At home in Starkville
Some of my earliest and fondest childhood memories take place inside the walls of the IAA Football stadiums of the North East. My father, an offensive lineman for PENN in the late 1960’s, instilled a profound passion for the game in my siblings and me. We traveled to games all around the Ivy League to proudly cheer for the Red and Blue— but it was the red-brick beauty of West Philadelphia, Franklin Field, that will forever occupy a space in my memory bank. And more than 25 years later, Quaker Football remains a family tradition—yes… I love the game, but College Football has come to mean so much more…
Tonight … I saw that same passion, that same ‘dogged’ commitment to team and campus that drives my love of the game in the eyes of the students of Mississippi State University (Should that be bull-dogged commitment?). To each and every one of them, the ‘maroon and white’ has come to mean so much more than could ever be ‘explained’ or ‘analyzed’ by the most prominent of MSU scholars.
In the wider world—tonight’s game may not mean very much. In a few years time most of my new friends in the student section will probably forget about me and will even forget the score of the game.
But for a few fleeting moments—they welcomed me as one of their own…
We celebrated together…
We consoled each other…
…and for no other reason than the spirit of the game – we were friends and teammates!
PENN’s jingling keys may have been replaced by MSU’s jangling cowbells… but the passion, the beauty and the profound importance of ‘the game’ were still very familiar.
So… to my new friends in Starkville, MS … I’d like to say THANK YOU for letting me be a part of your family… and NEXT SEASON, I’d like to invite you to be a part of mine at the big stadium on the corner of Spruce St & 34th Street in Philadelphia, PA.
GO BULLDOGS!
PS:
I’m currently driving through NORTHPORT, AL which is the ‘other’ NORTHPORT that pops-up when I do web-searches for my Hometown of NORTHPORT, NY… It is truly a SMALL world!
Comments
Hey Glenn! It was cool running into you last night on the field. (I was the one following Bully around) I'm glad I got to meet you, Erin was telling me about you guys just hours before the game! Thanks for the chat about the DVX cameras. I just ordered one today, I'm pumped!
Good luck on your other Road-trip games, I hope you guys have an awesome time.
All the best,
~Graham
Posted by: Graham Hancock | September 1, 2006 06:52 PM