We Are Maroon and Gold Episode 001

In the first episode recording with the name We Are Maroon and Gold (but his 14th episode podcasting), Chandler discusses regime changes at other programs, compares the Gophers' preseason expectations to how they actually did, and then runs through the interesting parts of bowl season.

As said, the podcast will go on a break while school is out of session.


Explaining the name change: On the exact same day that Ski-U-Pod launched, the SB Nation site The Daily Gopher launched a podcast of their own, the Ski-U-Pahdcast. The Daily Gopher is automatically bigger than this by its association to SB Nation, and it's not like either side stole the other's idea, so in order to avoid any possible (however unlikely) conflict in the future, Ski-U-Pod would have to be renamed.

It could have been done earlier, but I decided to just roll with the original name until the end of the season because I didn't think it would hurt anything. (It in fact didn't.)

The new name comes from "Minnesota March," probably the third-most important school song after the "Rouser" and "Hail Minnesota." The words "We are Maroon and Gold" are not actually lyrics in the song, but rather yelled between lines:

Rah! rah! Ski-U-Mah. Rah! Rah! Rah!
March on, March on to Victory,
Loyal sons of the Varsity.
Fight on, fight on for Minnesota,
For the glory of the Old Maroon and Gold.
[We are Maroon and Gold!]
March on, March on to win the game,
Down the field, fighting every play.
We're with you team, fighting team!
Hear our song, we cheer along
To help you win a victory.

I know "Minnesota March" by heart (if not the lyricist's capitalization choices), and it seems like more people know it than, say, "Our Minnesota" or "Minnesota Fight" (a frequent joke among my friends in the band is that nobody knows "Minnesota Fight"), I thought We Are Maroon and Gold would be an appropriate selection for the name of my podcast.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 013

In Episode 13 of Ski-U-Pod, Chandler discusses coaching changes, details the misery of losing to Wisconsin, wishes for fewer Badger fans in the student section, and discusses where the podcast is going next.

As said in the episode, I'm taking at least a week off. When I get back, the podcast will have a new name. It's possible that I just don't record another episode until January rather than just have the first episode with the name go up several weeks before the second, but right now, that isn't the plan. Also, I'm unsure if I'll start over the numbering. It doesn't really matter, since it'll basically be the same podcast. We'll see.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 012

In Episode 12 of Ski-U-Pod, Chandler briefly recaps the Northwestern disaster, delves deep into scouting Wisconsin, and previews an important Rivalry Week.



Somehow, I neglected to mention P.J. Fleck's contract extension. In short: I think it's an okay idea. It keeps Fleck at the school another year and doesn't raise his salary for the years for which he was already under contract. Unless Fleck is a total disaster (and I don't think he will be), that can only be a good thing.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 011

In Episode 11 of Ski-U-Pod, Chandler recaps an invigorating win over the faltering Cornhuskers, comments on sports teams' obsession with showing how much more than everyone else they love the troops, looks for cracks in a formidable Northwestern defense, and tries to figure out what other games are worth any time this weekend.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 010

In Episode 10 of Ski-U-Pod, Chandler laments the Michigan loss and previews Nebraska.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 009

In Episode 9 of Ski-U-Pod, Chandler is joined by two of his friends to talk about the scene at Iowa. After that, he returns to solitude and discusses the game itself and what to look for against Michigan.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 008

In Episode 8 of Ski-U-Pod, Chandler discusses an ugly win over Illinois, going for it on fourth and goal, the homecoming scene, and the threats posed this Saturday by the evil Hawkeyes.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 007

In Episode 7 of Ski-U-Pod, Chandler discusses the future of the podcast, the Gophers' encouraging loss to Michigan State, keeping a good mood through bad weather with the help of the band, and how terrible Illinois is. The audio sounds muffled for some reason; I'm not 100 percent sure why.

A note: Mike Epstein, whom I consider Illinois's best running back, is in fact out for the season with a foot injury. I thought I had looked this up before recording, and I reference Google "not help[ing] me out," but I was thinking of a different player whose lack of snaps confused me.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 006

In a tardy Episode 6 of of Ski-U-Pod, Chandler tells an empty room about what went wrong against Maryland, why it's too early to panic, and what to expect against a revitalized Purdue.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 005

In Episode 5 of of Ski-U-Pod, we have an abbreviated discussion about Maryland, bad helmets, and little else.

We're figuring out what we're doing with distribution from here on out, as we don't want to pay to continue hosting the podcast on Soundcloud. For now, the episodes will be posted to Google Drive. As always, you can find the episodes here at Ski-U-Blog.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 004

In Episode 4 of Ski-U-Pod, we pass the time during a bye week by discussing the Gophers' win over Middle Tennessee State, our impressions of the season so far, momentum, and uniforms.

Significant branding and distribution changes could come soon. This would not mean anything different to someone who comes to this blog for the audio (because obviously tons and tons of people do), but you should be aware of that.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 003

A few days later than we would have liked, but sometimes personal schedules get in the way. In Episode 3 of Ski-U-Pod, we discuss beating Oregon State, hopefully beating MTSU, Conor Rhoda: Starting Quarterback, and the frustrating Big Ten schedules of the future.

Ski-U-Pod Episode 002

In Episode 2 of Ski-U-Pod, we discuss pregame awkwardness, punting, the Buffalo game that was, the Oregon State game that will be. Chandler uses the phrase "push" a million times to describe blocking, and adds an extra 10 minutes to Saturday's start time for no clear reason.

2017 College Football Preview: Predictions

College football is here. To prepare for the season, Ski-U-Blog is previewing the whole of FBS. With all the conferences done, it's time to finally close the long offseason with a Heisman watch list, a preseason top 25, and bowl and Playoff predictions.

2017 College Football Preview: Big Ten

College football is coming. To prepare for the season, Ski-U-Blog is previewing the whole of FBS by each conference. Today, the last conference on the list and the one most relevant to the author's interests, the Big Ten.

Ohio State is good. Illinois is bad. Rutgers and Maryland are in the wrong conference. The status quo is alive and well in the Big Ten.

West

Predicted Standings:

1. Wisconsin
2. Northwestern
3. Iowa
4. Nebraska
5. Minnesota
6. Purdue
7. Illinois

Ski-U-Pod Episode 001

Announcing Ski-U-Pod, an audio venture hosted by the author of this site, Chandler, and his friend Zach. If all goes according to plan, this will be a weekly podcast discussing the goings-on of Gopher football until the offseason, at which point we may find something else to talk about.

In Episode 1, we preview 2017: our thoughts on P.J. Fleck, the future of the program, position group breakdowns, beating Wisconsin, and trying to find something intimidating about Buffalo.

2017 College Football Preview: Southeastern Conference

College football is coming. To prepare for the season, Ski-U-Blog is previewing the whole of FBS by each conference. Today, the best conference in college football – just ask them – the SEC.

There's no running from the Bama machine: despite an always strong middle and an improving back end, the SEC once again belongs to the Tide.

West

Predicted Standings:

1. Alabama (conference championship game winner)
2. Auburn
3. LSU
4. Texas A&M
5. Mississippi State
6. Mississippi
7. Arkansas

2017 College Football Preview: Atlantic Coast Conference

College football is coming. To prepare for the season, Ski-U-Blog is previewing the whole of FBS by each conference. We've reached the home to the reigning national champions, the ACC.

Playoff contenders top the Atlantic, and the Coastal is a free-for-all. What else is new?

Atlantic

Predicted Standings:

1. Florida State (conference championship game winner)
2. Clemson
3. Louisville
4. NC State
5. Syracuse
6. Wake Forest
7. Boston College

2017 College Football Preview: Pac-12

College football is coming. To prepare for the season, Ski-U-Blog is previewing the whole of FBS by each conference. Today, we continue with the only conference in FBS with the right number of teams in its name, the Pac-12.

The favorites are clear in the Pac-12: Washington looks to defend their division title in a potentially deep North, while USC could dominate the South.

North

Predicted Standings:

1. Washington
2. Stanford
3. Washington State
4. Oregon
5. Oregon State
6. Cal

2017 College Football Preview: Big 12

College football is coming. To prepare for the season, Ski-U-Blog is previewing the whole of FBS by each conference. Today, we begin discussing the Power Five conferences with the Big 12.

Oklahoma looks like they won't have any problems at the top, but a jumbled and highly interesting second class has a few teams that could face them in Arlington.

Predicted Standings:

1. Oklahoma (conference championship game winner)
2. Kansas State
3. Oklahoma State
4. Texas
5. TCU
6. Baylor
7. West Virginia
8. Texas Tech
9. Iowa State
10. Kansas

2017 College Football Preview: Mountain West, American, Independents

College football is coming. To prepare for the season, Ski-U-Blog is previewing the whole of FBS by each conference. Today, we wrap up the Group of Five and the independents.

Mountain West

It's a race to the top of the Mountain, and a race to stay out of the bottom of the West.

Mountain

Predicted Standings:

1. Colorado State (conference championship game winners)
2. Boise State
3. Wyoming
4. Air Force
5. Utah State
6. New Mexico

2017 College Football Preview: Conference USA, Sun Belt, and MAC

College football is coming. To prepare for the season, Ski-U-Blog is previewing the whole of FBS by each conference. We begin with the worst three conferences in the land – though none lack their own intrigue – Conference USA, the Sun Belt, and the MAC.

Conference USA

Conference USA's title game looks to be a repeat of last season's, though a few potential usurpers are rising to challenge the two favorites in the coming years.

West

Predicted Standings:

1. Louisiana Tech
2. Southern Mississippi
3. UTSA
4. North Texas
5. Rice
6. UTEP
7. UAB

"I thought Jesus was comin": The Twins-Rangers Thunder Game

Five years ago Saturday, the first-place Texas Rangers hosted the hapless Minnesota Twins in Arlington. The weathered Roy Oswalt started against Cole De Vries, an anonymous, dorky-looking 27-year-old rookie who had gone undrafted out of the University of Minnesota six years prior and who would be out of baseball two years later. It was the final game before the All-Star break, which meant the Rangers' coaches and eight of their players would be departing for Kansas City soon. (Just one Twin, Joe Mauer, was selected for participation.)

The weather was, as usual, in the mid-90s, hot enough for the teams to hold batting practice in indoor cages rather than outside. The sun was totally visible for most of the first few innings, though clouds gradually crept in.

Eddie Rosario Fixed His Biggest Problem

At the end of April, Eddie Rosario was hitting .268/.294/.366, a line well below his career averages, and one he couldn't afford in his third major league season. At 25 years old and with just one minor league option left on his contract, he was running out of time to prove he could be a multidimensional and productive hitter.

An Exercise (Somewhere) in Time: Crafting my Dream Iron Maiden Setlist

Friday, I see one of my favorite groups and (I would argue) the greatest metal band ever, Iron Maiden. I am prepared for something resembling a religious experience, as the Maiden live experience is renowned as one of the most electric imaginable. I have watched and listened to enough live performances secondhand to know their ability to engage an entire crowd and entertain like few others can, so I am obviously quite ready to finally witness their showmanship myself.

Something I like to do, especially in anticipation of one of the few concerts I have seen in my life, is create “dream” setlists for my favorite artists. Most are restricted to a Notepad file, with no reason to share them with more than a couple of people, but as I have done with Rush (pre-blog), I will now go through what songs would comprise my ideal Iron Maiden show.

The rules are simple: the set must be around their usual length (in this case, 17 songs); and even if I wanted otherwise, the handful of songs that are guaranteed for every performance must be part of the set. The rest is up to me, although it should be said these aren’t necessarily my favorite 17 Iron Maiden songs. I can’t really begin to narrow down that list, and I want to have some diversity. Some fantastic crowd songs, for example, were cut because if you include all of them, it becomes redundant. And if I were to include all my favorite B-sides just to have a unique experience, I wouldn’t have room for the even slightly more popular songs.

I will now begin.

2017 Baseball Preview: Predictions

It's almost baseball season. To commemorate this occasion and officially open Ski-U-Blog, I have previewed the season with a triplet of posts on the upcoming season. Here is the third, my predictions for the upcoming season's standings, awards, and playoffs.

2017 Baseball Preview: American League

It's almost baseball season. To commemorate this occasion and officially open Ski-U-Blog, I will preview the season with a triplet of posts on the upcoming season. Here is the second, a team-by-team overview of the American League, featuring a Twins fan's depressed ramblings.

2017 Baseball Preview: National League

It's almost baseball season. To commemorate this occasion and officially open Ski-U-Blog, I will preview the season with a triplet of posts on the upcoming season. Here is the first, a team-by-team overview of the National League, featuring a lot more words on the Brewers than you would think.