Huby's Halftime: College Football Opener, What's the Spread, Beyonce Reflections
Welcome to Huby’s Halftime. We have arrived. The start of the college football season! We will discuss things to look forward to this season, the introduction of “what’s the spread”, and my reflection on seeing Beyonce earlier this month. If you’ve been a part of this ride, thanks for subscribing. If you are interested in all the nonsense, you should subscribe. It’s totally free.
College Football Opening Weekend
You know when a movie series has gone too far. Like do we really need 10 Fast and Furious movies? How about when a music artist adds way too many songs to their new album? Looking at you Travis Scott. Whatever that feeling is a combination of slight enjoyment but also a dystopic feeling of over saturation, that might be how to accurately describe the future of college football.
While this season bodes many great stories: Can Georgia be a three peat champion, is the Nick Saban dynasty at Alabama over, is Florida State back, the genuine fascination about the Deion Sanders coaching situation at Colorado, and is UTSA the best team in the group of five? All these things will be fun to explore. Yet, just like an oddly warm winter day, the fun and excitement is clouded by a changing climate.
As noted in a previous post, the ever changing conference realignment feels as if we are losing the butter that once went on the bread. It is typical to give a list of things to look for, playoff predictions, or some sort of hot take about Penn State making the college football playoff this season. I will not offer those things, but rather a mode of resistance for this season.
Yes, still enjoy the entirety of your football weekends. Watch all the games, drop all the takes, drink responsibly, all the things. Troll your Ohio native in-laws about how the SEC is more talented than the Big Ten. But what might be more enjoyable in this ever changing landscape, is to enjoy the regionality while it is still here. Watch your local (whatever that means to you) group of five teams. Watch their conference games, connect to the local history and rivalries that make those fanbases give a damn. Invest in your local conference/conferences. Since living in the Old North state, few things make the college football season more enjoyable, than watching NC State fans get excited about a potential ACC championship and then cheering their team on in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl in December.
Maybe it is more fun watching Dave Clawson quietly build a very established program at Wake Forest, and watch the public be shocked that Sam Hartman is a talented QB this season while he plays for Notre Dame.
Actually it is more fun to watch Carolina fans be excited for a top QB prospect and a potential ACC championship but then by November hear, “we are just ready for basketball season.” It is these things that make college football sweeter than a cold Cheerwine on a hot summer day. College football is changing, but that does not mean we as fans have to.
What’s the Spread
Something we hear all the time in the sports world. Whether it is in group chat, your favorite sports podcast, or at the bar. The sports gambling world has really taken off, and this is by no means any judgment on those who partake. Get the bag. Who wants gambling advice from a middle school science teacher.
We are here to talk about the most important spread this football season. The spread on whatever table you are eating from.
Each week for the college football season, I will lay out a spread of food options. Some weeks it will be inspired by the slate of games for the week or it will purely be off whatever I am craving that weekend. Occasionally I will give you a short run down on how to make the perfect football watching dish or drink. I will not share the recipe as I cannot let you into these secrets or I will have to put a hit out on your name. Not really On that note, what’s the spread chef?
Chili and cinnamon rolls- I know for you southern cornbread raised folks like myself, you just read this and said “the hell?” But trust me on this, it slaps. Birthed out of Iowan school lunches, this oddball pairing has become a staple in the Midwest. We are watching Nebraska vs. Minnesota game Thursday night and what better way to initiate the Matt Rhule era than by this midwestern delicacy. No recipe but check the Substack notes and social media on Thursday night to see the pairing. Go Huskers??
Skillet Queso- Saturday is going to be a full day of game watching so it is important to have a good snack for those games that kickoff at 3:30 ET. This week we are going with a rip off of the skillet queso you used to get at Chili’s with your parents.
Very simple ingredients: A block of Velveeta, a can of Hormel’s chili with no beans, about a cup of milk, a teaspoon of lime juice, and a good shake of paprika, salt, pepper, and cumin powder. Just put the velveeta on a hot skillet until it has melted, then add the rest of your ingredients and stir until it is the consistency you desire. In the words of Omar Little, “the cheese stands alone”
Beyoncé
There are not many words I can say that have not already been said about Beyonce. Despite being all the way up in the hinterlands of Bank of America stadium, I still stood in awe of everything about Beyonce and her performance. The spots, the choreography, the set pieces, costumes, the vocal performances, literally all of it. She left a lot of my personal favorites off the track list and still managed to leave me astonished.
The thing I left the most in awe of is that for most of my lifetime, Beyonce has been at the top of the music game. In the sports world we celebrate the Lebron’s, Serena’s, and Tom Brady’s of the world for their sustained dominance, but often in music we do not pause to step back and celebrate the longevity of greatness. In both sports and music may we celebrate those who are not only great but stay at that elite level for a long time.
I can’t wait to see what the food hot takes this season are going to be. I’d love to see a ranking of them at the end of the season, because I’m a sucker for a tier list. I really do need to try chili and cinnamon rolls, but man that’s a big hurdle.
One suggestion is doing a chicken wing face-off: sauced, dry rub, and smoked. And ranch vs blue cheese with each.