RU Withstands Mild Scare, Roasts Castrated Gobblers 35-16; BREP Nation Rejoices

Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023 was picture perfect.

2:30 p.m. group shot before stadium walk

Sun, weather in the mid 70s. 

Rutgers football executed. 

Zero turnovers. 

Minimal mistakes. 

Over 250 yards rushing. 

Meanwhile, the contingent dubbed B-REP Nation brought it as usual with a stellar pregame tailgate.

The menu aligned with turkey-themed cuisine in honor of our visitors and equally commensurate with what the Scarlet Knights made its foe look like on the gridiron.

The citizens of Asbury
usually need to hunt
for meals, but not
at B-REP Nation

Smoked Turkey

Castrated Turkey

On the scoreboard, the Hokies looked smoked. Yet the game was a lot closer the score looked.

Game started with a turnover on Va Tech's first drive and a quick answer via Kyle Monangai's first of three TDs, an untouched 19-yard scamper 43 seconds in to put RU ahead 7-0.

QC Director

The Hokies' only response was a field goal to make it 7-3 before Rutgers responded with two straight touchdowns, including a 34-yard QB draw by Gavin Wimsatt, to take a 21-3 halftime lead.

Va Tech made things interesting with two third-quarter TDs to draw within 21-16 before Monangai closed the door with consecutive touchdowns, including a 55-yarder, to put the game out of reach and send Rutgers again to 3-0 on the season before a stiff road contest vs. Michigan, ranked No. 2 nationally, next Saturday at noon. 

Huge tailgate turnout with several new guests running the numbers to 20-25 B-REPers. 

These ladies roxx!

The Witkowskis brought 63% of Asbury, NJ's population, including a late-arriving political dignitary, the Hunterdon County chapter of the castrated gobblers' fanclub and Glenn's family, including the coolest child tailgater since Logan and B-RES (a.k.a. Shane; "Stan" to some) attended the game with Legrand's return to the stadium in a snowstorm in October 2011. 

...AND Krimpets
dipped in bourbon
make a great pairing!

Andrea happy to learn
there IS a Great
Pumpkin...

Spiritual leader B-REP hosted John, Jennifer and Matthew of the Bridgewater Bembens, along with RU alum and tailgate returnees Nancy Henderson and son Gavin. (No word on the level of disappointment of yesterday's football result over their son/older brother who chose to school in Blacksburg, VA for some presumably unwise reason). 

The Burks brought it B1Gtime with stuffing and cornbread casserole to accompany the Hobos' smoked turkey breast, not to mention Eric's provision of Woodford Reserve, which makes a perfect complement to Andy's Butterscotch Krimpets for dipping purposes and Bill's walk-in snack.

(B-REP Nation sources confirm that Andrea has already Google'd and found several bourbon butterscotch dessert recipes for October's annual Halloween Party in Roselle Roselle Park.)

True VT warrior...
loss in cornhole to
beloved neighbor,
plus to RU football

Tom argues to BREP
that Radiohead did
more for music
than Bruce

Speaking of Andy, bringing it large once again with two trays of delicious mac and cheese, with the leftovers foisted upon Erin, Logan and their roommates, though what college kid could complain with next-day eats of such high quality, including pulled pork, baked black and kidney beans with bacon and smoked turkey, plus brisket provided by Tom. 

Great also to be joined by the early-arriving Basil (Biz) and John with his green salad bullshit.

The Pt. Pleasant Labues were very vocal and a key presence inside oSHI*! Stadium after earlier travel soccer obligations. 

Let it be known, too, that Rutgers is undefeated with both the lovely Kathy H. in attendance and Dana absent. Some debated in the postgame parking lot hang about conspiring to ensure that the good doctor is obligated to weekend duty through football season but we should have none of that. 

Clearly the latter point is made up, but symbolic of the great sense of humor that this wonderful group of tailgaters and friends needs in subjecting itself to Rutgers sports allegiance.

On that note, Shana Tovah and go RU!

A break from tailgating next week, with Wagner on Sept. 30. (Hobos will be at UMD, so early offer of two tickets plus parking that we'd prefer to keep within the group; text Bill if tickets, pass have taker.) 

Glen embracing Krimpets...

...and turkey dogs

Bill sidehustle with "Evil Pete"...

...and Pablo of Tinton Falls

Agreement over food, not
B-REP's playlist

Biz, John, Pete

"Stop Dad, need more snacks!"

B-REP Nation Preps for RU vs. Va. Tech Fighting Gobblers

After getting very lucky and avoiding inclement weather at Saturday's tailgate and workmanlike 36-7 win vs. Temple, we re-rally for this week's tilt vs. Virginia Tech.

Kickoff is at 3:30 p.m. and let's get the chat going on meeting times and what people are bringing.

I've got to split for a meeting, but will update with a more thorough recap either tonight or tomorrow, highlighting attendees and the strong menu, including Dana's pretzel bullshit. The good doctor's bourbon did make a fine combination with the Philly-based butterscotch crimpets provided by Erin's dad Andy.

Use comments below for rollcall and headcount. I bought 7 lbs. of turkey breast to smoke, and I sense people were on board with some gobbler. Maybe we can go with southern BBQ fare as sides, or Virginia ham if folks are insistent on the state name. Either way, would be great if we could just set up as sterno and warmers but I'm cool bringing the grill if needed.

Cheers!

Rutgers Clobbers Northwestern, Preps To Crumble Temple

Sunday marked a rare exacta of winning the tailgate AND the game, with a convincing 24-3 victory for our beloved Scarlet Knights to get the 2023 season off on the right foot. 

Rutgers made easy work of Northwestern as the Wildcats looked like they had naked human carwashes and Shrek claps more top of mind than how to stop RU's stingy defense. Maybe for us it was equal parts bad team making the other look good, but it's a step in the right direction and gives us hope to begin the campaign 2-0 with Temple ahead on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

"If you love char,
B-REP is your chef."
-- Daily Targum 9-4-23

B-REP Nation came out ready to fire, with most of the crew in the parking lot by 8:45 a.m. ahead of the noon kickoff and eager to get reacquainted after summer. 

Menu was top notch, with all contributing. 

Debut attendee Andy and wife and B-REP Nation tailgate returnee Anna (a.k.a. Erin's parents) gave props to all chefs and may return in '23, perhaps as soon as Saturday. Anna also realized Eric and Andrea are the "Halloween Party people" after giving Erin approval to attend the Roselle Park throwdowns and sneak alcoholic beverages for years. Erin and Logan, BTW, are rooming in Livi Apartments for senior year (!) and their RU swan song; their 4-person on-campus place is sweet, BTW. 

(In background: canopy of
tenant of Jetlife Stadium

Friends forever for what may
be final year on the Banks!

The Witkowski contingent was smaller than usual but had the key piece (Sharon) and promises to bring overflow crowds post-St. Mary High School reunion (this Saturday also). Pete bought some new flavor in that Scarlet Ale, where 0.005 cents on every unit sold goes to fund NILs. So everyone stock up and support!

Speaking of things St. Mary, B-REP's return to the scene was an added blessing and energy lift. It's great having our spiritual leader regularly back in the mix! Not to mention bringing along friend Steve and a 7' young man that we'll probably see on some Wales rugby Netflix show as that content provider continues reaching for content. 

Nation Hotties

The Labues all looked good and two of them about 18" taller. I'm not sure they did any offseason work on their beanbagging, however, as our sources signal no threat to Jennifer's torchbearer status in our parking lot cornhole competitions for years to come. 

A strong Tinton Falls contingent was on hand with Hobo neighbors Rob and Joann Sjosward joining Chris Skurat, while Dana and John made the Monmouth County crew's pimphand stronger. Rob and Joann brought it with RU gear and the Uncle Guisseppe's sausage and peppers and had a good experience ahead of SEC style tailgating when they visit son Jake, a freshman at Tennessee. 

Temple Tailgate Idea

3rd-team DB just made 3 cents
courtesy of Knights of the
Roxx Armada

In keeping with food-of-opponents theme, everyone up for cheesesteaks and homefries? 

If so I'll get to working on the supplies and all can chip in on supplies. Else we could use the usual assortment of snacks, desserts, drinks, ets. 

Dr. Dana blessed all IPAs
plus the chorizo and S&P

As for a meeting time, Andrea threw out 3:30 p.m. Is that too early for folks or that OK?

Might want to bring canopies again or consider a spot under the solar panels with some rain in the extended forecast. 

Yet there to brighten our day will be Kathy, back from her NYC adventures this past Sunday and eager for good food, times and football. 

Let the comments commence for roll call and such (no Larry, Witkowskis and Tom this week).

Rob, Joann, Festmeister, Big E

2023 Season Opener on Sunday!

It'll be great to see everyone as a group again as Rutgers kicks off the 2023 football season by hosting Northwestern on Sunday at noon, a new spin on interfering with everyone's Labor Day weekend!

Burks, Hobos at the track

Summer moved quickly and has been a blast but there's plenty of time and presumably great weather as the Scarlet Knights begin the campaign with 3 straight home games (Temple on Sept. 9, Va. Tech on Sept. 16) and a front-loaded home schedule of 7 at SHI* Stadium.

A text chain was started already with early plans on tailgating vs. the Wildcats. 

I've asked Festmeister Skurat to meet at my house at 8a, so I expect to be in Black Lot around 8:45 a.m. 

Andrea spent her summer
reviewing Sam Elliott classic
"Lifeguard"

Beyond the heated debate over the best of Barker's Beauties and people catching up on Dana's daily AAU rumor mill, it seemed folks want to keep it simple on Sunday with a recommendation of burger and ribs, if memory serves. 

If that's the case, let's get a list started in the chat on headcount and who's bringing what. 

Whichever direction we take on menu, I'll whip up a tray of homefries. 

If breakfast is a preference, the Jersey tomato-pork roll casserole is an easy make and reheat but everyone please weigh in if grilling is the preference and easiest. 

Else let's keep to BYOB and some sharing.

Let the good times (at least tailgate-wise, not sure about on the gridiron) commence with roll call!

Final Tailgate of the 2022 Season

Good day, campers!

After a scaled back (8-9 people) but fulfilling tailgate for the Michigan game on Breeders Cup Saturday (yours truly had a positive ROI for the 2-day wagering event, BTW), we return Saturday, Nov. 19 for the home finale as 20-point underdogs to State Penn.

Sample of Maize and
Blue deli sandwiches, an
Ann Arbor, MI staple

Not sure that's enough points, but at least the meteorologists promise a dry and crisp low-40s with 10-20 mph winds for a game kicking off at 3:30 p.m., so nothing we haven't withstood before weather-wise.

Let's start our season-ending tailgate at noon. 

In an earlier text chain I floated the notion of smoking a turkey as our core food item, with Andrea and Pete chiming in with side dish offerings; if we have more people than vs. Michigan we could use a few more.

Please use comments for Saturday's roll call so we can think about head count and confirm what everyone's bringing.

I'll be solo (Kathy a scheduling conflict but figure Kaitlyn may show at our spot) and gave my second ticket to a friend, who I'd say is 50-50 to join our tailgate. 

In the meantime, here are a few photos from our day with Michigan. Scaled-back group but a really relaxing and warm atmosphere with great discussion. 

A B1G Home W-IN!

The Scarlet Knights finally came through with a B1G home win vs. Indiana, beating the Hoosiers 24-17 on a picturesque homecoming that provided the backdrop for yet another great BREP Nation tailgate!

Dave, Tom solve RU's
scoring problems

It's impolite to point

Eavesdropping on the
ladies' conversation

It was a beautiful autumn morning that started out in the high 40s but quickly warmed as the day progressed. The menu was solid enough, with a normal breakfast fare of scrambled eggs, homefries, pork roll, bacon, bagels, pastries, Kentucky and New Hampshire bourbon and Natty Bo. The turnout was favorable too; just a great bunch of folks to make an autumn Saturday all the better.

On the boards, the highlight was perhaps Kathy's 3 bullseyes in her and the author's double-digit thrashing of the Eric-Pete duo. 

RU 1-0 when this
crew visits Dana's brick

As generous as our buffet was the group inheriting a seat two rows in front of us from a fan who left Section 121 early. Between that and the gift of a Rutgers home win, an early Thanksgiving blessing!

Banner October day for Scarlet Knights football

Rutgers is at Minnesota next week, with a 2:30 p.m. kickoff. It's a huge game for the 4-3 Knights, who are still very much alive for a .500 season and bowl bid. Of course a Nebraska win would have made that road a lot less rocky, but beating the Gophers, also 4-3 overall and 1-3 in conference, puts us in a good position with four games to go. 

Our next home game is Saturday, Nov. 5 vs. Michigan, kickoff at 7:30 p.m. (Some vintage Ann Arbor trip pics below).

Kickoff is TBD but it's not too early to discuss tailgate menu options. A few tailgates ago vs. the Wolverines we crafted sandwiches from the Maize and Blue Deli in Ann Arbor, MI, which were a big hit and fairly easy (mostly cold cuts and home made cole slaw with toppings). We could revisit those or go elsewhere (e.g. Oktoberfest menu, Jim's Blimpie burgers), so let's get the chatter going.   

It's all the more exciting to think about off a win!

RU IN? Saturday, Oct. 22, Noon

You can't spell R-U-I-N without Rutgers and Indiana. 

The loser of this game is looking at an even more ruined season, with Rutgers having 2 weeks to stew over a miserable loss to Nebraska and still trying to get its first B1G home win since 2017 and firmly in the cellar of the East division at 0-3.

Remember to wear red

Yet our Scarlet Knights could turn the tables with a homecoming win this Saturday at noon vs. Indiana, which has lost 3 in a row and is 3-4 overall and 1-3 in the B1G. 

It's likely that fans of both teams, especially Indiana's, are looking forward to men's basketball season.

Yet we still have 6 games left to make something happen On The Banks.

R U IN for this Saturday's tailgate, around 845-9 a.m. in the usual spot? 

Let's do a roll call in the comments and thoughts on cuisine. 

The early kickoff makes breakfast the logical choice but it's a democracy.

Forecast looks stellar: sunny and high of 68 (probably chilly morning).