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Rambling thoughts on the game, the rivalry, my fandom and the nastiness of it all.

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  • Rambling thoughts on the game, the rivalry, my fandom and the nastiness of it all.

    Does the ugliness, the hatred, the vitriol really make it a better rivalry? Or more fun?

    Over the years, I've lost passion for pro sports, then college basketball....I wonder if my obsession/passion for college football is next.

    I remember going to the Utah football games in the early 80's. I remember the Utes sucking. I remember asking my dad why we came to the games if we knew the Utes would lose.

    His answer was pretty simple. "Because they are our team and what better way to spend a fall afternoon than outside, eating a grilled hot dog with your dad?"

    It was hard to argue. There was something very innocent about it. The only emotion really tied to it was being happy to be there with my dad. The wins were great because they were a surprise. We usually had a lot of leg room. Some guy down a few rows smoked a pipe or a cigar. I remember thinking that I wish he'd always smoke the pipe and ditch the cigars. I remember the wood floor boards in that old stadium. I remember the wood benches in the G. A. areas. I remember walking up those benches on occasion and seeing mini bottles and not thinking anything of it. They weren't bad people, they just led a different life than my family. I remember back when the vendors used to walk up and down the stairs and actually sell stuff in the stands. The drinks were wrapped with saran wrap and a rubber band and the hot dogs were usually only luke warm.

    The only thing I was really aware of in the football rivalry in my early youth was that BYU nearly always won. My dad told me that Utah beat BYU once when I was little. When I was 13, they did it again. I remember my grandma even went to that game. I remember Sammy Tausinga snatching a ball out of the air and running it back for a TD. I remember Eddie Johnson having a great game. I remember Eddie being carried off the field. I remember cutting out the headlines and making my mom frame the front page because I knew this was special. I remember thinking and feeling it might never happen again. And I remember thinking, that's okay. Because it happened and I saw it.

    I remember listening to the Utes play their away games on the A.M radio on our old blue ford pickup truck as we'd do our yardwork and then drive down Fairield road to the Davis County Landfill. Then getting a soda on the way home and listening to Bill Marcroft before he was crazy.

    I remember years later making the journey to Cougar Stadium to watch the last game I would see before going on a mission. The guy behind us was wearing a dated satin BYU jacket and was drunk and foul. I remember thinking, "Maybe we're not all so different after all." To their credit, the people around us all took care of us. They were good people. BYU fans, no less. Utah had no chance of winning, it was Cougar Stadium after all. And the kicker sucked. Well, it came down to a field goal and the kicker didn't suck and Utah won.

    I took note, because I figured I'd never see that again. And I remember thinking, that's okay. Because it happened and I saw it.

    Years later, I sat and watched the time melt off the clock as everyone around us was wearing Sombreros. 11-0. Wow. And a BCS bowl? Wow.

    Take note. This will never happen again. I turned to my dad and said, "Well...it will never get any better than this. This is one of those once in a lifetime moments." And I remember thinking, that's okay. Because it happened and I saw it.

    This past January, I sat in a dome in New Orleans with my mom, dad and my 6 year old son and watched as the Utes dismantled a team which everyone had believed was unbeatable in a bowl game in which nobody though Utah would play. We were stunned and we were ecstatic. It was another once in a lifetime moment. And I remember thinking, that's okay. Because it happened and I saw it.

    For me, it's really not about BYU. It never has been. I am a Utah fan because that is who I am. That is what "we" do. They are "our team." I'm sure a large number of BYU fans feel the same way about their Cougars and the rivalry.

    I miss the innocence. I miss the naivete. I long for civility.

    Rest assured, that I would certainly not put up with disgusting language or behavior or religious slurs around me. In fact, I've always spoken out when I've had the opportunity.

  • #2
    Very nice, Port. Thanks for posting. I'd like to see some other thoughts along these lines, today being Thanksgiving and all.
    “There is a great deal of difference in believing something still, and believing it again.”
    ― W.H. Auden


    "God made the angels to show His splendour - as He made animals for innocence and plants for their simplicity. But men and women He made to serve Him wittily, in the tangle of their minds."
    -- Robert Bolt, A Man for All Seasons


    "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
    --Antoine de Saint-Exupery

    Comment


    • #3
      Originally posted by Portland Ute View Post
      ....

      The only thing I was really aware of in the football rivalry in my early youth was that BYU nearly always won.....

      I miss the innocence. I miss the naivete. I long for civility.
      I miss that too. I guess we're not so different after all.

      Comment


      • #4
        Originally posted by Portland Ute View Post
        Does the ugliness, the hatred, the vitriol really make it a better rivalry? Or more fun?
        Mark me down for an emphatic "yes."

        Originally posted by Portland Ute View Post
        Over the years, I've lost passion for . . . college basketball....I wonder if my obsession/passion for college football is next.
        It's not complicated. You are a bandwagoner and a fairweather fan. I think you also might harbor poisonous feelings for overweight people. Or maybe you always hated Majerus because he had BYU pegged in every conceivable way. Your Majerus hate always spoiled your enjoyment of Ute basketball's best years.
        When a true genius appears, you can know him by this sign: that all the dunces are in a confederacy against him.

        --Jonathan Swift

        Comment


        • #5
          I love it. Great post. I'm not from Utah and don't live there so the rivalry hasn't really been "personal" to me...

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by SeattleUte View Post
            Or maybe you always hated Majerus because he had BYU pegged in every conceivable way.
            Roger Reid just called and said he was laughing about this.

            Oh, and nice post PU.

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by YOhio View Post
              I miss that too. I guess we're not so different after all.
              At last, a BYU fans who admits he longs for the good old days when the Y had no serious opponents in conference.
              “There is a great deal of difference in believing something still, and believing it again.”
              ― W.H. Auden


              "God made the angels to show His splendour - as He made animals for innocence and plants for their simplicity. But men and women He made to serve Him wittily, in the tangle of their minds."
              -- Robert Bolt, A Man for All Seasons


              "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
              --Antoine de Saint-Exupery

              Comment


              • #8
                By the way, it's kind of pathetic that a thoughtful post like Portland's gets nothing but kick-in-the-groin rivalry smack in response.
                “There is a great deal of difference in believing something still, and believing it again.”
                ― W.H. Auden


                "God made the angels to show His splendour - as He made animals for innocence and plants for their simplicity. But men and women He made to serve Him wittily, in the tangle of their minds."
                -- Robert Bolt, A Man for All Seasons


                "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
                --Antoine de Saint-Exupery

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by LA Ute View Post
                  At last, a BYU fans who admits he longs for the good old days when the Y had no serious opponents in conference.
                  I wonder what percent of fans if they could choose to swap places with BSU, would.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Originally posted by LA Ute View Post
                    By the way, it's kind of pathetic that a thoughtful post like Portland's gets nothing but kick-in-the-groin rivalry smack in response.
                    Sorry, Portland Ute. It really was a nice post.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by Portland Ute View Post
                      Does the ugliness, the hatred, the vitriol really make it a better rivalry? Or more fun?
                      Just my opinion, but I think the intensity of this rivalry is a bit overstated. I've always thought of it as good fun, a time to have some laughs and talk some junk. It's rare that I've seen it get really ugly.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by LA Ute View Post
                        At last, a BYU fans who admits he longs for the good old days when the Y had no serious opponents in conference.
                        Originally posted by LA Ute View Post
                        By the way, it's kind of pathetic that a thoughtful post like Portland's gets nothing but kick-in-the-groin rivalry smack in response.

                        Yet, you felt the need to contribute to the smack. Pathetic.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by YOhio View Post
                          Sorry, Portland Ute. It really was a nice post.
                          It's fine. I can't really control peoples' responses to my thoughts. Thanks for the nice comment about the post.

                          In days gone by, I'd have come back with some comment. Like I said, I'm tired of the back and forth.

                          I hope Utah wins because I hope Utah wins.

                          If other Ute fans want to attack other Utah fans for thoughtful posts, they will be shown for what they are. (Boylen, as an aside, I apologize for bashing you. 99% of it is good natured. However, I'm sorry for the past and will try to be more pleasant in the future.)

                          The only person that I can control is me, and to some extent, my kids (for a few more years, at least.) I mean, why react to a BYU fan that says that Utes are poor students, alcoholics and philanderers. In my case, none of that is true, so why react. I don't need to argue my case or prove myself to a person that means nothing to me.

                          I used to love to listen to talk radio during the lead up to the game. The last few years, I've rarely listened. I've ignored the rivalry smack on Cougarboard and Utefans this year. Most of my free internet time has been spent here and on Utezone. I do feel like this place definitely takes a turn for the worse this week, but it's years behind CB or UF in that regard. It's still pretty low-key here.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by LA Ute View Post
                            By the way, it's kind of pathetic that a thoughtful post like Portland's gets nothing but kick-in-the-groin rivalry smack in response.
                            Sir, have you become so jaded that you assume my "nice post, PU" was insincere? It really wasn't. I like any heartfelt paean to one's favorite team, even if it's a rival. Please note that the nastiest response came from a Ute fan.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by PaloAltoCougar View Post
                              Sir, have you become so jaded that you assume my "nice post, PU" was insincere? It really wasn't. I like any heartfelt paean to one's favorite team, even if it's a rival. Please note that the nastiest response came from a Ute fan.
                              This is sort of a sage throw down.

                              Comment

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