114th Annual Monon Bell Game

[DPU3619]

By the way Wes...thanks for interacting on the board...you're a gamer for taking on all the Cavemen.

Hey, thanks for having me.  It's been a little tougher this year.  Usually I'm down about a dozen karma points by Wednesday afternoon of Monon.  I'd have to save up about 25 of 'em the other 51 weeks of the year so I could escape Monon week still in the black. 

Doesn't work that way this year.  No sexual preference jokes.  No intelligence jokes.  No making fun of the Sphinx Club overalls.  No nothing.  I could do without all the insults and such, since I can't exactly rip anybody a new one, but hey, it's almost a pre-requisite for this board that folks feel the need to act 19 years old again. 

Still, I gotta be careful.  Don't want to.... you know... GET FIRED... or anything.

[wally_wabash]

Oh, stop.  The security is just as bad at Wabash as it is at DePauw.  Give me a break.  It's ridiculous both places.  Don't make it sound like the macho menly men at Wabash let the fans have freedom to roam as they please, because that just isn't true.  It's not like this rivalry is going back to its roots when it's at Hollett and fans are being treated like kindergarteners at Blackstock.

This seems like a good time to talk about the differences in the sites...the in-stadium security is about equal at both places.  But that's not what bothers me.  The in-stadium security was necessitated by the brawls in '96 and '98 and in the age of ever-increasing liability, the schools simply can't take a chance that some kid gets seriously hurt or worse because there was no crowd control.  And the security really hasn't ruined the fun for anybody who didn't have it coming...in 2001 Wabash fans (self included) stormed the field after Casper made the catch in the endzone and there were no on-field incidents there. 

Where I do have a problem is with the 8,000 ticket limit that DPU is still adhering to and this business with the parking lot not being opened up until 9:00 a.m.  This is completely ridiculous.  Last year Wabash welcomed nearly 12,000 fans to campus and hell didn't break loose.  A lot of those fans started tailgating before dawn...and hell still didn't break loose.  There's a much different feel around the game and around the rivalry now than there was 10 years ago.  It's time that DePauw follow Wabash's lead and let the greatness of the day (it's not just a game, it's an event) happen. 

[wally_wabash]

This is a great rivalry and I am so pissed i cant even watch the game in Hattiesburg, MS.  Best of luck to all and keep sharing the stories!!

I believe there is a telecast party in Hattiesburg if you wanted to watch the game.   Click the link for location and contact info.

[DPU92]

I know their is one in Hattiesburg...I cant make it because I work for Tulane Football who is home that day...thanks for reminding me 

[wally_wabash]

By the way, how cool is it that Gameday is going to air from Williams this weekend?  Hopefully this starts a Gameday tradition where they'll do a show from a small college on rivalry day once per year. 

[BashBacker#16]

How pumped will that guy be to know there is a telecast party in Hattiesburg MS!!!  Very cool.  Amazing that there are so many locations across the country.

I thought the security was a joke last year at Hollett towards the end of the game when students wanted to storm the field.  The police officers on the SE corner were WAY over the top...one guy had his can of mace pulled with his finger on the trigger (had probably watched too many episodes of Dog the Bounty Hunter) and was itching to mace the students.  It was pretty gross and upsetting to see.

Hey, caught wind of some pretty creative T-shirts on sale on campus in C-ville...my personal favorite...  "DePauw Chicks & Football...  Its what Wabash does"  

DPU guys...heard the field is not in great shape, any idea how it is looking?  

[DPULefty22]

By the way, how cool is it that Gameday is going to air from Williams this weekend?  Hopefully this starts a Gameday tradition where they'll do a show from a small college on rivalry day once per year. 

I just heard about that before I checked in over here - I think it's awesome for the DIII game and it certainly sets a precident for Chris Fowler and the gang to matriculate to west central Indiana sometime in the future. Now THAT would be something else.

Regarding the field conditions... while it won't be "Hollet Stadium in 06" bad (that was the single worst field I'd ever seen for a football game), the Blackstock turf has been shoddy all season long. The north side of the field is particularly slippery between the hashes. At DPU's last home game, the visiting team (Austin) was slipping all over the place - but the Tigers didn't have any problems. That may be apropos of nothing, but we'll see. Sure seemed like DPU had trouble adjusting to the turf in Crawfordsville last season.

BB#16 - I chuckled at the t-shirt. I hear "Wabash Loves (Spud) Dick" shirts sold out in two days on the DPU campus.

[bashbrother]

Ok....this one will take some board participation......

Top Moments in Monon Bell History.......... (On or off the field)

Casper's catch?  Operation Frijoles?  The Bell buried under a frozen endzone? 

[wally_wabash]

Oh my...great question.  Personally my best moment was the Monon Miracle in 2001.  After watching Wabash lose the first five Bell games I was part of, to finally see Wabash win one was amazing and for it to happen on that play was even more amazing. 

All time...I don't know if anything can beat Operation Frijoles.  That is hands down the best Bell heist of all time and has to be one of the best rival pranks of all time.  Frijoles was the Mississippi Miracle of pranks.   

[BashBacker#16]

BashBro - tough one but 1986 comes to mind...  The Catch in 2001 is right there too.  I also remember walking to class on a Thursday before the Bell game and heard the Bell ringing from the Fiji porch...proof of another Wabash heist.

Wabash press release with game preview:  http://www.wabash.edu/sports/docs/Release11707.pdf

[Li'l Giant]

This will almost certainly be my last post on here before Saturday as my flight leaves SA in about 7 hours. I'm sure I'll see some of you fellas at the Monon Stag tomorrow. And, here's to a great ballgame as befits this great rivalry.

Wabash always fights!

[smedindy]

1985 was sweet because we went down there and ruined their playoff party. Oh, and Kaiser ran the ball EVERY TIME and they couldn't stop him.

But I'm sure the Mud Bowl ranks right up there. That and the icy game where in the 90's where Wabash won thanks to the slippery footwork of Ings.

[Fripp52]

I must say that the DPU security, etc that I have been hearing about is a disappointment.  I understand the need to maintain control, etc.  But, not opening the parking lot until 9, no RVs at the parking lot stadium, etc is over the top.  Why ?  My daughter attends IU and I went to the frat/sorority tailgate last year and that was out of control.  I don't understand.  I have only been to 3 or 4 of these games live since I graduated in '85, and I really don't remember much crap going on.  Being a former Sigma Nu at DPU, we used to pride ourselves in finding the skirmishes, etc.  I just don't remember seeing it.  I have only attended one game since the early 90's and that was 3 years ago at Wabash.  I thought it was great - RV's parked here and there, tailgates going, comments being dropped by fans that passed each other throughout the morning - but no altercations, etc.
I have high hopes this Saturday will be just as fun.  I guess I have to park the RV at the Art Center, get a good spot, and start setting up.  All fans are welcome to stop by.  Look for a bunch or early 80's former DPU football players and that would be us.  Just keep the infamous "Killer" Kilbane away.  He might break his nose trying to tackle one of us.  Tell Marty Gregor and Tony Altavilla I want my pellet gun back.
No predictions on the game.  Just want to see a competitive one.  If DPU can stop or slow Wabash's spread, it could be a good game.  I think DPU's offense can score a few.

[WAF78]

Bashbro...
For me...the 2001 game was the greatest. I've seen a lot of Bell games...but that one was the best for me. The '85 game was great...Kaiser was just awesome (and so was the O line).
For me personally...the 76 game was a great one. We had lost three years in a row to DPU...very close games...and we won at Wabash 14-7. I recovered a fumble deep in DPU territory late in the game and then our O punched it in to win. It was a great feeling to win the bell after losing my fresh and sophomore years.
I don't think anything will ever match operation frijoles. The heist of the bell by the Wabash guys who hid in the gym after the DPU basketball game was a close second though...but I can't remember which year that was.
What's great about this rivalry is that so many people have great memories of a specific game or event.
One last comment...my freshman year, we played at Wabash and there was a large fight (I wouldn't say riot) behind the east endzone on the track during the first half. The deans and prof's broke it up. My junior year...back at Wabash...no big fights or riots even without heightened security. During that game my junior year, the only thing that happened that I knew about as a player...as we're running off the field at half...we get pelted by the DPU fans with what were eggs and, I think, persimmons?...at our own home field...lol. Also, a DPU kid had run onto the field as we're going off at half and did something (not sure of what he did) and one of our guys on the team tackled him as the DPU kid was running off the field...lol.
DePauw To Hell, We'll Keep the Bell

[WAF78]

Anyone going to the Monon Bell Stag this year? That always is such a great event. There have been a few years where the speakers bombed...but normally it's a great time.
Kudos to the DPU Indy Alumni for not standing with DPU's decision as a university to boycott the stag because it's not politically correct.