There are a few things that are for certain when the Minnesota Vikings take the field every year: Fall isn't far behind; I turn some of my attention to football (OK, I turn a lot of my attention to football; Minnesota fish are gearing up for winter with a hunger only a fisherman can enjoy.
So while a lot of my attention has been on watching Brett Favre get acclimated to the 2009 Vikings squad, fishing fall bass is always in the back of my mind.
I bring this up because last season by brother-in-law, Dave, and I bucked the conventional, wind-blown outing to Mille Lacs for a Sunday run at Gull Lake in Brainerd. The Vikings played the Indianapolis Colts on Week 2 at the Dome, and we listened while fishing a chilly, on-again-off-again, rainy lake.
The Vikings jumped out to a 15-0 lead and, other than not being able to punch it in the end zone, appeared dominant. We talked about how important it was for Tarvaris Jackson to figure things out. I talked about how fans would be calling for his head and Brad Childress' head if he didn't have a good season.
And then the Colts started to make a run. What made matters worse was the Vikings were blowing it on the field and we were getting skunked on a less-than comforting Gull, our rain gear providing the only real comfort.
Somewhere in the third quarter, with the anger of the two disappointments mounting (I think by now we'd both hooked into a 6-inch bass (heck, maybe they were 4-inchers) I turned to Dave and said, "Mark my words, the Vikings are going to lose this thing in regulation."
"You think so," he asked.
Long story short, the Colts outscored the Vikings 11-0 in the fourth quarter for an 18-15 victory. The loss riled us both up, and we decided to change our strategy, part of which required a long boat ride to a foreign spot.
If you've read this blog or even my column in our print edition, you'll know I talk a lot about the fishing gods. The day the Vikings blew it against the Colts, the football gods weren't on our side. But after that horrid loss and the move across the lake, I figure the fishing gods felt bad for us, because we hauled in 42 fish in about three hours.
I bring this all up because Dave and I will make a second trip to Gull during a Week 2 Vikings game, this time against the Detroit Lions. Now, a little back history that doesn't get talked about as much with Detroit — the Lions obviously went 0-16 last season, but the team also lost seven of its last eight in 2007, including the final game of the season.
So with the loss to end 2007, and the loss to start 2009, the Lions are on an 18-game losing streak (and have lost 24 of their last 25). They have a young offense with some talent at quarterback, running back and wide receiver. Do you think they are hungry for a win?
And to top things off, the Vikings beat the Lions 12-10 and 20-16 in their two meetings last season — the Lions should have won at least one of those games, if not both. So yes, they are hungry for a win.
If the football gods let the Lions finally end this horrible streak (I'm rooting for a Detroit win, just not against the Vikes), the fishing gods are gonna need to send down a case of beer to go with about 1,000 fish in an hour for Dave and I!
