Attention Freshmen Fanatics:

Sports are a big part of campus life for Marquette.  Take advantage of the events and games  own at Valley Fields, the intense games of volleyball and women’s basketball at the Al McGuire Center, and pack the Bradley Center all season long to cheer on our pride and joy—the men’s basketball team.

All students start fresh in the notorious Fanatic’s Points Tally. The Fanatic’s Points Tally keeps track of all th

Marquette fan section at basketball game

e times you attended Marquette Division I sporting events. The stat sheets for our teams are blank for now, but have the potential to be filled in with mind blowing achievements and numbers that will make the history books. There are so many things taking shape in Marquette athletics that give us high hopes for each of our Marquette teams’ respective seasons. We have a lot to look forward to this year in Marquette sports. As you begin a new chapter in your life on campus after your summer vacations, you can’t help but get that “Blue and Gold” fever. So look out, freshmen, it’s contagious!

Even though our men’s basketball team has not started their season yet, Coach Buzz Williams is drawing up the battle plans for what we hope will be another outstanding and exciting season. The team led by senior star Jimmy Butler, the young and talented Vander Blue and the rest of the team, have all been working hard to build a team chemistry that will keep us atop the Big East Conference once again this year.

With a handful of talented new faces for these young Warriors, the sky is the limit for our success this season. Look forward to being part of the sea of blue and gold in the seats of the Bradley Center come November.

The men’s and women’s soccer teams start off their season just as we students start off our semester. Take advantage of the “Bird Cage” down at Valley Fields and cheer them on. The likes of Calum Mallace, Scott Miller and the rest of our men’s soccer squad will not disappoint. Look out for Natalie Kulla, Lindsey Page and all of our women’s soccer squad. With their impressive style of play they may well be the toast of the conference. These two teams and their seasons look quite promising. You do not want to miss a single corner kick.

Bond Shymansky is set to lead the women’s volleyball team through another successful season. With a talented team, loaded with weapons like Nikki Klingsporn, Rabbecka Gonyo and Ashley Beyer-to name a few, the Al McGuire Center should be a hot spot for all Marquette Athletics enthusiasts to catch some great games and see them display their dominance. They have a lot to live up to because of the high standards

they set last year. The team finds themselves sitting in fourth place in the Big East coaches’ poll to start off the season.

The women’s basketball team will provide some great entertainment for us this year. Pay close attention to this talented group of women and their head coach, Terri Mitchell, as she begins her 15th season. Angel Robinson and Tatiyiana McMorris, two of the many talented players on the team, are without a doubt getting their team ready to turn some heads this season, whether it is from behind the arc or at the rim.

When their season rolls around, be sure to pack “the Al” to let them see our support.

Look forward to the cross country, track and field, golf, men’s and women’s tennis teams and their performances as well. They are loaded

with talent and will give our University an even more respectable name in today’s collegiate sports world through their hard work, leadership

and athletic talent. Be sure to keep tabs on all our athletes. Year after year they make us proud!

So, freshmen, you have been accepted and are attending a high quality university and so it is expected that you have a high quality pride for our “Blue and Gold.” Show the rest of the students, the University and the entire world that you have what it takes to be a Marquette fanatic. Wear your blue and gold with pride and show up to as many games and events as  possible. Fill the bleachers, be loud, and take advantage of the top quality of play from your Marquette Athletic teams, whether it be down by the river at Valley Fields, in the heart of campus at the Al McGuire Center, or the one and only Bradley Center just a few blocks away. Most of all do whatever it takes to show that WE ARE MARQUETTE!

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Many college students reminisce about their high school exploits on the sports field. An amazing catch in the outfield, a perfect jump shot to win the game, making the playoffs in the high school hockey league. But of all things, the most prominent memories are those made on the high school grid iron. Many of these experiences are left to faint recollection as students move on to college, where competition is fierce to earn a spot on the squad. Some universities don’t have varsity teams at all. However, there are those who find a place to play at their school, merely for the love of the game. It’s called club football, and for Sophomore Matthew Rainey it’s his way of continuing his high school passion. Far from all the pressures and politics of Division 1 athletics, right here at Marquette, a young group of students come together a few times a week and perfect their game, testing their mettle against their peers here. The goal? Saturday’s game.

For Rainey, it’s all about the love of the game, “I like the camaraderie, and the chance to continue to play the sport I love. I didn’t think I’d get the chance to play football again after high school, I thought it was over. This gives me the chance to continue to play football, and that’s a great feeling.” “The great thing about football is that it’s really a team sport. When one person fails the team fails. If I look over and the guy next to me is struggling, I’m struggling too. You really learn to rely on each other and build that brotherhood.” The team doesn’t just stop at the field either. “We go hang out on the weekends, and everyone of us is a student here,” says Gorham. The best part for some is the relaxed atmosphere. Most players like that they only have to practice twice a week and still get the college experience, while playing football without all the politics.

So, who does our club team play? What’s the season like? The Golden Eagles start practice in August as the school year begins. They practice every day for about two to three weeks to develop cohesion and have a solid base to work from. This also helps knock off the dust and get everyone back in shape for the season. As the school year starts the team scales it back to two days a week to ensure that no one’s studies suffer. Game days vary between Saturday and Sunday depending on the match up that week. Generally when they play Division 3 schools the game is typically Saturday. For conference games against other club teams the games are usually on Sunday. The season spans eight games during the fall semester. The team battles other clubs like Miami Ohio, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, and SIU Edwardsville, as well as Division 3 teams like Concordia of Wisconsin and UW Parkside.

Marquette’s Club also plays a short spring season. “The spring is more or less for recruiting purposes and to dust off our game. We get out there and hit some people. It’s a chance to develop our offense with our new players and really a great time to have some fun,” Rainey says. This year the team will cap their spring season with a scrimmage against University of Wisconsin-Parkside.

With recent rumors circulating about the possibility of a D1 football team Gorham doesn’t seem worried that it will affect the club negatively. “The great part about club football is that it’s for the love of the game, the guys we play with now could have easily played on a D3 team no problem and maybe even on a D1 squad. We love football, and we chose to take on the academic challenge at Marquette. It would be cool to have a D1 team but I don’t think that it would detract from the club at all.”

So…where do I sign up? Marquette Club football maintains a web site at www.marquetteclubfootball.com. Here, interested students can find rosters, practice schedules and contact information for players and the officers of the club. If you have any questions about joining, dues, or anything else you can also send an email to   marquettefootball@yahoo.com and an officer will respond as quickly as possible. Even easier, show up to a practice and talk to one of the staff. Have a friend on the team…that works too. If you love football, then this is the place to play.

by Joe Defelice
joseph.defelice@mu.edu

Marquette Club Football Team (Photos courtesy of Marquette Football)

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Last weekend Chicago played host to the annual rugby All-Star tournament for the Midwest. Wisconsin, which is perennially seen as the powerhouse of the tournament, was one of just eight teams that participated in the tournament hosted by the Local Area Union (LAU). This year Marquette was well represented in the tournament, sending four players to the All-Star tournament which tied for most amongst any college in Wisconsin.

The four players represent the depth of Marquette’s club team. Seniors Adam Kreutter, Austin Ryan, Kevin Ryan and Vince Kelly each played for the Wisconsin All-Star team with most of them having earned multiple selections. Austin and Adam were selected for their third consecutive selection while Kevin earned his second selection. This is especially impressive considering that just four years ago Marquette’s club team did not have anyone represent the Golden Eagles in Chicago.

The tournament is broken down into two tiers each containing four teams. The first tier is comprised of the top four teams from the Midwest as determined from the previous year’s tournament, with the second tier containing the remaining four teams. The winner of the first tier is deemed champion of the Midwest while the loser of both games is forced to swap places with the victor of the second tier.

Wisconsin entered this year’s tournament as the reigning champion, and found itself sitting pretty with a number one seed. Wisconsin’s dominance has been so prevalent that it has assumed a dynasty-esque appearance over the past decade so expectations were high for this year’s team. Combine that with the fact that Marquette’s four reps were seniors, it isn’t hard to see how bad they wanted to win another championship. Wisconsin has proved their run as a dynasty by winning four of the past five Midwest All-Star tournaments and this year showed no reason why they should not repeat.

Wisconsin opened their weekend slate Saturday afternoon against arch-rival Minnesota and looked to score an early win from a hated opponent. Unfortunately, after a tough fought out game Wisconsin fell 25-17 in a heart wrenching loss. After a big team dinner and plenty of sleep, the Wisconsin all-stars followed on Sunday and pounded Iowa 29-0 in a game that was never close. Kreutter summed up the feeling saying, “Before this year we had won four of five, so definitely we wanted to defend our title, we just weren’t able to.”

Next year’s all-star team will go down as the number three seed and once again will be faced to match up with the second seeded Minnesota once again which fell in the championship to Ohio. Since Iowa was unable to score a victory they will be sent to the second tier and forced to play their way back to the top tier.

Although all fours reps from Marquette were seniors, it has not lowered expectations for more players being invited by the Wisconsin team in the coming years. When asked whether Marquette is expected to send anyone next year, the assistant captain, Austin Ryan simply replied, “Definitely! We had thirteen guys tryout this year and almost all of them could easily be on the team next year.”

Kreutter, a senior in the College of Engineering, completely agreed saying that, “Marquette’s team is filled with all-star caliber talent and the fact that four of us made the team shows the depth of the entire team not just the individual players.”

Although MU’s involvement in the tournament is extraordinary, each of the players noted the importance of moving past simply a Marquette affiliation and identifying themselves as the Wisconsin team. Ryan claimed that it was actually one of the best parts of the tournament, because “the ability to build camaraderie across the state and allows us to compete with others across the Midwest that take rugby seriously.”

The ability to play alongside some of the best players in the state, not to mention the Midwest, means that rivalries with other schools are temporarily forgotten in favor of the ability to represent this great state. Kreutter remembered a specific instance about which he said “I really could not stand this one guy from Wisconsin-Whitewater whenever we played them, but once I played with him my opinion quickly changed and we became great teammates.”

The importance of cohesion is shared by Ryan who lamented that “At this tournament, individuals do not win games, which was why we lost our first game. A lack of team cohesion is one of the biggest weaknesses a team can have.

Wisconsin is a team that specifically focuses on team cohesion, making the loss due to individualistic play that much harder to swallow. After they trimmed down the original 70 Wisconsin all-star hopefuls to the final 25, they have two scrimmages that focus largely on cohesion. This cohesion has proved invaluable for the players under the system as many have their play elevated to a whole new level. Two-time all-star Kevin Ryan recalled what his first selection did for his game saying, “After playing at a higher level, it gives a perspective of where you are, and allows you to elevate your own expectations. This improvement is hard to see at a local level.”

The exposure to some of the best talent is also the direct result of the ability to play under some of the best coaches in the Midwest. The rugby players’ performance also provides a great opportunity to showcase their skills allowing them potentially to play for the Midwest team. Austin Ryan performance warranted an invite to the Midwest Developmental game a great accomplishment. The depth of Wisconsin has been continually proven by past players as over the past 5 years; three guys have gone on to play for the All-American team.

Regardless of the outcome in Chicago, all four players agreed that it was an incredible experience. Hopefully
the recent past will prove true next year as Marquette hopes to once again send more players to represent Wisconsin in the 2011 All-Star game.

by Joe Beres
anthony.beres@mu.edu

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There is no question; Saturday’s loss to Notre Dame was hard to watch. When I think about the final fifteen seconds of regulation that loss becomes even more heart wrenching; Buzz why did we not just foul any of their players and take a one-point lead with the ball?

I am sure he had his reasons and after the job he’s done this year it is hard to question a call he made, but as the potentially last game I am going to see at home for quite awhile I need to blame someone. The loss on Senior Night was probably the hardest for Hayward, Cubillan and Acker, guys who have poured their heart and soul into this team over the past four years. But I know for me, each of these guys have been crucial elements to my continued obsession of basketball over my past four years at Marquette.

It is not even that Marquette lost, but that once again that we had to go through a fourth overtime in five games with fingers crossed, and this time our luck ran out. It is made all the worse by the fact that it ran out against the Fighting Irish of all teams. I am being completely honest when I say I would rather have lost to Depaul again then to Notre Dame. But the one good thing about Saturday’s loss was that in the long run it meant about as little as it could.

Yeah, the Golden Eagles could have picked up some ground in the eyes of the national public, but that is about as far as the damage went. Saturday was more about what was not gained instead of what was lost. With that being the last regular season game we kept our vital fifth seed in the Big East and even with a win the Golden Eagles could not have gotten the coveted double-bye.

We are still considered locks for the Big Dance and with Selection Sunday coming up this weekend it does not look like we are in any danger of losing that lock status. Heck, as long as Marquette can pull off at least one victory in the Big East tournament it probably did not even change where the Selection Committee is going to seed us. Aside from the wounded pride, this was a game that is not going to come back and haunt Marquette.

Right now most analysts have MU somewhere between a ten and a seven seed. A spot we have been in that spot for the past couple weeks, so unless we make a fairly deep run in New York that range should be expected come Sunday. That being said, Marquette has a strong chance to reach the semi-finals if not further in the Big East Tournament.

The Golden Eagles are playing either St. John’s or UConn for their first game Wednesday at 1 CST (do not forget to set an alarm). I think the Huskies are going get past St. John’s but either team can pull off the win and both are going to provide some stiff competition for Marquette. UConn is an especially difficult case because their inconsistent play means that any given game they can beat the best teams in the Big East (just ask West Virginia). However, either way I think Marquette can get past both teams because we have already both teams once this year on the road.

That would mean that the Golden Eagles would then match up with a struggling Villanova team. I know the Wildcats have not played their best ball lately, but I think this is going to be a battle to the wire because in case you have not seen any game the past four years: Scottie Reynolds is ALWAYS on fire when he plays Marquette. I do not expect this game to be anything different, so if we want to win Reynolds has to be shut down.

Provided we get past the first two rounds, Marquette would have to presumably match up against a stacked Syracuse team. I realize Syracuse was just beaten by Louisville for a second time, but this team has no holes and is my pick to win not just the Big East tournament, but the Big Dance as well. That combined with the prospect of Hayward, Butler and Johnson-Odom having to play a 30+ minute game three days in a row is not promising. Even if we lose this game, you can be rest assured it will be close because Marquette loves the nail biters.

If we can win two games in the Big East Tournament and keep it close in the semi-finals, a 6 seed is not out of the question. This would give Marquette a strong chance to win at least one game in the NCAA Tournament. Regardless of our seeding come Sunday, if you like MU basketball your thirst will hopefully be quenched for the rest of the week.

by Joe Beres
anthony.beres@mu.edu

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Last Monday’s game against Cincinnati was another ‘Marquette style game.’ Following Marquette women’s basketball is always exciting because it always has that unpredictable ending. The best minutes of the game are always the last five minutes of the game. This was another one of those games.

On Senior night, the last home game of the season, senior Lauren Thomas-Johnson played superbly. With a total of 17 points, including scoring 10 of her 12 points in OT, it was nearly a perfect game. Senior Janelle Harris racked up six points as well, which helped the team come out of a five game losing streak dating back to a February 13 loss to Providence at home.

The game started out close, with the Cincinnati Bearcats leading 12-5 early. The score would remaine close all the way up to half time; Marquette went into the locker room at the end of the half with a 32-28 lead over the Bearcats. During the first half, Jessica Pachko had some great baskets as well, scoring 4 points for Marquette under the basket, and hitting Paige Fiedorowicz for two back-to-back buckets. Fiedorowicz then went on to make two more shots, giving her a total of eleven points before the end of the first half.

In the second half, Tatiyiana McMorris showed off a little with a three pack of beautiful 3’s, netting Marquette 9 crucial points. Pachko returned and put some solid baskets in, putting up a couple baskets in the second half, including her first-ever three-pointer. Scores of both Cinncinati and Marquette in the second half were neck-and-neck, until McMorris and Pachko put Marquette up 57-51, with 4:05 left to play. Then, with 4.5 seconds left, Cincinnati’s Shareese Ulis made a lay-up, tying the score at 57-57.

With five minutes to get the job done in overtime, Marquette got to work early with Thomas-Johnson scoring ten points, and had some help from McMorris, as well as Fiedorowicz who was able to chip in two. Cinncinati, for their part, keep it close with a jump shot by Ulis and two free throws by Kahla Roudebush, but ultimately it was not enough. Thomas-Johnson’s last shot brought the final score to 69-63.

All in all, the game was as exciting as it gets. As Lauren Thomas-Johnson said in her comments after the game, “This game we just smiled…it was a fun game…we basically just had fun.” With a win and an attitude like this, the women’s basketball team was able to carry their momentum for another win at Villanova before tripping up Depaul in a ten point loss.

by Joanna Parkes
joanna.parkes@mu.edu

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The Dobbs', Osterman, and Blassman pause to Take a photo with the Competition

For centuries the art of fencing has captured the minds of soldiers, artists, and historians alike. For generations, Hollywood has bedazzled us with choreographed sword battles in classics like The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers, Pirates of the Carribean, and The Princess Bride. In today’s age many people wonder where they can go to learn this electrifying form of art and competition. Well, for Erika Ruhl, and many other students here at Marquette, that place is just a short stroll away. So…What is fencing some of you may ask. Very simply put, fencing, originally derived from the word defense, is the art of fighting with a light, one-handed sword. And while the days of defending one’s honor at noon on the courtyard are long gone, the art of Fencing has survived in various forms including an Olympic sport. The term generally refers to the European schools of swordsmanship, mostly those of the French and Italians. “Other systems of fencing, like the Spanish and Portuguese have pretty much been lost,” says Charley Dobbs, a Sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, eight year fencer, and coach of the Marquette Club. Generally beginners learn with the foil which has a more limited target area and strike surface, you may only strike with the point. They later move to the epee and finally the sabre, which is both a thrusting and slashing weapon. Each sword adds more target areas, and a wider use of the blade surfaces. “The progression is really important,” says Ruhl, “you start small and you slowly add more danger, and more options.” While fencing has traditionally centered around a progression of these three weapons, Marquette’s club is the first group to pioneer a new format for bouting. This format includes other weapons such as the short sword and the rapier. Each bout is scored in the form of touches. The goal is to land as many touches on your opponent as you can while sustaining as few as possible to yourself. Usually the limit is three or five touches, but some tournaments play up to ten or fifteen. A fencer has achieved a true zero when they win a tournament without ever being touched. To really motivate people towards that true zero the club has purchased a prize for their next tournament. “The first person to get a true zero in a tournament will be the proud owner of this fine transitional rapier,” Dobbs says, hefting the sword proudly. Marquette usually competes in at least two tournaments a year, both co-hosted with their sister school in St. Louis. “It’s great to train with our friends, a lot of times it helps to have a fresh set of eyes to critique us and help us improve,” says Dobbs. Recently the Marquette club has been holding or attending seminars and importing some masters from around the nation to broaden its horizons as well.

A typical practice, like many other sports, consists of drills that help provide a solid foundation in the fundamentals of fencing.  A night’s training begins and ends with the traditional eight-count salute, led by the instructor and mimicked by all of the learners. It’s a sign of mutual respect that shares lineage with other forms of salute and ceremony, such as a military hand salute, or the bows exchanged before a Karate match. After the salute, Charley or another senior member of the club takes the group through footwork drills that teach fencers to quickly react to their opponent’s movements and maintain a proper distance between them. They also learn the proper way to lunge and recover afterward. Another basic principle that they must master is to maintain a “line,” in fencing the action takes place in a straight line, if the line is broken you are probably opening yourself up to an attack.

But Practice isn’t merely about the fighting, it’s also about history, the culture of fencing. “I’m an anthropology major, so I love it when we learn about the history behind the skills we are practicing,” says Ruhl. “I don’t really like bouting as much as I like learning the techniques and strategy behind it. I love being able to watch someone and help them identify ways that they can improve.”

Why fencing? “I joined when I saw the booth at O-Fest. I saw swords. Swords are cool,” says Mike Osterman, a junior in the college of Arts and Sciences. Two and a half years later he’s still coming back for more, “it’s a good group, a society, we all share a great bond.” For others like Colleen Herman, fencing is a welcome break from the stress of school, “I expressed interest on one of those freshman surveys and I got an email a few weeks later, it’s my break from work, and it’s also good physical activity.” Colleen is a Freshman here at Marquette and plans to continue fencing as long as she can.

“It’s not always fencing either,” said one fencer, “Sometimes we get together and get pizza, watch a movie, or just hang out.” Speaking of movies, I’m sure some of you are wondering how your favorite sword master on television stacks up to the real deal. “It’s important to remember that Hollywood creates an illusion to pump up the entertainment factor in their movies. Some movies are fairly good at choreographing a realistic fight, others are completely the opposite. Most usually fall somewhere in between, they do some things right and others wrong. It’s fun for us as fencers to watch it and be able to critique it ourselves.”

The Marquette Fencing club meets every Tuesday and Thursday night at 6:00PM in the practice space by bookmarq under Campus Town East. New Members are always welcome. Also, check in at www.thewarrior .org to see some fencers in action.

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While everyone else at Marquette was sitting by their-lonely-selves this past weekend, the Navy Reserve Officer Training Corps program sent 18 of its finest basketball players to the Notre Dame Flyin’ Irish Tournament. As the country’s largest basketball tournament for ROTC teams, the Navy Men and Women’s teams competed against 53 other Navy and Marine Corps, Army and Air Force teams and both brought some hardware back to Milwaukee.

The tournament is set up in a bracket formation in which brackets of four teams play against each other for the chance to move on. For the men there were eleven brackets which automatically sent the best team into the single elimination tournament, while sending the five next best teams. The women had only eight brackets, and only the bracket winners were deemed worthy to move on.

The men’s team began the trip with a dominating 39 point victory over University of Indiana’s Air Force, and then beat the “Instant Thunder” of Virginia Polytechnic Institute (or, more commonly known as Virginia Tech) with a convincing 11 point victory. Finally, Marquette Navy men towered over Western Michigan with an impressive 75-25 victory which the sent the men’s team riding high into the playoffs. In the first round of the playoffs, the men lost 43-27 to rival Wisconsin-Madison’s Air Force ROTC team in one of the most physical games of the entire tournament. Senior Joe Beres’ expectation of the game did not match up with the result, “We sought retribution for our varsity team’s pre-season 73-62 loss over Wisconsin, but that didn’t quite pan out. Still, it was a fun and fulfilling experience.” What are you going to do now, Joe? “I’m going to Disneyworld.”

The Navy women on the other hand swiftly defeated opponents Michigan, Iowa State, and Illinois Institute of Technology. Then in the first round of the playoffs, the Navy women beat South Dakota State (a team that prevented their chances from going to the playoffs in 2009) by 18. In the championship round for the women, Marquette Navy lost a heartbreaker to previous tournament winner IUPUI. Despite the loss, captain DonnaJo Meyer said of her team, “We did a really good job improving from our first game to our last. We played a very athletic team [in the championship], but stayed calm and collected, and our three freshmen players [Courtney Martin, Aracely Macias, Nikkol Rajkovacz] really stepped up.” The number one seeded Navy women lost by 3 points, with a final score of 28-25.

Marquette Navy won seven of nine overall and outscored their opponents by over 120 points. Notable players included monster-rebounder Theodore Linn and finesse sharpshooter Michael Tomsic on the men’s side, and offensive powerhouse Courtney Martin and defense-penetrating DJ Meyer on the Women’s. This year’s teams brought home three trophies, two for division wins (men and women) and one for the women’s runner-up. To add to the success of this year’s Notre Dame tournament showing was the varsity team’s exciting 70-68 finish over UConn, Marquette’s third win against ranked opponents. Oh, and it was AT UConn.

Next year look for Marquette’s Navy teams to do even better, with only a total of three seniors graduating this May. At this rate, they might be able to get themselves a champion’s trophy.

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A couple issues ago there was an article that compared the physical youth of Aaron Rodgers against the seasoned veteran of Brett Favre. Well after twelve games for both quarterbacks, it is time to revisit the debate and see which one is winning out.

Green Bay Packer’s Head Coach Mike McCarthy has been under intense scrutiny this whole season. He has been mocked by NFL fans at sports bars and ESPN Pundits alike. No, it is not because of a losing record or awful play calling. In fact many people forget that the Packers were 7-4 going into Monday night’s game against the Ravens and in the thick of the wildcard race. No, Mike McCarthy has been blasted this season because of Brett Favre’s performance with the Vikings. Football fans across the country this season have wondered how the Packers let this quarterback get away from them after being deemed as “too old to play”.
Well in reality, Coach McCarthy never said that about Brett Favre and really never made the decision to not have Favre on his team. Brett made that decision when he retired…the first time. With Brett Favre’s performance in Minnesota, NFL fans have almost forgotten that Green Bay already has a younger Pro Bowl bound quarterback in Aaron Rodgers. McCarthy may not have expected Brett Favre to have an incredible and drama-filled career after his departure from Green Bay, but its time people get off of his case because he made the right decision.

Okay. Right now everyone has to be wondering how I can say the Packers would not be playing better without Brett Favre on their team. In all honesty, if you look at the stats, it might look like the old gunslinger might have thrived in Mike McCarthy’s offense. Through week 13, he has thrown for 3149 yards with 26 touchdowns, only five interceptions and a passer rating of 108.5.

One stat that people forget to look at though is the number of times he has been taken to the ground by opposing defenders. Over the past 13 weeks, Favre has only been hit 57 times, while Aaron Rodgers has been hit 72 times through 11 games. Even though Rodgers has played behind a far inferior offensive line in comparison to Minnesota’s line lead by All Pro Steve Hutchinson, he still is on pace to out pass Favre’s 2007 stats. That is the same year they went to the NFC Championship Game.

More importantly, you cannot believe that a 40 year old man coming off of arthroscopic surgery to complete a tear in his throwing arm would survive an entire season with the Packer’s line. Favre would reinjure himself one way and the Packers would be in the same situation they are in today except Aaron Rodgers would have a lot less experience and confidence.

Speaking of injuries, it was exactly two years ago this week that Brett Favre hobbled off of the field in Dallas after two first half interceptions with shoulder and elbow injuries. Aaron Rodgers stepped in and threw for over 200 yards and a touchdown with 69% completion rate. It’s easy to see McCarthy’s logic when Brett Favre unretired himself. One choice is the legendary quarterback who has played well, but is very injury prone and has a tendency to throw interceptions in critical games and the other is a first-round draft choice with only upsides who has had his team build around him for two years now. McCarthy chose Rodgers and as they say, the rest is history.

So here we are today. Both quarterbacks are playing well, but if you watched this past Sunday night game, you may have noticed a change in Favre. In the Vikings loss to Arizonia, Favre threw two picks even though he had only thrown three in all of his previous games. Both interceptions were not overthrown passes or ones caused by a deflection from a defensive player. Both were thrown while Favre was under pressure and he forced a pass to one receiver who was well covered by multiple defenders. Classic Brett Favre picks. No doubt the ones Packers fans would see plenty of if Favre was under the pressure Rodgers has been under this season, and who has only thrown five interceptions himself.

You can pass it off as just an off game for an otherwise great player. Even Peyton Manning and Tom Brady have bad days, but then you remember this time last year. The Jets looked like great super bowl contenders with an 8-3 record going into a final five game stretch. In those final five games, Brett Favre blew the team’s playoff hopes with an abominable 1-4 record, throwing for only two touchdowns versus nine interceptions with a dismal passer rating of 55.4.

Could this be history repeating itself for Brett Favre? Only time will tell, but if you were a playoff contending team fighting for a wildcard spot like the Packers, would you really want this 40 year old gunslinger leading your team? Fortunately for Mike McCarthy, that is one decision he will not have to make.

by Bradley Wilson
bradley.wilson@mu.edu

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Okay, so Marquette is not going to be able to run the table for the rest of the non-conference schedule nor does it look like our lack of size is a non-factor. If the past two games against North Carolina State and Florida State showed the Golden Eagles anything, it was that this season is going to have plenty of ups and downs. After defeating what appeared to be a high-caliber Michigan team in the semifinals of the Old Spice Classic, Marquette looked poised to walk away with a rather unexpected early season tournament crown.

Enter Florida State’s 7’1” center Solomon Alabi and all of a sudden there comes a crashing reality check. Marquette’s lack of size has finally caught up with the Golden Eagles and as long as other teams can find a rhythm with their big man we could be in a world of hurt. Additionally, when looking back to Marquette’s win against then fifteenth ranked Michigan, the win seems to be far less impressive considering the Wolverines dropped the next two games against Alabama and Boston College. Two teams that are not expected to make the NCAA tournament this year. Then considering the fact that we lost to a North Carolina State team that is supposed to be among the bottom-feeders of the ACC, Marquette’s fast start all of sudden seems to not look quite so fast. The fact that Marquette had double digit leads to start the second half for both losses is even more disturbing because it shows that while the Golden Eagles are struggling late in games; teams are learning that all they need to do is feed the ball to their centers while our guys hopelessly flail their arms in a pointless attempt to disrupt their shot.

This is not all to say that the Golden Eagles are doomed for the rest of the season and that if we come out with ten wins it will be a successful year. It does mean that our expectations are not the same as last year. This is not even to say that our expectations are lower than last year because it is not inconceivable that Hayward and the gang could pull off some impressive upsets against teams that are not sure how to approach a team with the first radically new look since at least 2005 (the year the big three started at MU). All this is saying is to be cautious when listening to the four letter network as they tend to buy into and dismiss teams way too early. Considering the hype Marquette got after they “upset” Michigan it is easy to see the way that a certain network likes to praise and dismiss teams. We ourselves do not know exactly what kind of team this new squad is, let alone anybody outside the program. The rest of the NCAA community has been all too willing to display their ambivalence towards Marquette’s talents.

Consider that in the first three polls that were released Marquette despite being undefeated (albeit to less than quality teams) did not even get a single vote in either poll (heck even Cornell got a single stinkin’ vote, Cornell!). After they beat Michigan and then lost to Florida State they received the third highest amount of votes of any team not ranked in the Coaches Poll (fifth highest in the USA Today Poll). Finally after losing to an admittedly sub-par power conference team they went back to receiving zero votes much like Cornell. Now I realize the polls mean very little but still it goes to show everyone that no one is quite sure what to make of this hodge-podge team that has been racked by injuries early in the season. Therefore my request would be this: do not jump on either band wagon quite yet as there are still a couple games coming up that will really show our place among the upper echelon in NCAA hoops this year.

The next big test is obviously going to be the big game against those Madisonians directly west down I-94. No, I did not forget about Milwaukee but honestly that game did not matter in the scheme of things even though I realize that they are a cross-town rival and it is always a fun game. Well here is the thing, that team has not shown nearly the threat that Wisconsin has and that game while fun is honestly forgettable in the scheme of things. The Devil dashing Badgers are the real concern because it is a team that has shown that their utterly boring and completely systematic attempt to bore other teams to death actually still works even without some of their usual all-stars. Through Bo Ryan’s same annually effective offense, Wisconsin has once again sneaked their way back into the rankings while simultaneously showing teams how boring a game can be made with the right kind of approach. Yes, their close game against Duke came down to the wire, but I swear only UW-Madison could make such a close game against such a high-profile team like the Blue Devils lose its intensity. However, Badger bashing aside, this team did still beat one of the top ten teams in the country and this upcoming game is going to show Marquette what kind of team they really are. If the Golden Eagles can pull off a win in the Kohl Center utilizing their fast-paced guard orientated offense, it will go a long way in giving this team some sort of identity.

Marquette is more or less about to begin a grueling schedule starting at the end of the month so they are going to need to rack up as many non-conference games they can get their hands on by the time they open their schedule against their Big East schedule against a high powered West Virginia team. From that game on we have two games against Villanova and a game at home against Georgetown before any sort of relief is provided in the form of Providence. If Marquette’s confidence is not sky high by the time we head to West Virginia it is not impossible that this team could look at four or even five losses before their first Big East win. Do not get me wrong I do not think this is a team that will start off that poorly and I think if we can come away with a split in those four games (which is entirely possible), that it would be considered a success for any team in basketball.

Marquette’s main concern is Wisconsin on December 12 so that needs to be their only thought right now. However, I do not think that the two early losses to Florida St. and NC St. are big deals as long as the Golden Eagles just take advantage of the rest of their non-conference schedule. Who knows maybe Marquette will even see themselves back into the rankings just in time to face WVU in Morgantown.

by Joe Beres
anthony.beres@mu.edu

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The Marquette Golden Eagles, led by Jimmy Butler, manhandled the Centenary Gents 85-62 last Friday and walked away with a win in the opening game of the season. The win came without the help of the big three who graduated last year and left Marquette with only one of their starters from last year and little chance of being a legitimate Big East contender. Okay, so it was Centenary, a school with less than two thousand students and a team that had lost its two best players from transfers. And yes, it is a school that is starting a transition from a Division I school all the way down to Division III. I get all that and yet I am still impressed by Marquette’s performance Friday night.

There are three big reasons why I loved Friday’s game, the first and foremost being that MU basketball has officially kicked off. Another reason is that Jimmy Butler was able to take the team on his shoulders and slice the Gents’ D for a career high 27 points and that is not even mentioning his 13 boards. This is huge because it shows Buzz and the rest of MU nation that all the pressure may not have to be placed on Lazar Hayward. Butler is apparently ready to help in the role of the team’s star player. In fact, we could be looking at a dynamic duo, something that was not expected earlier in the year. Seeing If Butler can continue to light up the score board like that he may be able to fly under the radar up until Big East play. That is because teams are still going to be expecting the same player that averaged only 5.6 points a game last year. Yes truth be told we must realize that we were not playing the most defensively gifted team, but still 27 points is 27 points. From the looks of it he is going to be a threat to put up a double-double every night. However, it obviously was not just Butler playing out there and the entire team looked sharp and was able to avoid an early roadblock against Centenary.

Conveniently that leads to the third reason why Friday left me feeling pretty good about our squad this year. The fact that we beat the Gents soundly is a good sign because in the past Marquette has let lesser teams hang around in games, provided those teams survive the opening minutes. I know what you might be saying, Centenary was leading at one point with nine minutes left in the first, how is that a good sign? Well here’s how, we were able to overcome a slight surge by the Gents (10 point run) and soundly put them away for the rest of the game. I for one found this to be a good sign because there is nothing worse than being in the spot Mississippi St. is in and lose the home opener. That is not even considering the fact that it was a loss to a team that was supposed to increase the post season résumé. This win is important considering the fact that Marquette is going to need every win it can get its hands on if the NCAA tournament is going to be a legitimate goal. Plus, Marquette has had a past of letting lesser opponents hang around, and let a fluff game become an early nail biter that no fan wants to see at home in November.

It was hard to tell whether or not Friday was a good example of what we will be looking at in the coming games. Buzz used a lot of guys and gave everyone decent minutes and if anyone remembers last year, a deep bench is not really Buzz’s style. Eight players saw more than fifteen minutes of playing time on Friday and that should tell us that he is trying to get everyone as much playing time as possible. However, the fact that Acker saw less than half the game is a little concerning considering he became a team saving replacement ball-handler once James went down last year. Whether he sat out because Cubillan has gotten that much better or he does not need the minutes as much is still yet to be seen but it is something to keep your eye out for over the next couple games. Dwight Buycks looked good in his MU debut and looks ready to handle the role of being a starter in his first year in D-I. There are still questions that Marquette needs to answer such as who will be getting the majority of the playing time, but that is going to be addressed over the next couple games.

With a few more games against teams from small conferences, it is going to be important for Marquette to ready themselves for a much tougher stretch of games. The next couple of weeks are going to be strong indicators as to how this team of new faces can handles a tough field in the Old Spice Classic. However, we can worry about that when the times comes. For now let us enjoy a sound start and hope the strong play continues. Plus MD-Eastern Shore and Grambling St. should be fun blow-outs to watch, so stop by the Bradley Center to cheer on our team.

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