Turkey Bowl 2008

I just got back from playing in the 11th annual Turkey Bowl game at Greenlake. Sunny skies and 50 degree temps made for an unusually warm and dry Turkey Bowl. This year we reverted back to full-on tackle football. I'm not sure why I played, because I have no health insurance and I will be proper fucked if I get injured--but play I did! It was another amazing turkey bowl, but before I get into that, I want to take a look back at past Turkey Bowls:

Turkey Bowl 2007
Last year was a lot of fun, but a little on the tame side.

Turkey Bowl 2006
Not much of a recap for 2006, but I did mention my push up bet with Brandon, and how much push ups on Black Friday SUCK!

Turkey Bowl 2003
2003 was amazing. I don't think I'll ever have another Turkey Bowl like I did in 2003. 5TDs, 1INT, 2sacks--in an 11 on 11 tackle football game?! Come on! Also, watching butterball own Marc--it was an amazing year of football.

2007 might be my second best effort over the years. To start off the day, I was not really sure if we would have a game this year, because all of the usual suspects had morning plans this year. I headed down to Greenlake anyways, just in case the old Garfield crew showed up. When I got to the fields, there were big FIELD CLOSED signs all over the place, much to my dismay. But then I spotted a group of scruffy looking guys on the side of the field. I only recognized one guy from past Turkey Bowls, but the group was welcoming, and started picking teams right away.

Now, I'll let you in on a little secret... I'm not the most menacing football player. I'm pretty much a stick. Which isn't bad for flag football, but when it comes to tackle football I'm probably not the best choice to be on your team. So I've got one knee on the ground, putting in my contacts when I get picked... 2nd overall, first pick for the dark team... WHAAAT?!? I expected to get picked last or second to last, but I'll take it!

As the first pick, I felt obligated to step up. This year I surpassed my yearly quota of one tackle. If I get one tackle, I'm happy. I finished the day with probably five tackles, one sack, two interceptions and a TD on defense. We were playing 8 on 8, so I was very pleased with my defensive performance. On offense, I played a lot of offensive line (again, I'm a stick--but a stick that is willing to mix it up!), I caught a few passes at wide receiver, and also got to QB a few sets. I think my first set we turned the ball over on downs, and the second set I threw a screen pass to Frank "The Tank", who rumbled about 80 yards for the score, breaking multiple tackles along the way.

All in all, it was another great Turkey Bowl, even though none of my friends were able to go. I am going to be beyond sore tomorrow, and I am thankful for the day of rest between football Turkey Bowl and frisbee Turkey Bowl on Saturday. In one of my dumbest moves in a long time, I started a push up challenge on Thanksgiving Day. I'm an idiot. I'm so sore from football, I'll barely be able to move for the next 24 hours, yet I'm expected to do 200 push ups. I've got frisbee all day Saturday and an all-day hike on Sunday, how the fuck am I supposed to do 400 pushups over the next four days???

Start lining the charity coffers, chumps! Bet against me! You can't lose!

*edit* sadly, there were no TV crews this year--maybe next year!