Zulgad: Breaking childhood rule of leaving early leaves longtime Vikings follower on the outside
I have a confession to make: I walked out of the greatest comeback in NFL history at halftime.
It wasn’t because the Vikings’ 33-0 deficit appeared insurmountable (it did), or because I was disgusted by the Vikings’ first-half performance against the Indianapolis Colts (I was). Rather, it was a mutual decision reached by me and my SKOR North colleagues that we would go live at halftime with our Vent Line program that is on our YouTube channel after each game.
My co-host, Phil Mackey, and executive producer Declan Goff both figured that the second half would be a continuation of the first two quarters in which the fans at U.S. Bank Stadium rightfully took out their frustration on the home team. Since the purpose of Vent Line is to allow fans to do exactly that, Phil and Declan figured we might as well start early and hear from the fans while they might still watching the game.
The idea came with the Vikings down 30-0. My first thought was that NFL rules don’t allow you to do a live show from the stadium while a game is in progress and so I would have to leave in order to join my colleagues.
I had a bit of hesitation in bolting with the score 30-0, based on the extremely unlikely chance the Vikings rallied. But when the Colts’ Chase McLaughlin kicked a 27-yard field goal late in the half, any reservations that existed disappeared.
There were a few fans walking out with me as I made my way to the parking ramp for the short drive to the Hubbard Studios. One couple was engaged in a conversation in which all I heard a woman say was, “33-0?” Another couple appeared to be in a verbal spat that was more about their disgust for the Vikings than anything going on between them.
Let me make one thing clear: As a young sports fanatic, the thought of leaving any game early was a huge no-no. I was there for Tommy Kramer’s Hail Mary pass to Ahmad Rashad to end the “Miracle at the Met” in 1980, and, much to my parents’ disdain, had insisted on staying until the end of a lot of games in which the home team fell way short.
But professional obligation and the cynicism that comes with being 53 and having covered sports for many years, made it far easier to walk out of U.S. Bank Stadium and not look back.
Big mistake.
The Vikings’ 36-point second half tied the Colts, who only got a field goal in the final 30 minutes of regulation, and as Greg Joseph’s 40-yard field goal sailed through the uprights to end the game in overtime, and give the Vikings a 39-36 win and the NFC North title, one could only laugh about a decision that had cost him an opportunity to see NFL history. Unlike the many who will say they stayed until the end, there is video evidence that I didn’t.
Being part of what turned into a 3-hour Vent Line was great. Sharing the frustration of the first half with the audience, then having that slowly turn into disbelief of what was happening and finally complete awe of what we had all witnessed.
In many ways, that experience might have surpassed having watched the game with my own thoughts from the press box. But the kid in me, the one who never left a game early and scoffed at those who did, will never forgive adult for me walking out of that stadium.
All of those games that I had stayed until the end, none of them matched what happened Saturday. And I missed it.
Judd Zulgad is co-host of the Purple Daily Podcast and Mackey & Judd podcast at www.skornorth.com
