On Topic: "I missed the game" because....

Submitted by jtmc33 on

On 10/25/14 at 5pm I'll be at a wedding that I can't get out of... my old roomate of 2 years is getting married in downstate Illinois.   (And I had a ticket that I had to turn down)

Sweet Baby Jesus please schedule this game for noon.  If it is set for 3:30pm then I'm screwed and I'll be watching on my phone from the back row.

So, on this note... let's hear some stories of missing a big game due to unavoidable reasons.  (And no, "my wife made me paint the house" is not an excuse.  Being a wuss and not having your priorities straight is not a legit excuse to miss a any game). 

Or, let's hear stories of watching the big game in the face of adversity.... like my friend who watched the entire 2006 OSU game in the hospital room while his wife was in labor with their first kid. 

 

Do tell....

Evil Empire

August 20th, 2014 at 1:17 PM ^

The class was in Akron and ended around 3:00, so we had time to make it back to the usual UM Club of Cleveland game-watch bar.  My wife and I sat with George Lilja, who is 1. super nice and 2. the father of an adopted daughter.  Plus that was the last time (oy) we beat MSU comfortably.  A good day.

Bocheezu

August 20th, 2014 at 12:36 PM ^

even if they didn't have adverse situations.  It was BTN's first game and Bright House Networks in Livonia hadn't finalized the deal with BTN yet.  I think Comcast did the week before, so you could see it if you weren't in the Livonia/Farmington Hills area.  I didn't see a single play and had to resort to radio, and I didn't listen too intently because I figured it wouldn't be a big deal.  Listening to football on radio is such a disconnect that it's hard for me to pay attention much.

mgohusker

August 20th, 2014 at 5:37 PM ^

I was still living in A2, went to a roadkill-themed tailgate, but passed on going to the game.  

Since this was the first game in years that wasn't available on TV locally, I thought it would provide some Ufer-like nostalgia.    

I think ABC or ESPN must have managed to get a live cut-in to the blocked FG, but I know I saw that in real time.

Voltron is Handsome

August 20th, 2014 at 11:44 AM ^

I got married two years ago and when we were in the process of planning the date, I laid my foot down and said we would absolutely NOT get married on a college football Saturday. We actually got married the Saturday before the first weekend, so it worked perfectly (and no, we didn't go on the honeymoon until December, so I didn't miss anything other than crappy bowl games).

jtmc33

August 20th, 2014 at 11:49 AM ^

My old roomate is the lady.  (no, we never did it).  This fact made it even more difficult when I tried to talk to her about missing the wedding and only coming to the reception.  If it was a dude then there would be no talk, but only a "you know you scheduled this on UM-MSU Saturday... I'll be at the reception but not the wedding."   

Her fiance' is an Illinois grad, so, it makes perfect sense why he want to be occupied all day on a college football saturday.

M Fanfare

August 20th, 2014 at 12:26 PM ^

That's a great idea until your 10-year anniversary coincides with a huge Michigan game in 2026.



Plus teams sometimes move games around, so there's no guarantee that date will stay a bye week until a few months before the season.

Voltron is Handsome

August 20th, 2014 at 1:23 PM ^

But, it's not just Michigan...it's all the other games people miss because of a wedding. Even on bye weeks, I get pissed off like no other if I have to attend a wedding.

ShadowStorm33

August 20th, 2014 at 12:30 PM ^

There are a lot of things to consider. For example:


1. Am I in this wedding? (I'm not anywhere near close enough to anyone with the audacity to schedule a Fall Saturday wedding to actually be a groomsman...)

2. How close am I to the groom/bride? (See item 1)

3. What's the likelihood of them getting divorced down the road? (Recent statistics say...better than a coin-flip...)

4. Where is the wedding? (How close to Ann Arbor for a home game or viewing options for an away game?)

5. How much is this wedding trip going to cost? (Presumably more than it would cost to go to/watch the game...)

6. Who's the opponent?


Given the overwhelming implications of items 1-5, item 6 is superfluous. Conclusion: Send a card and watch the game...

Kermits Blue Key

August 20th, 2014 at 11:16 AM ^

Reverse scenario: I missed a Pearl Jam concert at Madison Square Garden to watch Michigan get pummeled by Syracuse in 1998. My roommate had Fan Club tix near the stage that we just ate. I still rue that decision.

taistreetsmyhero

August 20th, 2014 at 11:17 AM ^

game was before comcast picked up btn, and i figured i didn't need to follow it or watch it. was at a picnic the whole game and didn't know what happened until later that night.

in hindsight, i probably made it out better because of that than 99% of people on here...

Don

August 20th, 2014 at 11:19 AM ^

since my mom passed away that day. It's strange, since I couldn't watch the game and only saw replays later, but it's still stuck in my memory anyhow.

Zone Left

August 20th, 2014 at 11:21 AM ^

I missed 2012 MSU because I was on an MBA recruiting trip in Seattle. It was the only game I really wanted to attend that year. Very frustrating.

Also, some guy got into a fight with me on the Internet because I was a terrible student for trying to get a job instead of going to the game. 

The_Doctor

August 20th, 2014 at 11:22 AM ^

one of my former roommates, after we had both graduated, and his UM grad fiance actually scheduled their wedding on the third saturday in October - we all told him they were nuts.



both of them being from Michigan, the wedding was pretty well split between UM and MSU people, and the afternoon wedding reception had a lot of people gathered around a tiny Sony Watchman watching the game up in ELansing while we were in the Detroit area at the wedding. Bride cried over it.



or, it could have been that the groom's brother brought Tia Carrera as his date....

1989 UM GRAD

August 20th, 2014 at 11:23 AM ^

App State. Was driving back from Michigania and had to turn off the game multiple times to ensure I didn't drive off the road. Where will I be this year? Driving back from Michigania.

Bando Calrissian

August 20th, 2014 at 11:23 AM ^

I have two really shameful ones:

1995 Virginia, we had to leave at the end of the third quarter because we had to go to a family wedding. Got home in time to watch the Mercury Hayes touchdown as we were putting on our suits.

2002 Washington, we had to leave with 10 minutes left because we needed to haul ass up north to pick up my sister at Camp Michigania and bring her back to Ann Arbor in time for class on Monday and my dad wanted to beat the traffic. I was using her student ticket in the 10th row in the corner where Brabbs kicked the field goal, too. 

Less shameful, I guess, but I missed Colorado in '94 because I got invited to some school friend's birthday party and my parents insisted I go, and I missed Purdue in '95 because I had the flu. In retrospect, I probably should have just gone, I would have ended up sick anyway. 

This is Michigan

August 20th, 2014 at 11:23 AM ^

Weddings. I can't stand fall weddings. I've missed way too many games, even away games in which I don't attend. I have two this fall (Rutgers and Michigan State)

10 year HS reunion during the Utah game this year. My wife is in charge so I have to go.

Engineering Conferences (App State this year).

I missed a ton of games during undergrad due to Fall baseball practice. 

oHOWiHATEohioSTATE

August 20th, 2014 at 11:30 AM ^

My brother got married on the only highlight game of the entire season. To top it off his wife ended up being a cheating whoring bitch! The relationship is over and if he ever gets remarried in better not be in the fall, I won't miss another game for him.

Larry Appleton

August 20th, 2014 at 11:33 AM ^

Michigan/MSU 2005.  My sister's wedding.  Got to watch the first quarter, but then it was off to the church.  I was a groomsman, and from the front of the church I could look out and see 75% of those in attendance constantly checking their phones.  As soon as the ceremony was over, several of us ran to the limo to turn the game on.  We go there just in time for OT.

 

Michigan/Ohio State 2006.  My cousin's wedding.  They were kind enough to have several TVs set up at the reception, but I still missed most of it.

Bryan

August 20th, 2014 at 11:35 AM ^

The Western game that was cancelled due to weather. Had to stand in a buddy's wedding in Boca. Since the game was cancelled I technically still have a streak, right?

Later that season (Penn State), my then girlfriend's dad was getting married. She wanted me to go to the wedding. I did not go to the wedding. 

My now girlfriend's sister is getting married on ND gameday. I will be at the bar at the venue watching the game.

1M1Ucla

August 20th, 2014 at 11:35 AM ^

Missed a loss to ND, almost lost my wife of 3 hours by sneaking into the bar during the reception at the Marriott on Plymouth Rd to catch the broadcast. Did see the winning touchdown bounce off Roosevelt Brown's facemask at about the two yard line. My Dad, BA 52, MD 58, and Mom, BA 54, still bring that up, as do my brothers, BA's 82, 83 and 84, and best man, BA 80. My wife, BSN 84, understands now what she didn't then. My sons, BS 07, and UCLA BA 08, still don't believe we missed an ND game to get married. I tell them their existence depended on it.