Thursday, September 16, 2004
It's time to talk about sports...
Football season always breathes some new life into my soul. Usually by the start of training camp, and certainly by the beginning of the regular season, I am tired of baseball and ready for something new. Maybe it is the violence, or the spectacle of 11 men working together and pounding the crap out of each other for one goal. Either way, football is truly the great American game.
Indiana football is not a tribute to the sport. The fan's chanting of "Wait 'till basketball season!" while watching our Hoosiers being pumelled by Michigan is a perfect example. Hoosier fans worry more about the season that begins in mid-October and ends in early April -- college basketball season. And we have 5 national championships to remind us how important it is.
But this year IU has thrown me a curve. Our upset road win against the thought-to-be-mighty Oregon ducks has given me some hope. Could IU get to a bowl game for the first time since the 1993-94 season? (We lost that game to Virginia Tech by the way.) A win in the border war against Kentucky would validate my excitement.
It is hard to describe how bitter I am toward IU football. They have 1 Rose Bowl appearance. Northwestern has more, Illinois has more, everyone in the Big Ten has more than that. They have less than 10 bowl appearances ALL-TIME. And with the Big Ten fielding 7 or 8 teams every year that could beat 90 percent of the teams in college football over the last few years, IU has never had much of a chance. They even had Antwan Randal El (spelled wrong) at Quarterback for 4 years and could not get in a bowl game. The man was arguably the best offensive player in college football history and he could not get IU to a winning record. That is how difficult IU football has it.
But this year, things are different. IU finally got the big win. They finally have some confidence. And they are on a roll. If they beat UK, that leaves only 3 more wins to finish above .500, something that has not happened since 1994. With that comes bowl eligibility and some respect. It's about time IU football fans had something to chant other than "Wait 'till basketball season!"
Football season always breathes some new life into my soul. Usually by the start of training camp, and certainly by the beginning of the regular season, I am tired of baseball and ready for something new. Maybe it is the violence, or the spectacle of 11 men working together and pounding the crap out of each other for one goal. Either way, football is truly the great American game.
Indiana football is not a tribute to the sport. The fan's chanting of "Wait 'till basketball season!" while watching our Hoosiers being pumelled by Michigan is a perfect example. Hoosier fans worry more about the season that begins in mid-October and ends in early April -- college basketball season. And we have 5 national championships to remind us how important it is.
But this year IU has thrown me a curve. Our upset road win against the thought-to-be-mighty Oregon ducks has given me some hope. Could IU get to a bowl game for the first time since the 1993-94 season? (We lost that game to Virginia Tech by the way.) A win in the border war against Kentucky would validate my excitement.
It is hard to describe how bitter I am toward IU football. They have 1 Rose Bowl appearance. Northwestern has more, Illinois has more, everyone in the Big Ten has more than that. They have less than 10 bowl appearances ALL-TIME. And with the Big Ten fielding 7 or 8 teams every year that could beat 90 percent of the teams in college football over the last few years, IU has never had much of a chance. They even had Antwan Randal El (spelled wrong) at Quarterback for 4 years and could not get in a bowl game. The man was arguably the best offensive player in college football history and he could not get IU to a winning record. That is how difficult IU football has it.
But this year, things are different. IU finally got the big win. They finally have some confidence. And they are on a roll. If they beat UK, that leaves only 3 more wins to finish above .500, something that has not happened since 1994. With that comes bowl eligibility and some respect. It's about time IU football fans had something to chant other than "Wait 'till basketball season!"
