isconsin's shocking come-from-behind victory over the Gophers on Saturday wasn't just bad news ... Shared fate spells bad news

isconsin's shocking come-from-behind victory over the Gophers on Saturday wasn't just bad news for fans of the Maroon and Gold. It also spelled doom for the Purple and their faithful -- a collection of folks already sailing on choppy waters.

An explanation: Dating back to last season, when the Gophers are in Big Ten play, and both they and the Vikings have games on the same weekend, they have had the same result seven consecutive times. When one loses, the other loses (five times). Twice, both teams have won.

What made this weekend extra special, though, is that both teams managed to lose in quintessential fashion. The Gophers played well enough to win, only to come up short, while the Vikings played poorly enough to be kicked out of the NFL, yet were only charged with a loss.

It's hard to say what's more confounding: The fact that the Gophers lost for the second time in three seasons while amassing at least 400 yards rushing, or that the Vikings' offense failed to score a meaningful touchdown for the fourth time in five games this season.

Fans have chosen the latter. For the web-savvy, www.FireMikeTiceNow.com and www.firetice.blogspot.com are up and running. The second site sells T-shirts for you and your dog.

For the second time in a White Sox/Angels series, grating ex-Twins catcher A.J. Pierzynski was at the center of a fortunate call that led to a victory. Saturday, he committed catcher's interference against Steve Finley, but the call was missed and Finley hit into a double play. "It was a lucky break," Pierzynski said. "What can you say?"

The blocked punt that gave Wisconsin a last-minute victory over the Gophers never should have happened, one reader writes: "With a three-point lead, an opposition touchdown will beat you and a field goal will tie you, but a safety preserves the win. The punter should have been taught in practice, and reminded during the timeout, that if the snap is bad or bobbled that deep in your zone, run it back to your end zone and take the safety."

The Broncos are 5-1 after Sunday's victory over New England. The real victory, however, belonged to the 2,700-plus folks who signed an online petition urging quarterback Jake Plummer to re-grow his mustache. The facial hair dominated Sunday's television broadcast.

To St. Olaf's football team, which is 6-0 for the first time since 1970. The Oles and St. John's are the only unbeaten teams in the MIAC. They face each other Oct. 29.

To St. Paul's own Chris Weinke, who subbed for the woozy Jake Delhomme and threw a last-minute touchdown for the Panthers as they knocked off Detroit.

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