Breakdown of betting line movement for Minnesota vs Northwestern at Wrigley Field on November 22, 2025, showing Northwestern opening at -4, closing at -3.5 with 66 percent public backing, total moving from 41 to 40.5 points, moneyline adjustments, and ATS records favoring Wildcats 6-3-1 versus Golden Gophers 2-8.
#MinnesotaVsNorthwestern #BettingLine #CollegeFootball #WrigleyField
Get expert predictions for Minnesota vs Northwestern at Wrigley Field on November 22, 2025, featuring Northwestern as 3.5-point favorites, total set at 40.5 points, Anthony Smith chasing Big Ten sack record, and analysis why Wildcats hold 60 percent probability to cover with final score prediction 25-17.
#MinnesotaVsNorthwestern #CollegeFootball #BigTen #WrigleyField
The first time Wrigley Field has ever seen a postseason series clinched! The Cubs won at home, defeating the St. Louis Cardinals in the NLDS series. I had the honor of being at the game and thus keeping a scorecard.
The stories behind some of the points on the scorecard
Free W towels!
With 15 strikeouts for the Cubs pitching staff, and 3 home runs for the Cubs, we had lots of things to whip our W towels around for. Every time the count would get to two strikes, everyone would stand up and whip the W towels.
The towels were also handy for those tense moments when the bases were loaded in the 8th inning with Chris Denorfia up to bat. It gave me something to squeeze.
Seats
Great tickets from my friend Abhay, who won the Cubs ticket lottery. Row nine on the third base side in Aisle 213. Although we were a couple of rows behind a pole that exactly blocked either home plate or the pitcher’s mound. Thankfully, our row had about six empty seats, so we were able to scoot around. And yes, six empty seats at a clinching playoff game in Wrigley. Very bizarre. But we’ll take it!
Weather
58 degrees at game time. The wind barely blew at all–the only time it really blew, was to knock down Holliday’s fly ball to center in the 5th inning.
I came dressed super warm with many layers, expecting it to be freezing — since Wrigley tends to be in the 50s. I even bought a winter stocking cap to stay warm. But with the sun breaking out, and still winds, it was really nice.
Kerry Wood throws out first pitch wearing an Ernie Banks uniform
After a long Kerry Wood highlight film on the Jumbotron, it was like, sheesh, that was a lot about Kerry Wood. Where is he now? The answer came two seconds later, he’s right on the field, about to throw out the first pitch! Just as the day before, Sandberg wore an Ernie Banks jersey, so Kerry Wood did the same.
Hammel not a good first-inning pitcher
In 2015, his ERA for the first inning is 5.23, so it was to be expected that he would have a rough start.
Javier Baez 3-run home run
I have never seen fans at Wrigley Field all jumping in rhythm — until now. It was electric. Plus, that homerun came after the starting pitcher, Jason Hammel, got an RBI single up the middle with two outs. The crowd was already all amped up. In fact, for a clinching playoff game, you never really know when you should sit down. It seems like you should be standing up for everything.
But when Jason Hammel came up to the plate, it was like, hmmm, maybe we’ll all sit down. But just as Cubs fans booties slightly touched their seats, Hammel hits a line drive up the middle, causing us to jump up again.
Then you got Baez’s homerun–from a guy who had only one homerun on the season! Factor in that he had to miss part of the season because his sister died. And that he only got to start because Addison Russell has a hurt hamstring.
Plus, this homerun ended Lackey’s streak of 12 postseason games without a homerun. The previous longest streak was Whitey Ford from 1956 to 1962.
Instant replay
Jorge Soler gunned down Tony Cruz at the plate. The play went under review by the umps, which was the weirdest sort of waiting-pause. The Jumbotron clearly wasn’t going to show the replay to the entire stadium until it was clear the outcome matched the umpire’s call that Cruz was out. While we were all standing around wondering, the outskirts of the stadium started to cheer, because they could see the replay on the TV sets provided for those whose views are blocked by the luxury suites. Hooray for the outskirts of the stadium getting the inside scoop before the rest of the park!
Celebrities
At a high-profile game like this, it only makes sense for celebrities to come out.
They were showing so many celebrities on the Jumbotron, whenever they showed a regular fan, you wondered, “Who is THIS famous person?”
Rizzo’s go-ahead home run
Just before Rizzo smashed this home run in the 6th inning, Kris Bryant hit a very long ball to the warning track in center field. Everyone was so excited when Bryant hit this potential home run to give the Cubs an extra run lead. But we were bummed when it was caught. When Rizzo hit the home run, we were all like, “That won’t go out,” but then it did! Cubs lead!
Harry Caray sings the 7th inning stretch
Not live, of course, but they showed a video of him on the Jumbotron. Moments like this are really special because they don’t show this Harry clip every single game. Singing with Harry totally reminded me of being a kid and singing with him—something we all took for granted at the time.
Lots of happy pitchers
Joe Maddon certainly likes to use lots of pitchers. In this game, a combined total of 8 Cubs pitchers were used:
In many of the Chicago Tribune photos, many of the relievers had a big smile on their face when Maddon came to the mound to replace them.
Kyle Schwarber’s monster homerun that landed ON the scoreboard
Schwarber’s scoreboard HR is like hitting a wiffleball homerun that lands on top of your house–across the street, ten blocks over. #flythew
— Matt Maldre (@57hits) October 14, 2015
I saw it in person! It was monstrous! The ball was shot straight up into the sky. The sheer angle of the ball looked like it would be a pop fly, but the velocity on the ball was WAY too fast. Everyone in Wrigley was amazed. The ball landed on top of the new right field scoreboard. Just the insurance run we needed!
He is the first rookie in Cub history to have three home runs in a postseason–it only took him four games.
After the game was over, I could not stop thinking about Schwarber’s home run. It was the highlight of the game. You’d think the clinching would be the highlight, but years from now, people will be talking about that homerun and pointing to the scoreboard. The playoff game will be the mere backdrop for THE homerun.
All in all, this game made for an excellent and memorable scorecard. 🙂
Update: Here’s a video of the final out.
https://twitter.com/57hits/status/1978184874172268789
https://www.57hits.com/highly-detailed-scorecard-from-cubs-playoff-clinch-against-the-cardinals
#aisle213 #annotation #AnthonyRizzo #Cardinals #Chicago #ChicagoCubs #ChrisDenorfia #ClaytonRichard #DexterFowler #drawing #ErnieBanks #FernandoRodney #flythew #FunWithBaseballScorecards #handWritten #handmade #HectorRondon #homeRun #illustration #JasonHammel #JavierBaez #JoeMaddon #JohnLackey #JorgeSoler #JustinGrimm #KerryWood #KrisBryant #KyleSchwarber #MattCarpenter #MattHolliday #MiguelMontero #mlb #nlds #notation #PalominoBlackwingPencil #pencil #postseason #recordBreaking #scoreboard #Scorecard #StLouisCardinals #StarlinCastro #stats #strikeouts #TommyLaStella #TravisWood #TrevorCahill #triple #wearegood #WrigleyField
MY KIND OF TOWN, #Chicago Sports Edition. #WrigleyField #Bears
OTD in 1988 (8/8/88) the Chicago Cubs played their first night game at Wrigley Field under permanently installed lights. (the game would eventually be rained out before it could be officially scored)
Happy Anniversary!
40 years ago today, the Ferris Bueller game happened.
Today marks exactly 40 years since the fictional events of “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” supposedly took place. According to the film’s producer, Ferris skipped school on June 5th, 1985—making today the perfect time to examine one of cinema’s most beloved baseball scenes with the precision it deserves.
Here’s the fascinating twist: while the movie depicts June 5th, 1985, the actual filming at Wrigley Field happened months later on September 24th, 1985. But the baseball footage we see on screen? That’s from the real June 5th Cubs vs. Braves game. This unique production detail creates an interesting opportunity to fact-check Hollywood against baseball history.
Let’s dive into the actual MLB box score and see how the movie stacks up against reality.
Scene-by-Scene Analysis
The setup: runner on first
What we see in the movie: Harry Caray announces, “Runner at first base. Nobody out.” The camera shows Leon Durham (#10) at first base with Paul Zuvella (#18) as the runner.
The reality: This detail is spot-on. Paul Zuvella did indeed reach first base with a single in the 11th inning of the actual June 5th game.
Accuracy: ✓ Correct
The pitching change
What we see: Harry Caray notes, “That’s the first they’ve had since the 5th inning. Only the fourth hit in the game. Oh and two, the count.” Lee Smith is on the mound facing Claudell Washington (#15).
The reality: The movie gets the details right again. Lee Smith did enter the game in the 11th inning, and the Braves had exactly three hits up to that point: two doubles by Ken Oberkfell and Rafael Ramírez in the 3rd inning, plus another Oberkfell single in the 5th.
Accuracy: ✓ Correct
Ferris’s foul ball catch
What we see: Harry Caray calls “There’s a drive… left field… twisting… and it’s into foul territory” as Ferris makes a spectacular catch in the stands.
The reality: Without detailed ball-by-ball records from 1985, we can’t verify whether Claudell Washington actually hit a foul ball to the third-base side during his at-bat. However, what happens next in the real game is perfectly fitting.
Accuracy: ? Uncertain
The score controversy
What we see: Principal Rooney asks about the score, and the pizza parlor’s cook responds, “nothing, nothing.”
The reality: This is where Hollywood takes its biggest liberty. The actual score at this point was 2-2, not 0-0.
Accuracy: ✗ Wrong
The ironic ending
(Notice Ferris’s distinctive vest. I wrote a blog post where I found the exact same vest for sale on Amazon)Here’s where the story takes a deliciously ironic turn. In the movie, we see Ferris and Cameron enthusiastically taunting the Atlanta batter with “Hey batta batta batta, sa-wing batta!” What the movie doesn’t show us is what happened next in the real game.
Claudell Washington, the batter being taunted, flew out to left field (fitting, since he had just fouled to left in the movie). But the next batter, Rafael Ramírez, stepped up with the runner still on first base and launched a two-run homer, putting the Braves ahead 4-2. The Cubs failed to score in the bottom of the 11th, losing the game.
So while Ferris and Cameron were playfully encouraging the opposition to swing, they were actually cheering on what would become the game-winning rally. Talk about unintended consequences!
The detective work: tracking down props
One fascinating detail visible in the crowd scenes is a fan holding a Cubs scorecard featuring Ryne Sandberg on the cover. This creates another timeline puzzle since the crowd footage was shot in September, not June.
Through careful research and eBay hunting, I’ve found a scorecard from the August 31, 1985, Cubs-Braves series that matches the design seen in the movie.
I know this scorecard is from August 31, because Chris Chambliss hits a pinch-hit home run in the top of the 9th inning.
However, since teams sometimes changed scorecard covers throughout the season, there’s still a chance the June 5th version looked different.
The hunt for an authentic June 5, 1985 scorecard continues—it would be the holy grail for completing this fact-checking mission.
Wrigley Field bleachers are accurate
As the TV tracks the foul ball that eventually lands in the hands of Ferris Bueller, the seating in the left field can be seen as empty.
No fans. That’s odd. Why is this section of the ballpark not filled? The attendance for that day was 25,557. While that’s not a sell-out, it does mean a good-sized crowd. Those seats should have fans, right?
That section of Wrigley Field was known as the catwalk. Before 1985, it never had seats or bleachers. The day after the Bueller game, the seating in the catwalk opened as the family section on Thursday, June 6. The Chicago Tribune reported:
Certainly enough, on Saturday, June 8th, we see fans sitting in that section. (I couldn’t find pics or video of June 7th)
Video screengrab from NBC Sports Game of the WeekI partly bring this section up, because it was my family’s favorite place to sit in Wrigley Field. It was in the outfield, but it had seats instead of bleachers. It was known as the “family section” because there was no alcohol there. It was only three rows deep with a tall fence behind you, so any balls hit that way would come to you.
In 2014, the Cubs sadly eliminated these seats with the bleacher expansion. We had 29 years of enjoying this section. To see it show up as a trivia point in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is entertaining for me.
Why this matters
This deep dive reveals something fascinating about how movies blend reality and fiction. The filmmakers clearly did their homework, incorporating genuine details from the actual game while taking creative liberties where needed for storytelling purposes. The result is a scene that feels authentic to baseball fans while serving the movie’s narrative needs.
The fact that we can still fact-check a 40-year-old movie scene against historical baseball records speaks to both the enduring appeal of Ferris Bueller and the meticulous record-keeping that makes baseball unique among sports.
Want to see the real game?
If you’re curious about the actual highlights from June 5, 1985, here’s a 25-second clip of the real game footage on YouTube. Fair warning: there’s no sign of Ferris in the stands, but you’ll get to see the actual baseball action that inspired one of cinema’s most beloved scenes.
For more deep dives into movie trivia and Chicago sports history, check out our other posts about finding Ferris’s exact vest on Amazon and the hidden details in classic film scenes.
The #Cubs are .600 have the night off, bat 1st at Reds starting tomorrow, & on Monday are home for 6 games.
If you have Xriptian’s excellent view during the 2 series #Chicago will be hanging out of their dugout below while the Rockies, then the Reds will be playing along the 1st baseline. #Baseball #WrigleyField
https://aviewfrommyseat.co.uk/photo/349661/Wrigley+Field/section-207/row-8/seat-16/
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