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COLBYANGUSBLACK.COM - the website |
| I am Colby. Welcome to my website, you weak pathetic thing.
Sunday, October 10, 2004 It’s the holiest day of the year you don’t have to go to church. I said that once. Said it to Laura Freeman, who now has a new last name. Said it once to Laura Freeman about the day of the Texas-OU game.And so it is. Holy, Holy, Holy. Holy War. Holy Soldiers. Holy Spirit. All mingled with the smell of fried. The House That Doak Built. A monument to the ever growing Americans – as guts and knees drape over you from behind, and you pray for that growingly rare big play from the Longhorns so you get to stand up for a second. And for the last 9 straight years, there I was. Right in the middle of that. An unrivaled atmosphere in college football, split down the 50. Crimson on the South half, “Brute orange” (as OU’s Roy Williams referred to it today) on the North half. Bigger than Ohio State-Michigan as Eddie George said today. But not this year. This year, I just couldn’t make it. Couldn’t bring myself to go. Couldn’t bring myself to want to go. So I watched it on TV for the first time since 94, when Stonie Clark and James Brown cemented themselves in the history of the rivalry. Todd Van Horne got to go this year, for the first time. I like to think my non-attendance freed the “seat” up for him, even though that is not strictly the case. He called me at like 7:30 this morning. The smell of alcohol and the sound of that first Texas-OU spilled out of the phone. Childlike wonder at its finest. It really is something to see. There’s really nothing like it. It’s akin to cramming a British soccer match in with a professional wrestling event and getting Nirvana to play. Joy. Pain. Frustration. Glory. Agony. Thrill. Madness. Anger. Laughter. Love. Hate. Courage. Fear. Speed. Power. Brilliance. Stupidity. Innovation. Stubbornness. Life. Death. You cannot be there and not think of so many names that have made so many plays there. Earl. Ricky. Peter. Major. Wane. Keith. Kerry. Quentin. Josh. Brian. Billy Sims. Roy Williams. Teddy Lehman. Trent Smith. You also cannot over look the names of the missing: Roy Williams, BJ Johnson, Cedric Benson, Derrick Johnson. Greatest receiving corps in college history? Never caught a single touchdown pass against OU. Greatest Texas linebacker in a generation? Never won there. Formerly the nation’s leading rusher? Never won there. Vince Young? Hasn’t gotten close to winning there yet. Twenty four years since Texas was shutout. I was in pre-kindergarten at the First Baptist Church in Hereford. Five years since Texas has thrown a touchdown pass against OU. Did I miss it? Sure, but not terribly. Maybe some day I’ll get a chance to put together a ten year streak. But for now, Texas Football is about a half step above LSU Football or Michigan or MTSU or Slippery Rock or Air Force or any other team I have some affection for. The days of Texas football being the be-all-end-all be ended. Dad said this day would come - a time when I got perspective about college football. I think I just got Macked. Like so many other things, it just becomes impossible to pour yourself into something without seeing rewards. And now other things make me happy. Other things break my heart. Other things bring me joy and anger and satisfaction and pain and glory and horror and all those other things. Other things that I have some measure of control over and don't rely on an oblong leather ball and 20 year old kids. And so it goes. Colby 1:00 AM
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