Once again The Mess has upped its fan base and rumor has it we are well into double digits! The Mess would like to thank all of you who offered nice comments about the past couple of editions of the Monday Mess. The Mess staff is tremendously underpaid but a kind word goes a long way!
This week’s Monday Mess was written in Hawaii so we could still make the Monday deadline. We apologize to our 14 loyal readers who were not able to kill 15 minutes of a Monday by reading the feature. Unfortunately The Mess staff had a hard time cleaning up all the odds and ends from another wild weekend of Cobber sports - so you have to be content in killing some time on a Tuesday.
The Mess was having a hard time deciding on a theme for this week’s column but after watching the cast, crew and creators of the hit TV show Modern Family rake in Emmy awards like Jenna Green and Katie Vohnoutka rack up kills, The Mess knew there was only one way to go.
This week’s Monday Mess is dedicated to the family. The theme is even more significant since this weekend the Concordia campus will host their annual Family Weekend celebration. It is one of the three best weekends of the year for the Mess (Homecoming- No.1, Cornstock – No.3). There is nothing like the atmosphere around campus with all the families walking around, enjoying the numerous activities and just relishing in being part of the Cobber tradition.
The other reason The Mess would like to salute families in this issue is because of the course of events that occurred on Saturday. The Mess had a nightmarish day (The other Monday Mess theme that was being kicked around in the office) on Saturday. The biggest “Horror Movie” moment came on the football field where the Cobbers lost to St. John’s on the final play/closing seconds for exactly the same number of times that “Friday the 13th” actresses have thought they have offed Jason Voorhees.
The hardest part of the being the SID comes immediately after a heart breaking loss in a very important game. Most of the time, the media is there and wants to interview coaches and players about what just happened. You then have to coax/drag the coaches and players back to the field and get them together with the reporters.
It was brutal on Saturday – it was even worse in 2005.
After the Cobbers lost to SJU in the final seconds in 2005, the entire media wanted to interview the Concordia defensive back that was beat on the game-winning touchdown. I was able to track the player down at the far end of the field. He was completely distraught and about to break down. Little dod I realize the media had followed me over to the spot on the field where the player, and his family, were located and were about to descend upon him for the postgame interview. I then made one of the best decisions of my stint as an SID. I stepped between the player and media and told thema he would be unavailable for comment. To the credit of the local media, they all understood the situation and backed off (I think they realized he would not be a very good interview and that there was not much he could say anyway).
The one shining light in that moment for the Cobber player was the strength of his family as they stood by him and offered comfort.
It was the same way on Saturday. After another heartbreaking loss at home against the Johnnies, I had to go into the locker room and get head coach Terry Horan. He was in the coaches’ room and was just sitting by his locker with a “far away” look on his face. I knew exactly how he was feeling and understood the last thing he wanted to do was rehash the final moments of the game five different times for the TV and newspaper reporters. He finally drew the strength to step outside and that is when the healing family moment happened.
As we were walking out of the locker room and towards the game field, Terry’s kids spotted him and came running towards him screaming, “Daddy, Daddy!” I looked back and saw Terry’s mood lighten up immensely. You could see him suddenly realize that losing a football game wasn’t as important as being surrounded by kids that give you unconditional love.
Terry was then able to go through 30 minutes of interviews, and as always, acted with class and dignity.
In both situations, family members came to the rescue and helped a player and coach get through a tough moment. That’s what families are for and that’s what makes this weekend so special.
The Monday Mess Video of the Week
Once again we offer a touching, inspirational video for the theme of this week’s Monday Mess. This week the video is about two Iraqi boys who were born with birth defects and abandoned shortly after birth. It shows the unbelievable strength of a woman who adopted the two and the amazing healing power of what being a part of a family can do for someone (once again feel free to have some kleenex handy).
The Rest of the Mess
Once again The Mess had a pretty eventful weekend. The previous weekend it was shenanigans with the technical side off being an SID, this past weekend it was personal.
After watching “Friday the 13th Part V” play out on Saturday at the Jake, I thought things could only get better for the rest of the night. Boy was I wrong! Less than an hour-and-a-half after the end of the football game, I had the pleasure of:
1) Realizing the fact that the game stats were really botched up. My usually reliable crew had made a couple of grave entry errors that caused a 45-minute delay in getting out the stats to the media.
2) Having my wife called and telling me she had just gotten back from the ER with my son where he was diagnosed with pneumonia.
3) After 20 more minutes having my daughter called and telling me my wife was now throwing up after coming down with the flu.
4) Having the TV in my office shut down from faulty cable. The one thing that I really look forward to on a Saturday in the fall is watching college football on the TV in my office while I recap all the CC sporting events. Of course the cable went out on Saturday and left me with only the local channels.
So, after mending all the problems and sicknesses (both my son and wife are fine), I finally settled in to get some work done.
The calming stillness was then interrupted at 10 p.m. when I was informed that there was a light on in the football press box (I will now throw the writer from the St. Cloud Times under the bus as he forgot to turn out all the lights after he left ) and that I was the only one they knew of with a key that could turn it off.
I stoped working and went over to the pitch black stadium (for the second straight week). I trudged all the way up the steps, unlocked the gate and door turned off the lights and then locked up the door and gate and headed back down the steps.
I was all the way past the stadium steps and was walking down the ramp that leads to the grass to get to my car when the Security guards hopped out from behind the stairwell and scared the bejeezus out of me.
Apparently they had gotten a call as well and had come over to the stadium as well. They saw me walking up the steps and knew I would turn out the lights, so they decided to play a practical joke on me and hide out in the complete darkness of the stadium.
After having to rest for 30 minutes to allow my heart rate to get back down to 200 beats per minute, I was able to head back to the office and finish off the rest of the night without any more wild events.
Never a dull moment in the Mess’ office!
The Mess Weekend Media Rewind
- Fargo Forum feature article on CC football brothers Cory & Trent Johnson
- Fargo Forum feature on Concordia head athletic trainer Don Bruenjes
- Fargo Forum preview of the Cobbers/St. John’s football game
- Fargo Forum game recap from the Cobber/St. John’s football game
- Fargo Forum game sidebar from the Cobber/St. John’s football game
- St. Cloud Times game recap from the Cobber/St. John’s football game
- St. Cloud Times game notebook from the Cobber/St. John’s football game
The Mess Picture of the Weekend
This week’s picture of the weekend was taken during the football game vs. St. John’s. It has everything The Mess looks for in a game action picture:
1) You can tell right away what is going on in the picture
2) You can see facial expressions and it is not a generic shot taken from a mile away and slapped in a picture gallery (see many other college game pic galleries).
3) It tells a complete story with just a picture (The Mess will not use the cliché, “A picture is worth 1,000 words”).
The pic (click on the picture to see a larger version) was taken right after a phantom “inadvertent” whistle call that took away a Cobber first down. The thing that makes this pic is the pose of the linesman!
The Mess Photo Galleries of the Weekend
Check out the award-winning picture galleries from the weekend. We have had over 1,000 views on these galleries since Saturday night.
- Football vs. St. John’s I
- Football vs. St. John’s II
- Women’s Soccer vs. Gustavus
* Special thanks goes out to Sheldon Green and Isaac Vatnsdal who took the awesome pictures. The Mess is responsible for the very mediocre gallery from the women’s soccer game!
Click here to view all the galleries from the Cobber SID Flickr Page
“Now That’s A Big Mess” Stat Line of the Weekend
This week’s Big Mess Stat Line of the Week goes to the nationally ranked CC volleyball team. The Cobbers are 12-2 on the year but what is even more impressive is the fact that in their last eight wins they have only lost one set! They have a combined set record of 24-1 during that time. The cherry is added to top of the sundae by the fact that four of those eight victories have come against nationally ranked opponents.
Social Media Mess of the Week
Each week we will honor the best Cobber Twitter Tweet or Cobber Facebook post that we come across with our Twitter account or Facebook account
This week’s Social Media Mess of the Week winner comes from the current MIAC Setter of the Week, Amy Sykora. Sykora entered this prophetic gem of a tweet right before playing in the Colorado College Invitational: “ Droppin the hammer, bringin the swag, cord vball repping the 218 #cobbersinthemountains.” The Mess is always impressed by athletes that can talk the talk – and then walk the walk! And a snappy reference to the Moorhead area code is always nice.
Queen of the Mess
This week The Mess honors Queens of the Mess. It is not right to single out one player on the Cobber volleyball team so we are just going to give the award to the whole squad. The CC volleyball gals have gone out and announced themselves on the national stage by going 3-1 at the Colorado College Invitational and beating two teams that were ranked in the top 12 of the country. The Mess can’t remember the last time a Cobber team beat a team ranked in the top 12 of the country – and to do it twice in one weekend, well that just screams – Queens of the Mess!
King of the Mess
One of the CC teams that has flown under the radar so far this fall has been the men’s golf team. Over the weekend the Cobbers finished fourth at the SJU Fall Invite and in the process beat regional rival UW-Eau Claire. The real champion of the weekend was Cobber senior Pat Deitz who fired a 149 and won medalist honors by a single stroke. Deitz is a two-sport athlete at Concordia (hockey) which makes him very adept at hitting things with a piece of graphite. He is having a great summer/fall on the links. Earlier in the summer he was a semifinalist at the prestigious Pine-to-Palm Tournament in Detroit Lakes.
The Tom Burnett Unsung Hero of the Week
Like the Queen of the Mess honor, this week’s Tom Burnett Unsung Hero of the Week has multiple winners. While the Cobber offensive players were stealing the headlines against St. John’s, the defense quietly went about shutting out the SJU offense for the final 42:16 of the game – which included the entire second half. Leading the way for the Cobber “Black Shirts” was the linebacking tandem of Peter Hvidston and Matt Moenkedick. The two combined for 27 tackles and 3.0 tackles for a loss. No one mentioned their names in the game recap and they didn’t get interviewed by any media members after the game, but their presence on the field (which was highlighted by a couple of Ronnie Lott-type hammer tackles) played a big role in CC being able to have a chance to win the game late in the fourth quarter.
The Mess Fans of the Week
Once again The Mess did not receive a nomination for Fan of the Week. We are starting to wonder if Cobber Nation truly cares. We have decided to take it upon ourselves and offer this picture of the fan of the week which was taken at the football home opener against Dickinson State.
The Mess loves the expression on the dog’s face. Who knew a dog was now a “must have” accessory at Cobber football games!
We need reader submissions! Please send your Cobber fan pictures to: cobbersportsinformation@gmail.com. Remember – the winning entry receives a special Cobber prize!
Fresh Mess of the Week – We’re Starting to Get the Hang of This!
For the second straight week the Fresh Mess of the Week goes to a golfer. This week we hand out the award to women’s golfer Amy Mireault. Mireault has been the top CC finisher the past two tournaments and has led the resurgence of Duane Siverson’s Baby Cobbers. Mireault shot a 161 at the DIII Classic this weekend and finished in a tie for ninth place. It is her second straight top 15 finish!
Upcoming Mess Game of the Week
Family Weekend Smorgasborg!!
- Football at home vs. #3 St. Thomas – Saturday at 1 p.m.
- Men’s Soccer at home vs. Carleton – Saturday at 1 p.m.
- #15 Volleyball at home vs. St. Kate’s – Saturday at 3 p.m.
The Mess usually likes to take the “Fine Dining” approach when it comes to the Game of the Week. You know – sit down, enjoy the ambiance, peruse the menu and then pick only one entree to savor throughout the whole meal. This weekend we are going with the “All You Can Eat Buffet” principle. Since it is Family Weekend and there are three home games on Saturday, The Mess invites fans to simply saddle up to the buffet table and enjoy everything on the menu (we promise that our buffet will be clean with no health code violations!).
Fans can catch a 2-for-1 special at the Jake at 1 p.m. when the football team takes on the third-ranked Evil Empire from St. Thomas. At the same time the Cobber men’s soccer team will host Carleton in a key MIAC match-up. After gorging on that main course, fans can then settle in for dessert by watching the No.15-ranked CC volleyball team take on St. Kate’s at 3 p.m in the Olson Forum.
Bon Appétit!
We hope you enjoyed this week’s tribute to the Family and hope you get the chance to take in some of the tremendous Family Weekend activities on campus. If you are unable to make it to Concordia this weekend – at least try and spend some time with your own family!
Feel free to tell your friends about the Mess and don’t forget to check us out on Twitter and Facebook
My best “heading out the to stadium in the dark” story. One year had to run out to the stadium when I realized I’d left a stats monitor cable in the Laird Stadium pressbox that I needed for basketball. I was in a hurry so I was sprinting in the dark (never a good idea) and caught an edge in the sidewalk and totally biffed it. Thankfully the only thing that was hurt was my pride!
Also, thanks for the Cobber bobblehead! I’ll tweet a picture of it once I get it fixed and upright.