Husker Tailgate: Week 4, Northwestern Wildcats road game

Husker football takes flight for their first road game, which means it’s either pack it up and roll time, or Homegating for the win.

I know the coaches and the team want to put the Oregon win behind them and focus on the Wildcats but WOWZERS! What a FAN-TAB-U-LOUS atmosphere last Saturday!! If you were there and haven’t tagged yourself in the mega-giga pixel photo inside the stadium, get to it.

The new challenge for the Big Red will be containing Northwestern’s running back, Justin Jackson and their dual threat QB, Clayton Thorson. The purple was able to convert on 3rd down way too much in their game against Duke last week so look for Nebraska to put an end to it with solid defensive line and linebacker play this week.

Husker offense will also have to wary of outside linebacker Anthony Walker as he’s an All American honoree and First Team All-Big Ten player. He currently leads the league in tackling. Some good news for Husker Nation is Brandon Reilly was on the practice field Tuesday and is hopeful to play on Saturday. Another wrinkle for Big Red is it’s a long grassy field up north. However, Coach Riley had the team practicing outside at Ed Wier Track infield to get comfortable on the real green stuff.

This is also the week for the alternate uniforms.

 I’ll admit they are rather swagalicious (yes, a word I use).  However, whose idea was it to wear all white on a green grass field? Chrome helmets seal the deal. Check out the team’s reaction when it was unveiled.

But on to Tailgate business. It’s a night game so that means you have plenty of time to prepare all kinds of goodies for the Homegate. I’m picking up on the grass theme (no, not that one) and featuring a Spinach & Artichoke Dip borrowed from Damn Delicious. Having a gathering at home makes it easy to serve lots of warm appetizers (lil smokies, queso & chips, wings from the oven). Things like popcorn and meat and cheese trays work well too because you don’t have to worry about a Nebraska breeze scattering things, or sweaty cheese sliding off the table.

Spinach & Artichoke dip

Ingredients:

2 (14 oz.) cans artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

1 10 oz. pkg frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

8 ounces sour cream

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves garlic

¾ cup milk

¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese

½ cup crumbled Feta cheese

1/3 cup mayo

1 Tbsp red wine vinegar

¼ tsp black pepper

8 ounces cream cheese, cubed

Place all the ingredients into a slow cooker. Stir until well combined and top with cream cheese cubes. Cook on low heat for 2 hours. Stir until cream cheese is well combined and cook on high for another 15 minutes. Serve with pita chips or sliced bread.

Another Homegate advantage is glassware. It’s nice to be able to enjoy a cold beverage in a real glass rather than a red solo cup every once in a while. Take advantage and get out all the different shapes of barware. A Purple Haze martini features Pucker grape schnapps. A Purple Slurpee uses Crème de Banana & Blue Curacao in a highball worthy of staining any carpet. Finally, the Purple Rain is best served in a hurricane glass given all the juices that need to mix together.

Tidbits: First of all, HUGE props to the Oregon Ducks for the classy move placing flowers on the 27 yard line. Second, classy move by Northwestern to put a sticker on their helmets honoring our beloved Sam Foltz this coming Saturday. And lastly, thank you to Colby Delahoussaye for honoring our Smalltown, USA hero.

Finally, I’m looking forward to Husker football and chilling in front of my tv in my woman cave Saturday night with friends. I’m looking forward to watching DPE get another great return (or two) against the Wildcats.

Next: Big Ten Power Rankings Heading Into Week 4

And most of all, I’m looking forward to Coach Bray’s core of linebackers and Ross Dzuris for some more Stache-mouth football. As always, GO BIG RED!