MONROE - Wasn't it great watching Russell Wilson lead our beloved Badgers to victory in the first Big Ten Championship Game and on to the 2012 Rose Bowl?
Now, replace that with his infamous "Fail Mary" pass nine months later that allowed his Seattle Seahawks - with a little help from the NFL's replacement refs - to beat our beloved Green Bay Packers.
And who can forget how Darrell Bevell wove around UCLA Bruins en route to the end zone in the 1994 Rose Bowl, giving the Badgers their first-ever victory in The Granddaddy of Them All.
Today, that traitor is Wilson's offensive coordinator with those same Seahawks. And let us remind you of how before that he held the same job with - prepare to cringe - Brett Favre's Minnesota Vikings.
With a trip to the Super Bowl on the line, Wisconsinites will need to cast aside fond memories of some our state's finest, as the Packers travel to Seattle for Sunday's NFC Championship Game. We have been able to do it with Wisconsin natives Colin Kaepernick and Tony Romo, which sure seemed easier, but with so much at stake it shouldn't be so hard this time around either.
Finally, nevermind that Monroe's own Ken Behring owned the Seahawks between 1988 and 1997. That's ancient history.
Besides, Behring made a profit of more than $100 million when he sold the team to some computer-something guy named Paul Allen for $200 million. So Behring can afford to not have us on his side.
But for those who may still be torn on how to feel, we bring you Sarah Sabatke. Born in Seattle but raised in Monroe since age 4, she said: "The internal conflict is real."
When asked who she is rooting for, she said: "Whoever wins."
Sabatke is studying journalism at the University of Missouri, but may we suggest a career in politics with an answer like that.
"The sports guys will be screaming in their debates, but I'll stay neutral," said Sabatke, who will be watching the game at the campus TV station where she works. "I'll be in a neutral setting, which will be nice, and I'll be sure to wear a Packers shirt one day and a Seahawks shirt the next, just to be fair."
Or, one can simply wear both colors at once, like Monroe's Andy King used to do when he'd attend games as a season-ticket holder in Seattle between 2000 and 2002.
"I'd have on a Seahawks shirt and my Seahawks beads, but then always something else showing the Packers," he said. "I can't tell you some of the things I was called."
Curiously, here in Monroe where his co-workers at Minhas Brewery know of his Seattle allegiance, King said he's received no ribbing this week whatsoever.
"Mostly what I hear is what a good game it should be," he said. "I don't wear my Seahawks stuff to work because it's not allowed - I'm in a hard-hat area and the beads could get snagged in the machinery."
Just maybe it also has something to do with the giant beer vats into which a fan opposing the Packers might easily disappear.
King was stationed in the Navy in Washington state and was one of the original "plank owners" at the new stadium that would become CenturyLink Field. In 2013, the crowd - known as the 12th Man - set a new Guinness World Record by creating 136.6 decibels of sound.
"I've been on ships next to (Lockheed) S-3 Viking turbo jets, and that doesn't compare to the noise at a Seahwks game," he said. "I would wear ear plugs at the stadium, and still my ears would be ringing afterward."
King said he'll likely be watching the game at his in-laws' place in Prairie du Sac, where the decibels will be decidedly lower.
"They're Packers fans, so I'll be on good behavior," he said. "And my wife always reigns me in. She says I clap way too loud and doesn't like it when I yell at the TV. But that's what you got used to when you cheered at a Seahawks game."
Then there's Amalia Becker, a Monroe native who just recently moved to Madison, who became a Seahawks through something as typical as teenage rebellion.
"My Mom's a Bears fan and my Dad's a Packers fan, so I couldn't be either one - I had to choose my own," she said, no shame in her voice whatsoever. "I had never been to Seattle, but I thought I'd love it, so that was my team. I bought a (quarterback Matt) Hasselbeck jersey in 2007 and never looked back."
To top if all off, as only fate could provide, her 22nd birthday trip to Seattle took place Sept. 24, 2012. That's right, the night of the Fail Mary, and Becker was in the stadium.
"I couldn't believe how loud it was and what happened at the end," she said. "I've been getting heat about that Packers game ever since, and I'm sure it will be worse this weekend."
Is she at least admitting it was the wrong call? Of course not.
"My typical response has been just what (Seattle coach) Pete Carroll said after the game: "Tie goes to the runner, so it was a good call,'" she said. "I'll never say anything else."
Now, replace that with his infamous "Fail Mary" pass nine months later that allowed his Seattle Seahawks - with a little help from the NFL's replacement refs - to beat our beloved Green Bay Packers.
And who can forget how Darrell Bevell wove around UCLA Bruins en route to the end zone in the 1994 Rose Bowl, giving the Badgers their first-ever victory in The Granddaddy of Them All.
Today, that traitor is Wilson's offensive coordinator with those same Seahawks. And let us remind you of how before that he held the same job with - prepare to cringe - Brett Favre's Minnesota Vikings.
With a trip to the Super Bowl on the line, Wisconsinites will need to cast aside fond memories of some our state's finest, as the Packers travel to Seattle for Sunday's NFC Championship Game. We have been able to do it with Wisconsin natives Colin Kaepernick and Tony Romo, which sure seemed easier, but with so much at stake it shouldn't be so hard this time around either.
Finally, nevermind that Monroe's own Ken Behring owned the Seahawks between 1988 and 1997. That's ancient history.
Besides, Behring made a profit of more than $100 million when he sold the team to some computer-something guy named Paul Allen for $200 million. So Behring can afford to not have us on his side.
But for those who may still be torn on how to feel, we bring you Sarah Sabatke. Born in Seattle but raised in Monroe since age 4, she said: "The internal conflict is real."
When asked who she is rooting for, she said: "Whoever wins."
Sabatke is studying journalism at the University of Missouri, but may we suggest a career in politics with an answer like that.
"The sports guys will be screaming in their debates, but I'll stay neutral," said Sabatke, who will be watching the game at the campus TV station where she works. "I'll be in a neutral setting, which will be nice, and I'll be sure to wear a Packers shirt one day and a Seahawks shirt the next, just to be fair."
Or, one can simply wear both colors at once, like Monroe's Andy King used to do when he'd attend games as a season-ticket holder in Seattle between 2000 and 2002.
"I'd have on a Seahawks shirt and my Seahawks beads, but then always something else showing the Packers," he said. "I can't tell you some of the things I was called."
Curiously, here in Monroe where his co-workers at Minhas Brewery know of his Seattle allegiance, King said he's received no ribbing this week whatsoever.
"Mostly what I hear is what a good game it should be," he said. "I don't wear my Seahawks stuff to work because it's not allowed - I'm in a hard-hat area and the beads could get snagged in the machinery."
Just maybe it also has something to do with the giant beer vats into which a fan opposing the Packers might easily disappear.
King was stationed in the Navy in Washington state and was one of the original "plank owners" at the new stadium that would become CenturyLink Field. In 2013, the crowd - known as the 12th Man - set a new Guinness World Record by creating 136.6 decibels of sound.
"I've been on ships next to (Lockheed) S-3 Viking turbo jets, and that doesn't compare to the noise at a Seahwks game," he said. "I would wear ear plugs at the stadium, and still my ears would be ringing afterward."
King said he'll likely be watching the game at his in-laws' place in Prairie du Sac, where the decibels will be decidedly lower.
"They're Packers fans, so I'll be on good behavior," he said. "And my wife always reigns me in. She says I clap way too loud and doesn't like it when I yell at the TV. But that's what you got used to when you cheered at a Seahawks game."
Then there's Amalia Becker, a Monroe native who just recently moved to Madison, who became a Seahawks through something as typical as teenage rebellion.
"My Mom's a Bears fan and my Dad's a Packers fan, so I couldn't be either one - I had to choose my own," she said, no shame in her voice whatsoever. "I had never been to Seattle, but I thought I'd love it, so that was my team. I bought a (quarterback Matt) Hasselbeck jersey in 2007 and never looked back."
To top if all off, as only fate could provide, her 22nd birthday trip to Seattle took place Sept. 24, 2012. That's right, the night of the Fail Mary, and Becker was in the stadium.
"I couldn't believe how loud it was and what happened at the end," she said. "I've been getting heat about that Packers game ever since, and I'm sure it will be worse this weekend."
Is she at least admitting it was the wrong call? Of course not.
"My typical response has been just what (Seattle coach) Pete Carroll said after the game: "Tie goes to the runner, so it was a good call,'" she said. "I'll never say anything else."