Meskwaki Casino

Despite heavy competition across the country, Day 1a of the Mid-States Poker Tour Meskwaki Main Event attracted an unexpected 195 entries, which set a flight record in the tour’s 15 visits to the property. That puts the field well on pace to crush the $300,000 guarantee as Saturday’s Day 1b is expected to be even bigger!

After 14 levels of play, just 33 players remained with Troy Repp and his stack of 269,000 leading the way, though MSPT Season 4 Ho-Chunk champ Josh Reichard is hot on his heels with 268,000

However, the story of the day was the appearance of free agent NFL running back Fred Jackson, who survived the night with a stack of 92,000.

Jackson, who spent nine seasons with the Buffalo Bills (2006-2014) and a season with the Seattle Seahawks (2015), has roots in Iowa as he attended Coe College, a Division III university, in nearby Cedar Rapids. It was there that Jackson was named to four All-American teams in 2002 after rushing for 2,702 yards and 29 touchdowns.

On December 24, 2000, Jackson became the first Division III running back to start a NFL game. In the years that followed, Jackson would enjoy a stellar career, ultimately finishing third on the Bills’ all-time rushing list. Now, he has a chance to make a name for himself in the poker world.

Others who bagged and tagged on Day 1a were Tom Hammers (217,000), Kou Vang (179,000), Mike Holm (103,500), MSPT Pro Blake Bohn (95,000), Jason Seitz (82,000), and MSPT Meskwaki Season 6 champ Rich Alsup (46,000).

Of course not everyone was so lucky. Among those to fall over the course of the day were Michigan State Poker champ Brett Blackwood and runner-up Cy Church, MSPT Season 1 Running Aces champ Joe Matheson, reigning Iowa State Poker champ and Season 7 Player of the Year leader John Sun, and Nebraska farmer Phil Mader.

All of those players will have the chance to try against on Day 1b at 4 p.m. local time on Saturday. We’ll be there to capture all the action, so be sure to join us then.

Troy Repp 269,000
Josh Reichard 268,000
Joshua Smith 223,000
Thomas Hammers 217,000
Anthony Lambert 179,500
Kou Vang 179,000
Matthew Morfitt 164,000
Charles Anderson 149,000
Brian Weipert 144,000
Dennis Stevermer 131,000
Ronald McMillen 118,000
Shannon Parker 117,500
Taylor Howard 114,000
Kenneth Komberec 113,500
Anthony Knepper 112,000
Brian Gonder 107,000
Michael Holm 103,500
Jon Maras 101,000
Rodger Johnson 97,000
Blake Bohn 95,000
Fred Jackson 92,000
James Wilson 86,500
Randy Perkins 86,000
Jason Seitz 82,000
Michael Mernin 82,000
Rick Rothausen 77,000
Calvin Musil 73,000
Timothy Post 72,500
Gerald Heckathorn 63,500
Keith Neuzil 49,000
Aaron Johnson 47,000
Richard Alsup 46,000
Rick Behrendt 35,000

The tournament staff has just announced that the remaining players (the clock reads 40 remaining) will play four more hands before bagging and tagging for the night. Stay tuned for a list of survivors complete with chip counts as well as a full recap of the Day 1a action.

The preflop action escaped us, but we do know Troy Repp and Spencer Cress engaged in a five-bet raising war that saw the former get all in preflop for roughly 130,000.

Repp:
Cress:

The two decided to flip for it, and the proverbial coin came down in Repp’s favor after the board ran out and his walking sticks held.

Troy Repp - 260,000
Spencer Cress - 40,000

Josh Reichard opened with a raise, how much we’re not sure, and Spencer Cress three-bet from the cutoff. John Tobias then called from the big blind and Reichard four-bet to what looked to be 65,000. Cress flatted and then Tobias five-bet all in for even more. Reichard six-bet jammed and Cress tanked for two minutes before folding face up.

Tobias:
Reichard:

Tobias was way behind, but the flop made things interesting by giving him an open-ended straight draw. The turn was a big blank, and so was the river. Tobias hit the rail while Reichard pulled in a hefty pot.

Josh Reichard - 220,000
John Tobias - Busted

Kou Vang - 150,000
Dennis Stevermer - 150,000
Blake Bohn - 135,000
Brian Gonder - 135,000
Matthew Marfitt - 135,000
Keith Heine - 125,000
Mike Holm - 95,000
Jason Seitz - 85,000
Gerald Heckathorn - 85,000
Andy Rubinberg - 70,000
Tom Hammers - 60,000
Aaron Massey - 60,000
Fred Jackson - 58,000
Rich Alsup - 55,000
Mark Reid - 53,000
Rodger Johnson - 52,000
Aaron Johnson - 25,000
Kirk Flom - 23,300

Kou, who has picked up kings and tens recently to chip up, raised to 4,200 from middle position and Mike Lang three-bet all in for exactly 20,000 from the button. Both blinds folded and Vang called.

Vang:
Lang:

It was a race, but Lang needed to improve to stay alive. However, you see the title of this post so you already know that didn’t happen. Instead, the boad ran out and Lang was sent to the rail.

Kou Vang - 130,000
Mike Lang - Busted

James WIlson opened for 4,500 under the gun and the player in the small blind called. The player in the big then moved all in for 24,000, Wilson called, and the small blind got out of the way.

Wilson:
Big Blind:

Wilson needed some help, but he came up empty on the flop. The turn meant he could win with another ten on the river, and that’s just what came when the rolled off the deck.

James Wilson - 125,000

Players are now on their last 10-minute break of the night. When they return they will play two more levels before bagging and tagging.