In need of a rabbit's foot

Bunny's Bar & Grill in St. Louis Park was the venue for last evening's Coors Light Thursday Night football trivia.

The place was jam packed and a season high number of participants played in the first round written quiz. I didn't have one of my better qualifying rounds but it was good enough to be seeded 12th out of 24 teams.

Since there were so many teams, I had to participate in a one round play in. The question this round was "Earlier this week, which player did Vikings GM Rick Spielman indicate he had 100% confidence in his play?" I buzzed in first and answered Christian Ponder, which was correct. On to the final 16!

In the sweet 16, I took on a team called "Big Beauties." In the bracketed tourney, the two sides stand at a podium with a buzzer in hand. In this round it's one question, one answer.

Question: In his NFL career, WR Jake Reed played for only one team other than the Vikings....

Brad (quick with the trigger finger): New Orleans Saints. Correct!

Incidentally, my opponent sat there utterly stupefied, having no idea what hit them. Anyhow, on to the quarterfinals.

In the round of eight it's once again a one question, one answer format. This round, my opponent was "TJBPJ."

Question: The largest margin of victory in an NFL regular season game is 59 points. Name the last team to lose by that margin?

Brad (barely buzzing in first): Tennessee Titans. Correct!

I was moving on to the semifinals where the stakes are higher and the questions much tougher. My opponent would be none other than Brendan Byrne, who won the tournament ten times last season and three times thus far this year. I had faced Brendan four previous times with nary a victory. Oh well, in order to be the best you have to beat the best, so I relished the opportunity.

In the semis, it's best 2 out of 3 category questions.

Question 1: In the 1980s, 10 NFL QBs threw for at least 20,000 yards. Name them.

Brendan (buzzing in first): Joe Montana. Correct.
Brad: John Elway. Correct.
Brendan: Neil Lomax. Correct.
Brad: Phil Simms. Correct.
Brendan: Dan Fouts. Correct.
Brad: Warren Moon. Incorrect. Turns out, Moon threw for "only" 18,300 in the decade since he didn't start his NFL career until 1984.

1-0, Brendan.


Question 2: The Green Bay Packers are the only publicly owned franchise in the NFL, which means there are 31 different majority owners. Name them.

Brad (buzzing in first): Zygi Wilf. Correct.
Brendan: Jerry Jones. Correct.
Brad: Bob Kraft. Correct.
Brendan: Dan Snyder. Correct.
Brad: Jeffrey Lurie. Correct.
Brendan: Bob McNair. Correct.
Brad: Tom Benson. Correct.
Brendan: Bud Adams. Correct.
Brad: Pat Bowlen. Correct.
Brendan: Steve Biscotti. Correct.
Brad: Arthur Blank. Correct.
Brendan: Alex Spanos. Correct.
Brad: Paul Allen. Correct.
Brendan: Mike Brown. Correct.
Brad: John Mara. Correct.
Brendan: Dan Rooney. Correct.
Brad: Bill Bidwill. Correct.
Brendan: Jerry Richardson. Correct.
Brad: Lerner (Al Lerner was the Browns owner until his death in 2002; his son then took over the team). Incorrect. Steve Lerner sold the team four months ago.
Brendan (for the win): Ralph Wilson. Correct!

Brendan moves on to the finals with a 2-0 win.

And yes, Brendan won in the final round, making him a 14-time champ over two seasons.

I'm beginning to feel like the Washington Generals to Brendan's Harlem Globetrotters.

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