Since airing, the episode has received mostly positive reviews from television critics. John Carman of the "San Francisco Chronicle" called it his favorite episode of the show. The authors of the book "I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide", Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, wrote that "it's nice to see and Lisa getting along so well for once." Nate Meyers of Digitally Obsessed rated the episode a 5(of 5) and commented that "any football fan will love this episode, but the reason why it is so good is the relationship between Homer and Lisa. The two truly are a father and daughter to one another, causing both laughter and touching emotion in the audience."