Still over 4 months until the Week 1, so let's try and learn some more about our posters. Here are some questions about our backgrounds and football experience.
1) Did you ever play football. If so, at what level?
2) Do you have children or relatives that played? If so, at what level?
3) When do you remember attending your first high school game?
4) Was your 1st game you went to with your current favorite team?
5) How long have you been a fan of your current team?
6) What has been your team's greatest victory?
7) What has been your team's worst defeat?
8) Who was an opposing player you dreaded your team playing against?
9) Who is your favorite all time player from the team you follow?
10) Have you ever been in a confrontation with a rival fan?
11) What was your favorite road trip you went on for an away game?
12) Have you ever won a raffle or 50-50 drawing at a game?
13) Have you ever coached at any level?
Here are my answers:
1) I played one year in high school, managing to be both small and slow. The one thing I could do was catch the ball, but we ran 90% of the time. I got tired of being flattened by LB's while trying to crackback block them and "retired" at the end of the season.
2) My son played 4 years of JFL and 1 year at Rochester. He got to dress for the 2017 championship game against Morris and has a ring. My nephew played at Lanphier for 4 years. He started at OL as a Junior and OL-LB as a Senior. My grandfather played OL at Indiana University during the Depression until a knee injury ended his career.
3) I think it was about the 4th grade that I went with a friend to an away Chatham game against Mount Zion. I watched about half of the game and fooled around the rest of the time.
4) No. Rochester did not even have a team when I was a kid.
5) We moved into the Rochester district in 2003. I started following the team in 2009, when my wife was working with a mom of one of the star players. Went to my first game in 2010. Have only missed a handful of games since 2012.
6) 2014 4a championship game against Chicago Phillips. Rochester had 2 losses that season, including being running clocked by SHG in Week 9 and was dealing with multiple injuries. Phillips had given up only 50 some points all season but surrendered 49 in the championship.
7) 2022 4a semi-final loss to SHG. A 28-0 dream start followed by SHG outscoring the Rockets 56-14 the rest of the game.
8) Tremayne Lee, SHG. He was a threat to score any time he had the ball, regardless of field position.
9) Jacob Gunter, LB-FB Rochester. The last of the three Gunter brothers, who won a total of 7 rings between them. No one ever got more out of their size and talent then Jacob who was maybe 5'7" and 160 pounds.
10) Not really, although I was told once "F Rochester" by a disgruntled Chatham fan leaving the stadium after a touted Titans team lost at home 28-7 to the Rockets. I was actually treated really well by several Althoff fans during the back-and-forth 2015 Quarterfinal game. Because of the layout, Rocket and Althoff fans were mixed in throughout the stadium.
11) 2014 semi-final at Herrin. A 3 hour ride where the hometown fans were all seated an hour before kickoff. We had to park at a church about 1/2 mile away from the stadium before walking in.
12) I have won 2 50-50's, both at home games against Springfield. 1 was worth about $350, the other a little more than $500.
13) I helped a bit when my son was in JFL during practices and keeping track of substitutions during games but that was the extent of it.
