers completely dominated the second half in a 49-23 victory. Aaron Rodgers threw for four touchdowns and ran for two more. The other touchdown was just your standard Charles Woodson pick six. The Packers remained one of two undefeated teams in the NFL.

All in all, an incredible weekend. And although the Brewers, Badgers and Packers still have a ways to go this season, this will be a weekend we will never forget as Wisconsin sports fans.