9/25 College Football Rankings

First of all, I doubt I will update these weekly like I used to do on here. Probably every couple weeks instead. So here is the current Top 25 in college football as I see it:

1. LSU (4-0, 1-0)
2. Wisconsin (4-0, 0-0)
3. Oklahoma (3-0, 1-0)
4. Alabama (4-0, 1-0)
5. Stanford (3-0, 1-0)
6. Boise State (3-0, 0-0)
7. Oklahoma State (4-0, 1-0)
8. Florida (4-0, 2-0)
9. Clemson (4-0, 1-0)
10. Nebraska (4-0, 0-0)
11. Baylor (3-0, 0-0)
12. Oregon (3-1, 1-0)
13. South Carolina (4-0, 2-0)
14. South Florida (4-0, 0-0)
15. Georgia Tech (4-0, 1-0)
16. Virginia Tech (4-0, 0-0)
17. Arkansas (3-1, 0-1)
18. Texas (3-0, 0-0)
19. TCU (3-1, 1-0)
20. Houston (4-0, 0-0)
21. Michigan (4-0, 0-0)
22. Auburn (3-1, 1-0)
23. Texas A&M (2-1, 0-1)
24. Illinois (4-0, 0-0)
25. Navy (2-1)

Other receiving votes: Air Force, Arizona State, Cincinnati, Florida State, Iowa State, Kansas State, Missouri, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas Tech, USC, Washington, West Virginia

Boring Weather

I have not posted much on here lately because there really isn't much going on weather-wise. We did have a couple rain-cooled days a few days ago, when we had a little over an inch of rain. But now we are back to clear skies with temperatures slightly above normal (highs in the low-70s, lows in the mid-40s). It really is a near-perfect weather pattern setting up. Looking ahead, we will be hard pressed to receive any rain in the near future. A fairly weak cold front looks to move through Grand Forks on Wednesday the 28th, but we may not see much more than sprinkles, if even that. After that, probably more of the same until the next potential front around the 2nd or 3rd of October. No major signs of a change in the weather pattern over the next week or two. Though I see cold air brewing over Alaska as we head into October....it's just a matter of time before that makes a visit to the Northern Plains.

9/15/2011 - Earliest Freeze of my Life

Although it wasn't quite as cold as expected this morning, the morning low temperature did reach 31°F today. This is by far the earliest freeze I have ever experienced, beating out a couple of late October freezes I experienced in western PA when I lived there. Pretty sure I'll see snow by late October.

Yesterday was also a momentous weather day for me. The high of 57°F on the 14th was the first sub-60°F high temperature I have experienced in September. Just the first of a long lists of weather firsts heading my way over the next several months!

Only 177 miles away from snow!

Currently in Kenora, Ontario (extreme SW Ontario, just north of the Lake of the Woods region of Minnesota) it is 39 degrees with light light rain and snow showers. As the crow flies, that is only 177 miles to my northeast. Wow. I never thought I'd be this close to snow in September. Maybe by the end of the month I'll see it first hand! Though forecast models suggest a warmup for the last week of the month. If we get below freezing tonight (latest forecast calls for a low of 29 which is just 2 above the record set in 1903), then we may see an Indian Summer.

As a side note, I just noticed that Springfield, Missouri has had an impressive 24-hour temperature change. Yesterday afternoon they had a high of 99 degrees. Currently it is 57 degrees, rain, and a NNE wind of 20 mph. That's an incredible -42 degree temperature change!

Goodbye Summer?

It's currently 49°F at 9pm on September 13th. Take a minute to process that.

A cold front went through yesterday, bringing us clouds for the first time in a week. Our high temperature of 73°F was recorded at 8:37am. The rest of the day featured temperatures in the 60s, falling into the 50s by evening, with blustery conditions. Today it was downright fantastic with an extremely comfortable high of 71°F. We had a few sprinkles earlier today, but barely enough to wet the pavement. Now on to the goods...

I am currently under a Frost Advisory and Freeze Watch...and it's the middle of September. Our forecast low temperatures tonight and tomorrow night are 33°F and 28°F, respectively. Meanwhile the forecast high temperatures tomorrow and Thursday are a balmy 53°F and 58°F. Take another minute to process that.

I have never experienced freezing temperatures, or a sub-60°F high temperature during the month of September. Well that's about to change in a hurry. This cold snap coming up is even cold for Grand Forks standards. Here are the record lows for Grand Forks tonight and tomorrow night:

9/14 Record Low: 25°F (1956)
9/15 Record Low: 27°F (1903)

That's right, a record low temperature breaking the mark set 108 years ago is possible when I wake up Thursday morning.

Welcome to North Dakota Reece!


9:52AM 9/14 Update: The morning low was indeed 33 degrees. That was quite a "hello, good morning" from Mother Nature when I walked to my car.

North Dakota Heat

Since my last post, it is has been fairly warm here for the most part. After slightly below normal days on the 3rd, 4th, and 5th; we transitioned to 5-14°F above normal. Here were our high temps from the 6th-11th:

9/6: 81°F
9/7: 85°F
9/8: 87°F
9/9: 89°F
9/10: 87°F
9/11: 89°F

Though the afternoon temperatures were warmer than desired, it did cool down into the 50s each night, which was nice. Of note, from the 5th-11th, I never saw a cloud in the sky. Rare to go an entire week with continuous clear skies. But as I have been told, the weather pattern can make a drastic change in a hurry, as is the case now...

A Taste of Fall

It is pretty much perfect weather outside here at Grand Forks. The temperature is 67°F with a nice northwest breeze around 20 mph gusting to 30 mph. It certainly feels like football weather here on the first weekend of college football season. Should be short-lived however, as southerly winds return for the work week, bringing above normal temperatures. Speaking of which, the normal high this time of year is in the low to mid-70s. By the end of the month, the average high only reaches the low to mid-60s.