Are you ready for some football?? I love laying on the couch watching the football games on a Sunday. It is especially appealing when you just get back from a long weekend of hunting and just want to relax. I first have to say that I have agree that the Bison are “one bad football team.” I was right when I said that I couldn’t remember the last time they lost to Augustana. In fact it had been FORTY years. I guess you have to build on the positives and look towards next year. However, people in Fargo don’t have a lot of patience for losing seasons…
I believe the saying goes “it takes a big man to admit when he’s wrong.” Well I was really, really wrong when I came in with my prediction of 11-5 on the Vikings season. I thought for sure Bryant McKinnie would be signed and with the addition of Bates and Alexander their offense would be great. However it turns out that the “Randy Ratio” is a bust as Culpepper has focused on Randy rather than other options. I am also writing this after the Seahawks loss and Culpepper had little support as several players dropped passes. Because I am the true Vikings fan, I will watch for the rest of the season, and hopefully next few seasons will be help forget this one.
To redeem myself from the Vikings prediction I am tied for first in our fantasy football league, despite Jeff Garcia having a very slow start to the season. Fantasy football is a lot of fun and I am back in a league for the first time in three years. We have a ten team league and my team consists of Jeff Garcia, Eddie George, Fred Taylor, Lamar Smith, Rod Smith, Troy Brown, Marty Booker, Antonio Freeman, and Kevin Johnson. My tight ends are Marcus Pollard and Anthony Becht. My kicker is Jeff Wilkins and my defense is Tampa Bay. For those of you who are in leagues I would take a look at Tampa’s D if you can get them. They have scored touchdowns in their last three games which is amazing for a defense. Also looking at my team I have been really happy with Fred Taylor and Lamar Smith at running back. However I am concerned about the injury history with these two so I am hoping to trade for Ladanion Tomlinson, or Shawn Alexander. My receivers have really been a bright spot and all of them maybe worth a trade. Also watch Donald Driver for Green Bay as he maybe a free agent in your league. Something to keep an eye on. This all being said send me and e-mail and we will compare teams and trade some ideas. If you would like to learn about fantasy football give me a shout also. It is pretty easy to get the hang of and makes the football season a lot more fun to watch.
It’s fall, the weather is nice, the birds aren’t flying…..let’s go fishing. I was fishing by Detroit Lakes last weekend and I have to say the walleye action was really good. Because of hunting season I usually put the boat away over Labor day weekend, but this fall I wanted to leave it in a little later and I’m glad I did. I have never fished this late in the year except last fall I fished Lake Sakakawea the third week of September. I left work a little early on Friday so it would give me few hours to hunt around for fish. When I pulled into the bait shop I didn’t get the best report from the gentleman working there. He said walleyes have been spotty, but could start to turn on at any time. I told him I usually hunt during this time of year and he just laughed as he told me his favorite time to fish, in October. So let me pass on what is working. I learned that it is better to have small bait this time of year. He suggested fatheads or crawlers, and I also bought some leeches since I like to try all three. It is so important to go to a bait shop that gives you an honest report on the fishing and no b.s. I hit the water that evening and started using a crawler with a white, glow Lindy Rig. I rigged up a couple of rods, one with a ¼ ounce weight and one with an 1/8. I didn’t have much luck so I switched to fatheads and what a difference. I locked into a 3.5 pounder right away and pulled out a couple more, but it was already getting dark so I went out the next day. I was on the water around 10:00 on Sat. and right away I hooked into walleyes again catching quite a few under a pound and a half. I lost a real nice fish up by the boat and am still mad at myself for not adjusting the drag. When fishing this time of year move very slow and work vertical like you would in the spring. When you hook into that walleye, toss out a marker and work the area persistently. Saturday afternoon I took out the boat for the year as I am busy the next few weekends, but I have to report that the walleyes are really turning on around the lakes area.
Have a great and safe October everyone!
While the early Canada Season has been a good one. Scouting has been more important than the past couple of years. In my opinion, there isn’t as many birds around this fall so you have to put some time in finding them. I have also heard of some good reports on grouse hunting in the central part of the state. One group reporting seeing many birds and getting limits in one walk in a crp field. The duck numbers during the early season hunt were simply amazing and there wasn’t a time during the day when we didn’t see ducks in the air. The challenge was picking the drakes from the hens as it was pretty early in the fall. There continues to be good numbers of ducks, but you have to look in the eastern part of the state because of the higher water levels. My one concern with the ducks is that they may push out because of the increased pressure and it could be a few weeks before some of the northern birds come down. My goal for this fall is to finally fill my swan tag as I was successful in drawing this year again. If I get him you can bet I will be posting a picture on next month’s article. Oct. 12 is the pheasant opener and it is looking to be a good one. I have been talking to family and friends who farm and I have heard from them of seeing a lot more pheasants this fall. It is a good idea to talk to landowners the next couple of weeks in order to secure a spot to hunt pheasants. Land access is getting tougher each year and there are getting to be more of these run-and-gun guides outfits. Finally, I want to get to the upcoming deer opener. They have pushed back the lotteries till mid-October for deer permits so if you want an extra tags, you still have a chance. Baring any major snowstorms on the weekends this should be the best fall for deer in recent memory. I don’t remember ever seeing this many deer along the roads at night coming back from hunting out in the fields. It is a good thing to be aware of this fall towards nightfall, right Chris? Remember to look at the forums for updates on the hunting season as the month goes on.
