Notre Dame...Number 1

One of my earliest memories as a sports fan was a two-week span in 1993 when the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, my favorite college football team, rose to the number one ranking in the nation after topping previous No. 1 Florida State only to see it all slip away the next Saturday with a last-second, narrow loss to unranked Boston College.
Since the loss to the Eagles, the Irish have never regained the coveted No. 1 spot in the Associated Press poll.
That was until last night - and the way it happened could not have been more surprising.
Already having a memorable season in which they won their first 10 games for the first time since the heartbreaking 1993 campaign - the Irish were ranked third in both the AP and BCS ratings heading into Saturday. No. 1 Kansas State (at Baylor) and No. 2 Oregon (vs. Stanford) both had challenging match-ups, but both were suppose to win and regain their top rankings.
The Irish, who played earlier in the day, destroyed Wake Forest 38-0 and were put into position to watch both Oregon and K-State play at night.
Surprisingly, Baylor jumped on Kansas State early and often - capping a 55-24 victory. And while Oregon led most of the way, it was the Stanford Cardinal who put together a game-tying drive in the final minutes to send the game into overtime, before kicking a field goal to win it.
And just like that, the Irish were No. 1.
But with a USC team that has had ND's number as of late on the slate next week in Southern California, the 2012 version of the Fighting Irish need to make sure they do not repeat the fate of their counterparts from 19 years ago. That would be losing a game against an unranked team with a chance for a championship on the line.

Colts a pleasant surprise

At 4-3, my beloved Indianapolis Colts are one of the surprise teams of the NFL. Slated by many to be the worst team in the league in 2012, the Colts have already doubled their win total of a year ago.
The improvement obviously starts with Rookie QB Andrew Luck, who has thus far been every bit the star people expected him to be.
Reggie Wayne is back and is having the best year of his career.
Issues still exist on the offensive line and the defense has a hard time stopping the run. Not to mention the constant struggles running the ball themselves.
But this is a good start. Luck has already won more games in his rookie year than Peyton Manning did in 1998.
In 2012, the Colts are playing for their coach, Chuck Pagano, who has been diagnosed with leukemia and is being treated by a La Porte, Indiana-born physician.
This team may have benefited from an easy early season scheduled, but they are Chuckstrong - and we will see how far this ride can taken them.

Election season heating up

One of the most exciting months is that that leads up to a Presidential Election. In addition to the fight for the presidency, many races at the state and local level are interesting as well.
This year, Hurricane Sandy has put an unexpected damper on some of the heated races, including the one for President.
In Indiana, the race between Democrat Joe Donnelly and Republican Richard Mourdock will prove to be a tight battle. It has heated up on a national level as well because of Mourdock's controversial comments regarding rape and abortion. Both candidates were in the La Porte County area today scrambling for votes in Michigan City and La Porte.

The governor race should also be tight between Republican Mike Pence (who is endorsed by the NRA) and Democrat John Gregg, who also campaigned in Michigan City last week. And even though he does not stand a realistic chance to win, Libretarian Rupert Boneham (of Survivor fame) is also a candidate. He will also get my vote, because on my birthday this year he was in Michigan City and signed a picture of himself with the words "Happy Birthday Tim", and gave it to a co-worker of mine who gave it to me.
At the local level, the Green Machine (which is led by super powerful attorney Shaw Friedman) is likely to gain 100 percent control of the County Commissioners if Democrats Vidya Kora and Dave Decker are elected over their Republican challengers Terry Garner and Sharon Kirkham.
The Democrats, in my mind, are likely to sweep the County races - with the only close call coming between Dem. Nancy Hawkins and Rep. Leigh Morris in the treasurer's race.
Although I do not have anything against any of the individuals associated with the Green Machine, machine politics should not exist in any county. People should vote for the candidate or individual they believe will beset serve them, not the party with the money that is able to get you an ill-legitimate garage permit or get your son or daughter a "job" with the county.
That's why Punch 10 voting is wrong and should be outlawed.
Vote for the person. Not the party.

Photo: Democratic Indiana Governor candidate John Gregg speaks to supporters at Ryan's Irish Pub in Michigan City on Saturday, October 27.