All In

The conversation this morning turned to Franklin Pierce, and Gary Walters asked TigerBlog if he knew what year he was elected President of the United States. The answer, of course, is 1852.

TB, who was an American history major, can name all of the Presidents in order, and the easiest way to remember is by the year they were elected.

James K. Polk is one of TB's favorite Presidents. Hey, he did a heckuva job in the Mexican War and all, right?

Polk was elected in 1844, and he chose not to run again in 1848. In fact, he was sort of the Bear Bryant of American Presidents, as Polk died 103 days after leaving office.

Zachary Taylor won in 1848, but he died in 1850 and was succeeded by Millard Fillmore, who in turn was ditched by the Whigs for the election of 1852. This in turn opened the door for the election of Franklin Pierce, who did nothing to prevent the coming Civil War and generally is thought to be one of the least accomplished Presidents of all time.

TigerBlog's opinion of Franklin Pierce could be further affected by what happens this Friday night.

Oh, TB is sure that the people at Franklin Pierce University in New Hampshire are very nice, and they certainly have to be happy with their first season of sprint football.

It's just that this Friday night, the Ravens will be on Powers Field at Princeton Stadium, where one way or another, history of sorts will be made. And TB doesn't want to be on the wrong side of it - especially after last Friday night.

Franklin Pierce is 0-2 in sprint, with a 26-21 loss to Cornell and a 24-20 loss to Penn. The roster has 37 players on it, 28 of whom are freshmen.

Should FPU win, it would be the first in program history.

Princeton has 33 players, 16 of whom are seniors. None of them have ever won a game - in fact, Princeton hasn't won a CSFL game since 1999.

But oh did the Tigers come close Friday night.

Princeton was playing Post, a team that defeated Princeton 33-18 in its first year two years ago and then 48-0 last year.

This time, the game was a classic, and ultimately a classic heartbreaker for the Tigers.

TB was in the press box at Princeton Stadium, and he was texting with Jon Kurian of the business office. When TB texted this:

"Post lining up for a potential game-winning field goal, 11 seconds left," the response he got from Kurian was this:

"I'm on one knee, holding my wife's hand in prayer."

That particular one was answered, as the kick was blocked, sending the game to overtime.

Princeton would get three on its possession, going up 29-26. A stop would mean that the long losing streak would finally be over.

Somewhere along the way (maybe through Twitter?), a big student turnout appeared. Suddenly, there was genuine electricity in the building, far beyond a normal sprint game.

Here's how it went on Post's possession:

Post ball, at the Princeton 25. First and 10. No gain.

Second down, rolling right, throwing back to the left, complete to the two. The crowd now stunned.

First and goal. And then wait. The snap is fumbled. A huge pileup.

And now time stopped and the moment was right there. There was absolutely no way to tell who had the ball, and as the refs began to sort it all out, the realization hung over everyone in the stadium that if they pointed towards Princeton, the game would be over and the Tigers would have won.

And so the seconds went by agonizingly. The Princeton bench was ready to rush the field. So were the students.

And then the ref held up two fingers, signally second down for Post. And then it ended on the next play.

Princeton's players were crushed. The student section was crushed. Post was elated.

This hasn't been a typical Princeton sprint football season.

The Tigers are 0-4, yes, but the losses to Mansfield and Cornell were by seven points each. Even the 62-13 loss to Navy was different than usual, as Navy had only 264 yards of offense and scored four touchdowns on returns.

Princeton scored 29 points against Post Friday night. The Tigers scored 28 all of last year combined.

All of which leads to this Friday night.

Princeton is at Penn, which has a four-point win over FPU and a three-point win over Mansfield, not to mention a six-OT loss to Cornell, so far this season, and then a game at Army.

Clearly, the best chance for a win is against the first-year Ravens.

When the game ended Friday, the Princeton players were able to peel themselves off the Powers Field turf and go through the handshakes, and then they retreated to the far end zone.

They were there for a few minutes, talking no doubt about the disappointment of what had just happened. TB, from his vantage point walking down the stands, saw it not as a gesture of resignation but of refocus and of desire to make this coming game different, when the team that hasn't won since any of these players were in elementary school takes on a team that has never won.

There will be a big celebration Friday in Princeton Stadium. The only question is whether it'll be the Tigers or the Ravens.

Meanwhile, the meeting in the end zone after the Post loss ended with a group huddle and then a chant.

"All In," the Tigers yelled.