Touchdown. The game was taking forever, and with time running out at Shorewood High School, it looked as though the Golden Eagles may finally get the best of the Milwaukee Panthers.

In the history of the club football teams at UWM and Marquette, the Brew City Classic has been a game attended by hundreds of supporters from both schools. While the official attendance has never been tallied, last year’s crowd was estimated to be around 300, with students from both schools packing the stands at Shorewood High on Capitol and Oakland to witness a truly historic match-up in the rivalry.

With under a minute left, Marquette was down 34-26 and marching down field. With the Milwaukee defense on their heels throughout the second half, the Golden Eagles took their final, decisive shot.

Marquette scores on a long pass in the closing seconds, leading to a touchdown that cut the lead to two. Lining up for the obvious two-point conversion, the Golden Eagles’ quarterback dropped back and threw a rocket to the left side at a receiver for the potential game-tying score.

However, as with the first three games in the Brew City Classic, Marquette fell short. Milwaukee intercepted the pass, effectively ending the game, 34-32.

But that was last year. Head coach Nate Harker is long gone, replaced by the more experienced Nick Wembler. However, following the second game of the season, a loss to Carroll College, 27-12, Wembler quit, citing a lack of work ethic and commitment to the team.

With former offensive coordinator and UWM student Bryce McCourt taking over at the helm, the Panthers turned around and proved Wembler wrong by turning in their best defensive performance of the season, a 9-7 victory at Concordia last Sunday.

You won’t find the Panthers celebrating too much. With the impending unofficial “championship” game of every season coming on Saturday, Sept. 29, the Panthers have a lot to prepare for.

The Brew City Classic goes to the Golden Eagles’ home in 2007, down at Valley Fields in the Menomonee Valley, near Potawatomi Bingo and Casino.

“Obviously, it’s the biggest game of the year for us,” said coach McCourt at practice last week. “If anything, we’re over-preparing for this game.” Milwaukee has literally owned the game the past four years.

The Milwaukee Panthers have laid claim to the Golden Keg, a wooden traveling trophy that hasn’t traveled a whole heck of a lot the past few years. The Panthers will put the Golden Keg on the line again Saturday in the Brew City Classic.

In 2003, the first year of Panther club football, the teams scrimmaged in April with Marquette winning, but since it was just a scrimmage and not a true game, there has been much debate as to whether or not the game should be counted towards the all-time records.

Later that year the teams met in a proper game, with UWM victorious 6-0 on their way to a 4-0 finish, their only undefeated season in history.

The following fall, the Panthers had won their previous three games against Rockford, UW-Eau Claire and Lakeland, bringing their record to 3-2 entering the contest with Marquette. The largest point differential of the series was recorded, as the Panthers drubbed the Golden Eagles, 52-14.

In 2005, the Panthers defeated the Golden Eagles at Valley Fields, 31-14, on their way to a 4-2 season. Perhaps the best contest of all was last fall.

Will the excitement of Saturday’s game against Marquette match last season’s last second victory? Can the Panthers turn this season into a winning season and take down the Golden Eagles yet again?

To find out, you’re just going to have to show up. The game is Saturday, Sept. 29 versus the Marquette Golden Eagles club football team.

Game time is 1 p.m. at Valley Fields. Make sure you don’t miss the biggest game of the year.

> Comments