The University of Washington and Washington State University agreed to a five-year continuation of the storied Apple Cup football series through at least 2028. This year’s match-up will take place on September 14, 2024 at Lumen Field in Seattle, with the following four games alternating between the school’s campuses: 2025 (Pullman), 2026 (Seattle), 2027 (Pullman), and 2028 (Seattle). 

The 2024 Boeing Apple Cup between the Washington Huskies and Washington State Cougars is a neutral site game being played at Lumen Field in Seattle, Wash. The game will kick off at 12:30 p.m. PT on Saturday, Sept. 14.

But this isn’t my first Apple Cup, though.

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You Never Forget Your First

Growing up my Dad didn’t watch college football, therefore I didn’t watch college football. The new guy at work in the early 2000’s was Scott Gruenich, did watch college football. We were catching as new friends do, and we discovered that we like football, and love beer drinking.

He invited me over to watch a yearly rivalry football game between Washington State University versus University of Washington called Apple Cup.

For 100+ years, the Dawgs & Cougs have battled it out on the football field in the annual rivalry game for Washington State pride. With the support of Boeing, the Apple Cup Series was created to expand the rivalry across multiple match-ups between UW & WSU. At the end of the season, one program will be winner of the Boeing Apple Cup Series!

I was so amped for the game. However, I didn’t owe anything for the Huskies or Cougars. Mostly I didn’t have the allegiance to either school team. I attended Western Washington University briefly, so I decided on the good ole, Purple and Gold [UW Huskies]

If memory serves I was just married to Charlene at this time. So she accompanied me, but wasn’t an addition to the party atmosphere. To be honest, I don’t even remember which school won that matchup. What I do know is that this was the start of a winning tradition.

Go Crazy, Oh Baby: Four Loko

The other day I encountered a post about Four Loko. Instantly reminded me of December 4, 2010 …

Apple Cup [University of Washington Huskies vs Washington State Cougars]

In 2010, the Apple Cup was scheduled in early December. By then, the popular drink, Four Loko, was under investigation, and scrutiny because of it’s relation to the deaths of college students abusing the consumption limits.

Subsequently, the FDA issued a warning to the four companies that produced it: On November 17, 2010 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning letter to four manufacturers of caffeinated alcohol beverages citing that the caffeine added to their malt alcoholic beverages is an “unsafe food additive” and said that further action, including seizure of their products, may occur under federal law.

Wikipedia

So Scott and Sidney bought as much as they could of the old formula before it was pulled from the shelves of retailers. They announced at the Apple Cup viewing party they were hosting, there would also be a tasting party … Go Crazy, Oh Baby: Four Loko

Once the Apple Cup concluded, they set up the tasting station in the kitchen because no one knew what was gonna result from the Four Loko Experiment. Each of heard rumors about it, or read articles but didn’t have firsthand experience.

After this night, we certainly had that experience, and the accompanying story. I’m attracted to blue, apparently. Many of the personal items I own have a shade of blue, including my car color choice.

I approached the table and sought out the blue flavored Four Loko – can’t be that bad, right, I thought.

I was WRONG!

We grabbed our respective tasting Dixie cups, yelled out the obligatory FORE ala golf, and slammed them down. The group reaction was immediate: gross! Charrina started to gag as her comment was, “It tastes like Gain laundry detergent!”

How she knows that it still a mystery to me some 9 years later.

Since misery loves company, we all shifted to the right around the table to taste test the others – same results. We kept drinking this gawd awful stuff. Once we tasted every possible flavor, we were obligated to choose a full can of the flavor that you could choke down. I landed on the lemon lime type because I didn’t want to ruin my blue flavored drink joy for the rest of my life.

Go Crazy, Oh Baby: Four Loko – The post taste testing photos remind me of the movie, Hangover.

And no, I won’t post them.

Your turn, Spaceship Earth, did you drink Four Loko before or after the removal of caffeine, guarana, and taurine (ingredients in the original drink)?

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Speaking of tradition, Scott, Sidney, Jason, and yours truly plus many others through the years have watched Apple Cup for 20 years! And this weekend will be yet another year. It should be fantastic with Jason in town to smash it up with Scotty G and I.