By November 2037. We finished the regular season five and five. Fifth time in twenty-one seasons I haven't won a majority of regular season games. We made the playoffs on points differential and won the quarterfinals on a last-minute field goal that had nothing to do with scheme and everything to do with a kid with a steady leg who made it when it counted. That's football. That's why you can't love the sport without respecting what it does to your plans.
We lost in the semifinals. Final score 21-17. We were in the game until the final two minutes and then a turnover and a long return and it was done. I shook hands with the other coach — a young guy, maybe thirty-five, who'd been at his school for four years and who had built something good with a solid running game. I told him his team was well-prepared. He said my program was a model, that he'd studied our film for three years to understand what we built. That landed somewhere quiet and good.
In the locker room afterward I looked at the seniors and thought: these boys have no idea what's coming next, what they're going to carry from this place into their lives. The losses, maybe more than the wins. The two losses this season more than the fifteen championships. You learn something from a championship that you couldn't have learned otherwise. You also learn something from a season-ending loss in November that you couldn't have learned otherwise. Both things are true. I said something like that to them before we left. I don't know if they heard it. They will later, some of them.
There’s a thing that happens after the last game of the year — the bus ride home, the quiet house, the way you sit in the kitchen and don’t quite know what to do with your hands. I’ve learned to cook through it. This season, what I needed was something that asked for patience and rewarded it slowly, something that smelled like it had been waiting for you all day — and that was ribs. Baby back ribs, low and slow, the kind you can’t rush no matter what mood you bring to the kitchen. It felt right for a November that ended the way it did: not badly, just finished.
Baby Back Ribs
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 3 hours | Total Time: 3 hours 20 minutes | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 2 racks baby back ribs (about 4 to 5 lbs total)
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp dry mustard
- 1 cup BBQ sauce (your preferred brand or homemade)
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Prep the ribs. Preheat your oven to 300°F. Lay each rack bone-side up and use a butter knife and paper towel to grip and pull off the thin membrane running along the back of the ribs. Removing it allows the rub to penetrate and the ribs to become properly tender.
- Make the dry rub. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, black pepper, cayenne, and dry mustard. Stir until evenly mixed.
- Season generously. Pat both racks dry with paper towels. Apply the dry rub all over the ribs — top, bottom, and sides — pressing it in firmly so it adheres. Don’t rush this step; an even coat matters.
- Wrap and bake. Place each rack meat-side up on a large sheet of heavy-duty foil. Drizzle 1 tbsp of apple cider vinegar over each rack, then wrap tightly in the foil to seal in the moisture. Arrange on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 2 hours 30 minutes.
- Open and finish. Carefully unwrap the foil — the steam will be intense. Brush both racks generously with BBQ sauce on the meat side. Return to the oven unwrapped for an additional 25 to 30 minutes, until the sauce caramelizes and the edges begin to char slightly at the tips.
- Rest and slice. Remove from the oven and let the racks rest for 10 minutes before slicing between the bones. This allows the juices to redistribute. Serve with extra BBQ sauce on the side.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 675 | Protein: 47g | Fat: 43g | Carbs: 24g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 810mg