Class of ’65 Brothers Cheer Boilers to Victory at Music City Bowl

The email invitation went out to 21 Sigma Chis on December 5, 2021. It was to members of the Delta Delta Sigma Chi Class of 1965 to determine interest in attending the Purdue vs. Tennessee Music City Bowl game in Nashville, TN. Only two Sigs answered the call: Bob Smith and Paul Kuhnert, and their sweethearts, Anita and Betty respectively.
Kuhnerts 2021

Betty and Paul Kuhnert ’65

Good is an Understatement

The foursome completed flight plans, car travel directions, and hotel reservations, hoping to see a good football game in the massive Nissan Football Stadium, home of the Tennessee Titan NFL franchise.

Brother Kuhnert remarked, “Describing the game as “good” would be an understatement; it was like no game we had ever seen before. It had big plays, controversial penalties, and a “never-say-die” attitude by both teams. Cheering and screaming occurred almost non-stop during the game. Shouts of “Boiler-up” and “Hail Purdue” rang out in the hotel hallways and walking down the street. (Bob and I cheered enough for our entire Pledge Class!) The announcer estimated the attendance to be over 69,400 fans.”

According to Brother Smith, “There was a lot of high-fiving going on followed by groans when the Vols scored followed by more celebration when Purdue fought back.  It was an exciting game of ups and downs reminiscent of “exercising” in the Great Hall.”

Purdue quarterback Aiden O’Connell threw for 534 yards and five touchdowns. In a record-setting Music City Bowl, Purdue overcame a 14-point deficit and beat Tennessee 48-45 when Mitchell Fineran kicked a 39-yard field goal in overtime.

Could anyone ask for more?

This year’s Boilermaker football team compiled its best record since 2003 and tied for the second-most wins (9-4) in the history of Purdue football. It was only the 12th Purdue team to win nine games. They also won their fifth game away from home, last accomplished in 1943.

Bob and Anita Smith 2021

Bob and Anita Smith ’65

Sigs Celebrate

The post-game dinner was held at the famous-for-BBQ Caney Forked River Grille. A lot of other Purdue fans were there and acknowledged our hats and sweatshirts with greetings of “Boiler Up” and “Go Purdue!”  Brother Kuhnert showed up with a vintage 1961 sweatshirt with a never-before-known-to-exist Purdue Pete design while Brother Smith was sporting a beard grown during the summer in Vermont.

Pledge Brothers Chime In

Tom Newell commented following the game that “My grandson is a freshman at Tennessee but was unfortunately sick and could not attend the game. We had fun texting anyway during the ups and downs.  He was a little pissed at the outcome!”

And Russ Pfahler wrote, “I watched the Boilers on TV and was thinking about how the late Brother Donn Griffith recruited 5 or 6 of us for the spring pledge class from the freshman football team. Including the fall pledge class, I ended up with about 20-25 of the finest brothers any Sig has ever had.”

We are looking forward to seeing more of you at the next unforgettable social event for the Delta Delta Sigma Chi Class of 1965.   

One Response to “Class of ’65 Brothers Cheer Boilers to Victory at Music City Bowl”

Russell Pfahler 1965

Looking at Purdue’s record, I was reminded that while we were undergrad Boilers we only played 9 (yes,nine) games every year. Freshmen were not allowed on major colleges’ varsity football teams then. We were 4-4-1, 5-4, and 6-3 our last 3 years and never played in a Bowl Game because only the Big Ten champion was allowed to play in 1 bowl game – The Rose Bowl. Interpreting today’ s bowl eligibility rules we would have been in bowl games 2 years, and maybe 3 based on current rules for a tie game’s completion. I think our Sig class of ’65 Boiler players (Boz, Denny, Jim, John and myself plus student manager Dan Demars) were better then, than many are now (of course we were 60+ years younger then).

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