920/414 Gopher
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- Jan 11, 2012
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Back in January when the Gophers were playing well, my dad (a Wisconsin fan) and I bought tickets to Saturday of the B1G Tournament in Chicago with the hope that we'd be able to see both our teams play in the United Center. When the Gophers lost to a Brandon Paul buzzer-beater on Thursday, I knew it would be tough to venture into Illinois wearing maroon and gold the following day. Once Illinois lost to Indiana on Friday, however, I figured it would lessen the blow of Thursday's defeat. I was dead wrong.
Friday: We arrived at our hotel downtown on Friday night. The first few hours passed without incident--my dad and I had dinner at Harry Caray's and watched Syracuse/Georgetown at the bar. We had a few beers, the bar was packed, and it was a great atmosphere to be a part of. I was starting to forget all about the recent struggles of our team as I stepped into the restroom, where I looked up to see this newspaper clipping framed on the wall:
http://i1283.photobucket.com/albums/a552/BennyBus32/IMG_1129_zps7d97be4a.jpg
I walked out feeling pretty deflated again, but was determined to have a good weekend.
Saturday: My dad and I made plans to go see the Chicago River dyed green at 10am. Before that, we decided to stop down and grab some breakfast at the hotel restaurant. We hopped in the elevator, took it a few floors down, and as the elevator doors opened to pick up more guests on the 9th floor, we looked up to see none other than John Groce and his family. My dad and I looked at each other, wide-eyed, and I felt obligated to let him know Brandon Paul killed me a little bit on Thursday. He and his family chuckled and we spoke a bit about how it was a sloppy, physical game that fits the B1G so well every year. I couldn't help but feel that this was some sort of cruel joke my dad arranged.
My dad and I had breakfast, went down to the river for awhile, and stopped back at the hotel to grab our stuff and check out before we headed to the United Center. After taking the elevator up a few floors, the doors opened to pick up more passengers...John Groce AGAIN. Everyone shared a laugh as I put my head down and shook it slowly. God must have it in for us Gopher fans (that AND I guess we picked the same hotel that Illinois and OSU happened to be staying at. Go figure).
In all seriousness, the B1G Tournament was a fantastic experience. The United Center did a great job and downtown Chicago is always a good time--never mind that it was St. Patrick's Day weekend. My dad and I have already made plans to attend the event in future years. Who else was there? Anyone have any stories to share?
Here's to hoping our boys put their troubles behind them and come out firing on all cylinders against UCLA! New life.
Friday: We arrived at our hotel downtown on Friday night. The first few hours passed without incident--my dad and I had dinner at Harry Caray's and watched Syracuse/Georgetown at the bar. We had a few beers, the bar was packed, and it was a great atmosphere to be a part of. I was starting to forget all about the recent struggles of our team as I stepped into the restroom, where I looked up to see this newspaper clipping framed on the wall:
http://i1283.photobucket.com/albums/a552/BennyBus32/IMG_1129_zps7d97be4a.jpg
I walked out feeling pretty deflated again, but was determined to have a good weekend.
Saturday: My dad and I made plans to go see the Chicago River dyed green at 10am. Before that, we decided to stop down and grab some breakfast at the hotel restaurant. We hopped in the elevator, took it a few floors down, and as the elevator doors opened to pick up more guests on the 9th floor, we looked up to see none other than John Groce and his family. My dad and I looked at each other, wide-eyed, and I felt obligated to let him know Brandon Paul killed me a little bit on Thursday. He and his family chuckled and we spoke a bit about how it was a sloppy, physical game that fits the B1G so well every year. I couldn't help but feel that this was some sort of cruel joke my dad arranged.
My dad and I had breakfast, went down to the river for awhile, and stopped back at the hotel to grab our stuff and check out before we headed to the United Center. After taking the elevator up a few floors, the doors opened to pick up more passengers...John Groce AGAIN. Everyone shared a laugh as I put my head down and shook it slowly. God must have it in for us Gopher fans (that AND I guess we picked the same hotel that Illinois and OSU happened to be staying at. Go figure).
In all seriousness, the B1G Tournament was a fantastic experience. The United Center did a great job and downtown Chicago is always a good time--never mind that it was St. Patrick's Day weekend. My dad and I have already made plans to attend the event in future years. Who else was there? Anyone have any stories to share?
Here's to hoping our boys put their troubles behind them and come out firing on all cylinders against UCLA! New life.