Bingo

TigerBlog would like to tell you a story about his own personal integrity. 

First, though, here's a very, very, very old joke:

Q: How do you get nine grandmothers to yell [insert graphic expletive here]?
A: Get one grandmother to yell "BINGO."

This is funny stuff.

Okay, back to TB's integrity, which ties into more fun with Bingo. 

Ford Family Director of Athletics John Mack, in addition to being a serious administrator and a very competitive and dedicated Princetonian, is also a huge believer in having what he calls "forced family fun" at his departmental staff meetings. The most recent example of this was yesterday, when the department staff gathered in Jadwin Gym. 

This month's edition of "FFF with John Mack" featured a modified version of Bingo. In this case, each staff member was issued a card with five rows and five clues on each row, and the point was to check off the words in the clues if they were said during the meeting. 

To win, your card had to have a "T," something that Mack needed to explain in a little more detail than should have been necessary. No, a "T" couldn't be lying on its side, for instance. 

At one point, Mack called up Deputy AD Chris Brock to give an update, during which time he could have simply riddled off the clues he needed to win. The same was true with Evan Feinstein of the marketing department, who ended his update by saying "Happy Halloween," given that he needed "Halloween" for his card. 

TigerBlog's "T" was almost complete, missing only "100 wins." This was an obvious reference to Princeton head football coach Bob Surace, who recently picked up career win No. 100 (he now has 101, with 83 at Princeton and 18 from Western Connecticut). 

Ah, but Coach Surace wasn't there, so when John Mack had the slide congratulating Surace up on the Jadwin video board, he never actually said the words "100 wins." He just pointed to it. 

TB took this as a sign that he could not cross off that square, since he is a stickler for the exactness of the rules. 

As such, he did not call out "Bingo." And as such, he wasn't one of the five winners — but he could hold his head up high, knowing that he had done the right thing. 

And with that, it's on to Princeton Football. 

Surace goes for win No. 102 overall, and No. 3 on the season, when his Tigers host Mercer tomorrow, with kickoff on Powers Field at Princeton Stadium at noon. 

Of course, the first question TB has is whether or not the Mercer players realize that Princeton is located in Mercer County. Located in Macon, Ga., Mercer University was founded in 1833 by Jesse Mercer, a Baptist leader, as opposed to Mercer County, which was named for Revolutionary War General Hugh Mercer, who died at the Battle of Princeton in 1877. 

The Mercer Bears who come to Princeton are ranked 19th in the FCS and are 4-1 on the season, having followed a loss to Presbyterian on Aug. 30 with wins over Wofford, the Citadel, East Tennessee State and Samford a week ago. Mercer quarterback Braden Atkinson was the school's male athlete of the week after the game against Samford. From the release:

A product of Rolesville, N.C., Atkinson matched a 6-year-old school record with five touchdown passes in the nationally-ranked football team's 45-21 win over visiting Samford. The first-year signal caller threw for a season-best 365 yards on 22-of-35 passing with no interceptions, while also adding a 2-yard rush as well. 

The Bears also had a no-contest against UC-Davis when a tight game in the fourth quarter was suspended and never finished due to lightning. That game was played on Aug. 23. What else was that day? Princeton's first practice.  

Princeton is now in Week 4, having certainly found its groove the last two weeks, with wins over Lafayette and Columbia after a Week 1 loss to San Diego. It'll be all Ivy League games for the Tigers after this one, which still figures to be an exciting, interesting matchup. 

Mercer brings a strong defense, one ranked sixth in the FCS against the rush, as well as second in tackles for loss and fourth in team sacks. Atkinson has been on a tear all season, completing 72 percent of his passes (fifth in the FCS), with 23.8 completions per game (third in the FCS), 292 passing yards per game (second), 13 touchdown passes (seventh) and a 174.3 passing efficiency rating (eighth).

On top of all that, it's the first time Mercer will be at Princeton, and there's always something special about seeing a different uniform. 

It'll be a challenge, and it'll be a perfect day for it. 

Kickoff is at noon.