Straight up the middle

Posted by Brian from Shawnee on July 02, 2008 at 01:10

In Reply to: Straight up the middle posted by Carol on June 30, 2008 at 18:09:

: Ever heard of the phrase "Straight up the middle"? I always thought it meant to be locked on to a goal and not to be distracted from it no matter what. Remember the movie 'Independence Day' where Jeff Goldblum says they're going to take their spaceship, 'Straight up the middle'. I know this is a pretty old phrase, and I've tried to get an exact meaning from quite a few sources, all to no avail.

Jeff Goldblum's character may have been alluding to an American football fullback carrying the ball straight up the middle of the field where he would encounter the fiercest resistance from the defense.