The Later On Show...

So now that the Superbowl matchup has been set, it’s time to do the obvious.  Talk about the NBA of course!!!  What an incredible year it has been so far in the land of Stern.  Basketball has been fantastic this year, and the stories… you couldn’t ask for better.  There are so many already.  The Clippers rise to prominence, the Thunder thriving after trading one of the best players in the league, the amazing team ball being played in Oakland under head coach Mark Jackson, New York playing inspired defense for the first time in over a decade, and of course Miami’s first go round as the defending champion.  Pro basketball is in Brooklyn, and now most likely, also back in Seattle next season.  And, oh yeah, San Antonio is good.

We will get to all of these fantastic story lines in the coming weeks, but since I’m in LA, I have to chime in on the Laker season so far.  Sorry to do something so run-of-the-mill, but I just have to.  Really, what can you say?  It’s been absolutely incredible.  It’s what soap operas are made of, and so much more.  The irony of course is that you’d expect this kind of stuff in tinsel-town on the low-brow screen, new drama everyday, but not in real life; and certainly not involving the NBA’s most storied franchise.  What is going on around here?

I have many die-hard Laker fan friends and it’s been something a case study observing the emotional roller-coaster they’ve been on this year.  Really, the Lakers ARE this town and although Laker fans take a lot of heat, undoubtedly spoiled by years of success, they are very good fans for the most part.  They are extremely passionate; they live and die by Lakers' wins and losses, even in November and December, when most NBA cities are barely paying attention.  I have to respect that, even if I don’t feel sorry for the fan base that has had great teams in every single era throughout the NBA’s history.  Even the Boston Celtics can’t make that claim. 

Which brings us to this year, when the mighty Lakers were supposedly bringing greatness into the new era.  They had constructed a super-team in the off-season, bringing in not one, but TWO future Hall-of-famers, one of them in his prime, Dwight Howard who also was widely considered the best center in the league.  So you team them with two future Hall-of-famers already on the roster in Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol, and theoretically you had not just a super-team, but the super-team.  One who’s pieces fit together more harmoniously than other combinations we have seen around the league in the last few years.  It was “can’t miss,” and every single sports radio loud-mouth in this town was letting us know it.  Everyone was stoked for the start of the season.  And then it started. 

I’ve never seen anything like the outrage that happened here in those first three weeks.  The Lakers went 0-8 in the preseason, which people weren’t happy about, but wasn’t of much concern.  Coach Mike Brown was tinkering with his lineups and guys were learning the new system.  But in the regular season it wasn’t much better.  The team looked lost, uninspired, and out-matched even by average teams.  Laker fans were frothing at the mouth!  The obvious solution was to replace Mike Brown, who was the wrong coach to hire in the first place the year before, as I always contended.  (Not to toot my own horn or anything; lots of people knew this, except for Lakers owner Jim Buss apparently.)

So it happened, and everyone knew what was coming next.  Reports surfaced that the Lakers are talking to Phil Jackson.  It made so much sense.  He lives in Manhattan Beach, pretty close to the practice facility, he is virtually married to Jeanie Buss, (a team Vice President, real owner’s daughter, and current “acting” owner’s brother,) his specialty is facilitating egos and finding ways for great players to co-exist and thrive in his system, he only takes jobs with veteran teams that have to win now (and this team desperately fits that description,) new franchise cornerstone, Howard (who is a free agent at the end of the season) was dying to play for him in the triangle, and the fans were chanting “we want Phil” at the end of games while the Lakers were playing under interim head coach Bernie Bickerstaff.  Oh, and it’s also worth noting that Phil Jackson is the greatest head coach of all-time in any sport.  He’s already won eleven championships as a coach, including five here with the Lakers.   

It was a done deal.  Everyone knew it, and this town was percolating in blissful anticipation and already dreaming of a deep play-off run.  Phil was ready to come back to cement his legacy here, and to erase the memory of his uncharacteristically unsuccessful last game back in 2011.

And then the news came down.  Ownership passed on Phil Jackson, in favor of Mike D’Antoni.  I still can’t believe this happened.  In real life.  In a film or cartoon, or a soap opera, it would have been implausible; unbelievable.  It’s so ridiculous that no credible writer would put it on the page.  You’d lose your audience, they’d be insulted, unable to suspend their disbelief.  But it did really happen.  So now ownership had to explain it. 

They brought in D’Antoni and his up-tempo philosophy and he waxed poetic about bringing back the old days of “showtime,” which was predictable.  The Lakers were trying desperately to save face and what better way than to get nostalgic.  Fans were weary though.  They wanted to know what had gone wrong with the obvious hire, and in response to this question came forth the most egregious lie I’ve ever heard from an NBA team’s management. 

Jim Buss said, that the front office’s collected opinion was that the current roster was more suited for D’Antoni’s system than it was for Phil Jackson’s triangle.  He actually said that!  Meanwhile every Laker fan knew this to be untrue.  Like all fans who play attention to basketball they knew that with two 7-footers who can co-exist together as great passers, two heady back court players, Nash, who is also one of the greatest shooters in NBA history, and then Kobe who is, well Kobe, the triangle was a natural fit.  Add to that a semi-decent supporting cast and you can win over 50 games and make a deep playoff run.  And even if the triangle isn’t the perfect fit (which it is) the single offense that you wouldn’t want to implement is D’Antoni’s uptempo offense, which needs young legs, stretch fours who can shoot, and totally undervalues post players, as well as defense.  The Lakers exploited their own weaknesses and negated their own advantage!   It was absolutely incredible.  The other GM’s in the West must have toasted each other that day.  Lakers management had taken a huge risk, and it was clear that other factors must have been in play.

 

Because any objective person would agree that in your particular situation, with Phil Jackson available and willing to coach your team, even simply from a business perspective, you make that move 10 times out 10.  100 times out of 100.  3,456,687 times out of 3,456,687!!!  What???  Wow.  What could have been?  Sit down with Phil Jackson, sign him for one or two years, give him a piece of management decisions, have him mentor someone to take over when he retires.  Then your franchise is set for the next ten years, with Dwight Howard and whoever else you bring in after the rest of these guys retire.  But none of that happened, and Laker fans are still shaking their heads.  Or sitting in the front row wearing funny glasses.      

The diehards talked themselves into it, and got behind D’Antoni, and the rest is history.  Although not the good kind.  This “super-team” is flirting with missing the playoffs entirely, or at best, squeezing into the seventh or eighth seeds and going out in the first round.  Either way, even diehard Laker fans won’t look you in the eye when it comes up in conversation.  It’s too painful for them.

And yet this is what underdogs are made of.  They are certainly the most unlikely underdog in history, but here they are, the 2012-2013 Lakers.  The little juggernaut that could.  It'll be fun to see how far they can go.
And how this town will deal with it.    

Thanks for reading,

Underdogs OUT!

The Big Dogs... of College Football

How do you figure out which team is best???

College football is incredible.  We’ve talked about this often before on this blog.  It’s an amazing thing, not always for the right reasons one might argue, but always intriguing beyond any doubt.  We’ve always known the only real problem regarding College Football.  It’s an intense and fantastic game, but there are far too many division one teams to ever really know who the best one is.  

Two years ago, right here at the Underdogs we posed a solution.  And since then, the conferences have been doing their best to acquiesce, as we near toward super-conferences and a much better chance at order in NCAA football.  And the Bowl Championship Series itself is going to take a backseat to a four team playoff in two years, which everyone can agree is at least a step in the right direction.

Wow.  I’m impressed.  Basically, College Football has been listening, and most importantly, they’ve taken steps to remedy their obvious problems.  Obviously these are problems that should have been dealt with many many years ago, but c’mon… we’re not going to split hairs here.  The four team playoff that will be implemented after next year will go a long way in helping with the fan's overall frustrations.  At least we will be debating who is 4 and 5, rather that who is 2 and 3.  And the majority of the determination for the championship will be decided on the field, instead of being determined largely by talking heads and computer hypotheticals.            

Notre Dame has been a feel-good story...

That's not to say that the new format won't be flawed, that goes without saying.  But for years, the argument against a playoff system was always that, without one, each game of the regular season really meant something, and that is a good point.  But I've always thought that point was limited, because you can have both.  Each game of the regular season will still mean something, but once we get that playoff format, the discrepancies in scheduling will finally be more evenly recognized.  One loss teams that play a tougher schedule will still have a chance to get to that final game, even if there are two undefeated teams in the mix.  It's a huge positive step for the sport.  College football is as compelling as ever and will only get better by the time the new playoff is instituted.
  

But they won't feel good against these guys.  Sorry.    

And with that, the Matchup has been set for the 2013 Championship game.  
Alabama against Notre Dame!  
Hmmm... Who's going to win that one?  By 30?  
Yup... Alabama. 

Even the Underdogs can't pull for the Underdogs this time... Sorry Josh,
We out.
Thanks for reading!

Baseball, Miles, and the non-fan anti-jinx...

As I fly from DC back to LA I am reminded of that strange impulse that I have to write while traveling.  I think its more so on trains, there is something inspiring about them, but planes can be included too.  How efficient they are.  Basically they are just people moving machines, and everyone who boards knows this, (well except for small children I suppose,) but pretty much everyone realizes that they must sit in a small space for a couple of hours, so they might as well make the most of it.   Many writers have been inspired on trains for this reason.  I think the brain secretly likes being utilized in this way.  The body is useless right now, time for thoughts to take over! 

So reflecting on my short trip to DC, there are a few things that come to mind.  First off, I got to see an old childhood friend, my best friend from the 5^th through 7^th grades, Mike Anderson who now lives in Glen Burnie, Maryland.  The last time I saw Mike was in the summer of 1991, I remember it well.  We had been friends in England, when both of our fathers (and his mother too,) were stationed overseas at now defunct Air Force bases, borrowed from the Royal Air Force, by the US military.  We both moved from there in 1990, but I visited Mike in 1991 in Denver, Colorado where he had moved.  It's hard to believe that it’s been more than twenty-one years.  (Feels more like forty-one.)  

In a bizarre twist, the only two times I’ve ever been to an NFL team’s training camp were both in Denver.  Once with Mike in 1991 and then again in 2010, when the Lady Underdog and I saw the rookie Tim Tebow and his innumerable entourage of jersey-wearers, (before he had played a single second in the NFL by the way.)  

Mike met up with the Lady Underdog, Lakisha, and I at the Knicks-Wizards game downtown at the Verizon center.  We had a beer and talked about the old days.  We were transient, growing up (he even more so than I was,) but while I’ve continued that trend into my thirties, seemingly traveling more so than naught in my career, he has settled down in MD, living there for the last ten years.  Hopefully I will get to that place soon.  Imagine it!  The same place… for ten years!  

New and OLD faces on the Knicks bench... 

It was great to hear about Mike’s family and what’s been going on for the past two decades.  And the Knicks looked pretty good against the Wizards, pulling away in the closing minutes.  Even though they may be older than (the proverbial)… dirt!  More on that later.

Anyway, the aforementioned, greatest baseball weekend in Washington DC history ended up being a bust.  Crazy.  But I told Emily and Kevin that I think it's a good Omen.  I don't know a single couple that got married on a night when both of the local home-town teams won series-deciding playoff games, that are still together.  It's just better this way. No need to tempt fate.    

At the wedding reception, there was buzz about the Nationals and their huge early lead against the Cardinals, but no one seemed to care about the Orioles loss to the Yankees.  I think that was mainly because all of the older generation guests at the party were out-of-towners, and all of the younger in-towners had probably only been in town since around ’04 when the Nationals arrived.  The Orioles had already lost by the time we got back to the hotel that night, but the Nationals still had a chance.  They had given up their early lead but still were leading 7-5 in the ninth, so I stopped watching thinking they were going to take it.  The next day Lakisha and I walked all over DC and had a blast.  We even stopped by the ballpark and I just assumed they would be playing there the next day.  I didn’t realize until the following day, that… oops, they had, in fact, LOST that game 5 to St. Louis.  What???  That’s why baseball is a great game.  So unpredictable.  And that’s why this post-season has been nothing short of amazing!

Fast forward to tonight, when I ran into my friend Miles, from the Bay area.  My mind flipped back to three weeks ago, when he came into the bar all bummed out.  “Looks like the Giants are out of it.  They lost the first two at home.”  He looked so sad.  Instinctively I wanted to cheer him up, so I said, “Hey, don’t worry, they’ll pull it out!”  “Nah, they have to win three on the road.” he moped.  “Nope,” I said without hesitation,  “They got this Miles, they’ll come back, don’t worry.”   Of course, they then made history, winning three in a row on the road to advance on to the National League Championship Series.  A week later, he had that same look.  Like a true fan, he wears his heart on his sleeve, so I could see the genuine pain in his expression.

“Down three to one,” he lamented, “looks like we’re really done this time.” 

The last game this year had already been played...

I hadn’t watched any of the games, but there was something about how honestly hurt Miles looked, and somehow, I just knew that the Giants were going to come back.  “Nah, they got this brother,” I said solidly, “they’ll win this one in seven.”  Of course, if it was my team I would never be so brashly optimistic.  When you’re not emotionally invested you have the luxury of irrational confidence.  For some reason, when it is your team, and you really care about the outcome, you almost have to protect yourself by assuming the worst.  You cannot take that leap, because if you do, you’ll blame yourself for jinxing the team!  So weird right?  We have nothing to do with the outcomes whatsoever anyway.  It’s illogical to think that we do, but that doesn’t stop us does it?  Ahhh, sports fans.  We have issues.

Anyway, so tonight Miles came into the bar looking very happy, a huge smile on his face.  “You called it!”  he said giving me a big hug.  “You said it, both times!  Amazing right?  We’re going back to the World Series!”

Obviously, I can’t take any credit for San Francisco’s second historic turnaround.  No sane person would think that way, but maybe that’s part of the fun of being a sports fan in general.  We are connected to the games, and we care about the outcomes, but we are literally helpless to affect them one way or the other.  So it stands to reason that because of the absence of any real control, superstitions eventually crept in and became a staple in sports-fandom.  That’s why countless fans throughout history have blamed themselves for losses, for years, because their team lost, when they forgot to wear their “lucky hat/shirt/socks/kimono.  You name it, the true sports fan can use it, to blame themselves for any loss.  

“I jinxed em!  They were winning until I TURNED ON THE TV!” 

Rational people say that’s ridiculous.  And they’re right.

But we have a World Series coming up.  It's Detroit vs San Francisco, and anything can happen, so all you true fans better get out your old lucky rally caps, that have never been washed of course.  Dust off those lucky shoes or stretch into that lucky sweatshirt, because if your team is going to win this thing you better show some consistency!    

But seriously, I think we should all just act like Miles, and have some fun during these games.  Because we’re all playing with house money at this point right?  Gotta enjoy it while it lasts. 

Baseball is a beautiful game.  And so is life. 

Thanks for reading.

Underdogs OUT!

One Night in DC...

So the aforementioned one-game playoff between the Orioles and the Rangers actually did come to fruition last week.  Baseball tried actively to destroy the marriage of Catia and Alex!  I honestly never thought it would do such a thing. 

I happened to be in Vegas that night (a story for another day) and didn’t really watch, but at one point, while walking the strip I caught a glimpse of Baltimore players on TV smiling and giving interviews, so I figured somewhere in New York, Catia was being let down gently.  That same night, that complete debacle of an ending happened between Atlanta and St Louis, when the incredibly inept and inane infield-fly-rule finally reared its long-standing ugly head on a national stage, and ruined a baseball game.  It was bound to happen eventually.  But who cares about that?  That’s just scenery.   

In the game that really mattered, Alex’s Orioles took down Catia’s Rangers.  I was really only slightly worried, but I needed to test the waters, so I texted Alex, “It’s not so bad… she can just be an Orioles fan for a while.”  Y’know marriage is a two-way street after all.  He got me back, “Indeed.  She’s still in mourning, but insists she’ll be good to go by tomorrow.”

I love it.  Even among the true fans, love still conquers all.  It’s very good to know that this marriage is safe!

Speaking of which, I’m in Washington DC this weekend with the Lady Underdog, for a wedding.  Lakisha’s best friend from high school is tying the knot so we flew in from LA.  We came into town last night just as the Nationals were pulling off a dramatic ninth inning win against St Louis, forcing a winner-take-all game five tonight.  Then later in the night, after we saw the Knicks play the Wizards (more on that later,) the Baltimore Orioles won in extra innings against the Yankees.

Setting up a… you guessed it, winner-take-all game five for the Orioles and Yankees tonight in New York.  And incidentally, in addition to the obvious David vs Goliath appeal, the Orioles and the Yankees split 18 games this season and they are 2-2 in this series, so this is basically the rubber match for a best-of-25-game series.  Incredible.  It's going right down to the wire seemingly even to the most minute detail.  And of course, the Nationals have never been in a position like this.  

So let’s examine.  Everyone in this town is either an Orioles fan or a Nationals fan, (and anyone who is a Nationals fan probably used to be an Orioles fan, (back before the team brought Major League baseball back here from Montreal in 2005.)  And even then, the Nationals have been a complete after-thought until recently.  So basically the Orioles are playing in their most important game in 15 years, and Washington is hosting their most important baseball game in 75 years, on the same night.  I would guess that when Emily and Kevin planned this wedding, they didn’t realize that it would be taking place on DC’s single most important baseball night, of all time. What a night to be in Washington!   

Both games will take place at the exact same time as this wedding and reception.  As an outsider, it will be fun to take a look around the room at various times to see who is checking their phones, who is half listening to conversations, who is sweating, or who is smiling.  Depending on the updates and outcomes, all of these are possible.  We will only be a short distance from Nationals Park up near the National Mall, so maybe we’ll even hear the roars of the crowd.  Amazing.  And all of this is just the backdrop to the best day of Emily and Kevin’s lives, as she walks to him down that aisle.

Well, I don’t think they have anything to worry about.  I mean, if Catia and Alex’s marriage can survive baseball’s second ever one-game playoff, then there is hope for us all.
Let's go O's!!!  

Underdogs Out! 

The Baseball Playoffs... and the OjedaBergs

Last time on the Underdogs, while I was filling everybody in on my trip to the Rose Bowl and waxing on the sports notions of this town, Los Angeles, I was a little bit premature in my dismissal of the Dodgers and the Angels from the post-season.  The Angels are just out of the running recently, but the Dodgers, even though they are ten games worse than their down-the-interstate compadres, still have a slim chance at sneaking in to the playoffs, if they win out.  So there is still is some hope for more October baseball in LA, my mistake.  I had completely forgotten about the Major League's brand new playoff format.  I know what you’re thinking  “What?... Change in baseball?”  Yes.  History is happening  

It’s a whole new world for the Major Leagues. The Wild Card teams from each league actually have to earn their playoff spot now because of this new format.  Two non-division winners will get in this year and they will play a single game to… um… I guess, decide who the actual wild-card team is.  A one-game playoff in baseball!  Crazy.

The Rangers have been miraculous the last two years.

So they basically just added a play-in game, while the division winners get a night off.  I’m not sure if I love it or hate it.  Where would purists come down on this?  Ah, whatever.  I love it.  More drama!  And it seems to have worked for the Major Leagues as more games were relevant down the stretch.  So here we are in the thick of it, and the question at this point isn't, "who's getting in", but rather "who will have to play in that pesky one-game-win-or-go-home matchup."  Which we all know is an absolutely terrifying proposition for a baseball team.    

And as you would expect, the consequences of how these situations play out will undoubtedly affect many things.  Ticket sales, franchise worth, historical significance, player salary leverage, manager and front office clout, and of course, the all-important fan bragging rights.

But could we be adding to this list, an outstanding marriage as well?

A brilliant couple.  And two huge baseball fans.

Previously mentioned here at the Underdogs, have been the exploits of my friends Catia Ojeda and Alex Goldberg (affectionately known as the Ojedabergs) who are both huge baseball fans.  We have lived vicariously through Catia these past two years while her Rangers have made amazing runs to the World Series, last year losing in a devistating seventh game.  Alex has been pulling for them too during this time (naturally, because that’s what you do in a marriage… when your team is out of it, that is.)  But this year is shaping up much differently, because for the first time in fifteen years the Baltimore Orioles are going to be in the playoffs as well!

And as you might have guessed, Alex is a die-hard Orioles fan.  So for the first time ever, Alex and Catia’s relationship is going to be tested, in a rather unique way. 

It has been well documented that this wonderful couple's first (and by some accounts only) real fight was baseball related.  We all know the tale.  It was a magical night in Boston at baseball’s greatest park.  It’s the Red Sox against the Rangers; they have amazing seats just above the dugout, and Catia is obviously decked out in blue.  She is obstinate against the Red Sox faithful.  She’s serious.  Alex is a Ranger fan for the evening as well of course, but then late in the game something changes.  It’s the top of the seventh and the Boston pitcher has a perfect game going.

Figuring that this is only a regular-season game, one of 162, and that there have only been 23 perfect games in baseball’s immense history, Alex, perhaps swayed by the crowd or his deep love for baseball, starts to root for the perfect game.  You know, like a baseball purist would.  A fan of the game.  The notion of history right there to be witnessed.  She’d understand that right?  Well.  As it turns out… no. 

She considered it the deepest form of betrayal, and still does to this day.  It’s amazing that in the three years that I’ve known her, whenever this story comes up, she truly becomes angry once again.  That’s passion.  That’s a true, real fan.  No matter what happens, you don’t abandon your team.  So when a Ranger batter at Fenway that night, finally broke up the perfect game with a single up the middle, in an otherwise silent stadium, she bolted up out of her seat and yelled joyously “YESSSSS!”  She was defiant.  Uncompromising.  Elated.    

Baltimore has won 92 games, with an 9 run differential.
That is simply unbelievable.    

Simultaneously of course, Alex's priority was no longer their argument, but instead it immediately switched to the task of making sure they made it back to their hotel safely that night.  That's baseball baby! 

So anyway, here it is, 2012.  And if the Oakland A’s win their last two games, there could be a one-game playoff between the Texas Rangers and the Baltimore Orioles.

Would the baseball gods do this?  Would they be willing to potentially sacrifice such a beautiful union of souls?

Of course, if this doesn’t happen, it is possible that their two teams could meet later in the AL playoffs in a seven game series, but if it came down to just one game.  For all the marbles.  That intense pressure.  That extraordinary die-hard fan adrenalin.  Do we have any idea what might happen? 

As always, we must just accept what is.  If it is meant to be it will be.  But if it happens... don’t think I won’t be a little nervous that night.   

Thanks for Reading,

Underdogs out.  

Red vs Blue... at the Rose Bowl

Ah, LA in September.  Living in this great city around this time is so interesting.  The baseball season is winding down and both the Dodgers and Angels are almost out of their respective playoff races.  The NFL season has just started and, as everyone knows, the second biggest market in the United States that used to have two NFL teams, at the same time, is entering its nineteenth consecutive season without one.  That alone is an amazing fact to consider.  There is no professional football in America’s second biggest market and one of the most revered cities in the world.  Although perhaps that’s just a technical distinction, as we’ve joked here before, because they do still arguably have a pro team… the University of Southern California Trojans!  Zing!  Aw, but, c’mon, they’ve paid their penalties for that!  Or one hopes so at least, (in so far as it is possible that is, given the inherent hypocrisy of the major College-Football-Program scene.)

The Stadium was actually packed.  This was halftime.  

Anyway, the lack of an NFL team doesn’t really seem to have much affected the sports nature of the city though.  People are extremely passionate about their Dodgers, and USC for their football, and UCLA for their college basketball.  UCLA is legendary in hoops, but a perennial after-thought during the football season.  So when a few of my Nebraska friends (some living here already, others flying in direct) told me they were coming in for a Huskers game against UCLA, I thought, “great, shouldn’t be too hard to get a ticket.”

I live in Culver City, just south of Westwood, where the beautiful UCLA campus nestles into the landscape.  I have been there a few times, once for a basketball game at the immortal John Wooden’s court, and a handful of other times just to hang out in the area.  Friends of mine across the country, who went to school there, are always jealous to know the times that I’ve stopped into the great ice-cream spot Diddy Riese for a bite.  They just can’t stop talking about that place! 

But on the football front, I hadn’t thought much about UCLA.  There certainly wasn’t a large football stadium on or near the campus, so at first I didn’t even know where they’d play their games.  Stupidly, as it turns out, because of course they play in Pasadena… at the Rose Bowl!  That stadium has to be used for something else right?  Not just the Rose Bowl!  Suddenly I got excited.  I’d love to go to the Rose Bowl, hang out with friends, and watch their storied Nebraska team dismantle the overmatched Bruins.     

What a beautiful afternoon for a football game.  Located just north of the Ventura Freeway in the Arroyo Brookside park, the stadium is everything that you’d imagine it to be.  You can just feel the history.   Outside of the stadium there is a Carnival with rides and games, and when you get in to the stadium, there are more outdoor concessions surrounding it.  But once you’re actually in, no frills, just football, the way that it should be.  Simple.  And you can tell that the UCLA faithful like it that way.  They believe in their team even though, given their spotty history, no one else in the country does. 

As I expected there was a huge contingent of red within the stadium, entire sections in fact.  The Husker state represented enormously and enthusiastically.  I have to note here the particular phenomenon that I experienced, having worked twice now, in Nebraska.  They LOVE the Cornhuskers.  It’s beyond just football.  I’ve seen that level of passion frequently in American college sports, but never before had I seen an entire state so united behind one flag. 

While I was in high school and college in Florida, for instance, the state was split between the University of Florida, Florida State, and even the Miami Hurricanes.  Texas has the Longhorns, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, Baylor. Even Oklahoma has Oklahoma State.  In Nebraska, it’s one team.  One.  And it’s so clear.  If you ever talk to someone from Nebraska, just mention the Huskers and they beam.  It’s their birthright.  And they’re proud, because they’ve had great years.  Three national championships in the last eighteen years and a whole bunch of Big 12 championships bring that kind of devotion.  And especially after joining the Big 10 last year, I’ve pulled for the Huskers to win that conference.  Because, c’mon, it’s about time Ohio State and Wisconsin had some competition (cough cough, sorry Michigan friends.)  Coming into the game, the Huskers were ranked number 16 in the country, UCLA, not at all.    

So as I drove to the game, I was expecting a big win, but my more educated Nebraska friends were cautious.  They weren’t crazy about what they’d seen from their team so far.  One of my favorite moments during the game, was when the UCLA fans, wanting to give the Nebraska faithful some grief, started chanting, “OVER-RATED”… clap clap, clap clap clap, “OVER-RATED”… clap clap, clap clap clap!  Steve looked at me and Erinn and said editorially… “Yea!  You think we don’t know that already???” 

Nebraska fumbled away a few chances... 

It was a thrilling first half with a lot of scoring, including a 90 yard touchdown run by Nebraska quarterback Taylor Martinez.  The second half got tighter, but there were still clutch plays on offense and defense.  It basically came down to one play, one that Nebraska desperately needed.  It was a short route that should have been a touchdown.  A Husker wideout broke right and was completely alone by the sideline, a clear path to the endzone before him.  Martinez saw him all the way, and so did the entire stadium.  The UCLA fans groaned, Nebraska fans stood in anticipation, it was a broken defensive assignment!  He was wide open.  The receiver appeared to be looking right at Martinez as he threw it, but then something strange happened.  He froze. 

... as the diehards held their breath.

As the ball was coming toward him he waited, his arms down.  He waited, and still waited.  The ball passed right by his helmet, his hands still down, and suddenly he flailed his arms awkwardly as he saw something in his peripheral and realized what had happened.  But it was too late.  He hadn’t even seen the pass.  I’ve never seen anything like it.  He saw Martinez throw.  Did he think he faked it?  He must have lost it in the lights, although to me, because of the angle, it didn’t seem like that was possible.  Either way it was a huge blow for the Huskers.  The ball landed out of bounds, as the red throngs watched in disbelief, and the drive ended with a field goal.  And it wouldn’t be enough, because UCLA had no intention of letting this one slip away.  

The Bruins made some wonderful plays on offense and eventually it carried them to a thrilling and improbable win.  The underdog came up big against the storied Nebraska program.  But even Husker fans have to admit this is a feel good ending.  Not only was the UCLA football team an underdog in this game, and an underdog within their own city, but they are underdogs on their own campus!  Second class citizens to the hardwood heroes.  

You could feel some of those demons being exorcised last night, as they realized their achievement.  The crowd was obviously extremely excited, but you could also see the surprise underneath.  Like this was new territory for them.

Today UCLA is in the top 25 at number 22, and Nebraska has slipped out.  And while I feel bad for Steve, Scott, Chris, Erinn, both Joes, and all the rest of Husker Nation, I’m not too worried for them.  They still have a chance to come out of the Big 10, and I’ll root for them against everybody in that conference.  And it was great to hang out with you guys while you were here.  Thanks for the invite!    

But meanwhile, I’ve found a new interest in the PAC-12 and the upstart UCLA football team.  Can the Bruins ride this momentum?  Can they become a Cinderella Story and shock the world by de-throning USC while finally claiming this city for their own?  After seeing them last night, I think they can.  

And wouldn’t that be Rosy?

Thanks for reading.

Underdogs out!

Olympic London...

The last time the Olympics happened it was in Beijing.  It was only four years ago, but it seems like much more.  I had been in Beijing in 2006, and Seoul, Korea as well that year, where the first Olympics that I remember happened in 1988.  (Okay, I remember Carl Lewis and Ben Johnson.)  The Olympics was amazing then and it is amazing now.  

A friend of mine made a point the other day.
One that I had never thought of.  Everybody runs.
It's not specific, like water polo or archery.
It's just, simply running.  And this guy is the fastest ever.  

In sports, our perfect tournament is College Basketball’s NCAA Final Four, our greatest American sporting event is the Superbowl, the baseball pennant races are historic, and the greatest international event is the World Cup.  But the Olympics is something completely unto itself.  It is so much more than a sporting event.  It is a wonderful testament to us.  To mankind, to civilization.  It is right at the heart of what captures our imaginations; humans pushing their physical limits on a global stage, and bringing people together.  It’s beautiful. 

Thinking hypothetically about a utopian planet.  Thinking about advanced beings living in peace and harmony (the stuff that science fiction has touched on for 50 years) it would seem like the way to that place for those (real or unreal) societies must have included an event like this.  Along the evolution to a higher understanding, in becoming a brilliant conglomerate of sentient beings that don’t need war or wealth to validate their existence, something like the Olympics must have taken place allowing for the eventual enlightenment.  Think of how far we have come on this planet, just in the last hundred years.  Before the internet and a general acceptance, or at least understanding, of the many different cultures in the world, the Olympics was at the heart of it.  Forcing people from distant countries to look at each other.

Yes, it was in the spirit of competition and patriotism and sometimes tensions ran high, but intermixed was the notion of an eventual global oneness.  Think of what that was like a hundred years ago.  What was it like, in that time, to realize that people that don’t look like you from places you’ve never been and will probably never go, really aren’t that different from you after all?

That deep down, we all want the same things.

Those notions have to be the precursor to the (at least now) imagined advanced civilizations of science fiction.  And because of it, the Olympics is still the preeminent sports event on our planet.  It brings everyone together in ways that nothing else could.  It's what we keep saying about sports.  It transcends.  It truly has a beautiful and amazing power.    

But outside of the bigger (or intergalactic) picture, the beauty of the Olympics for me has always been the attention that is brought to so many sporting events that normally don’t enter into the global conscience.  Handball, water polo, archery, fencing, diving.  There are no mulit-million dollar contracts waiting for these athletes (even if they win gold medals.)  They are complete amateurs, in it for the love, in it for the passion.  

London was filled with these hopefuls this summer.  And as we watched the closing ceremonies last night I realized that, one of the greatest cities in the world may have pulled off the perfect Olympics.  I was going to go, but I didn’t.  Man.... I definitely should have :)

To all my British friends.  Thanks for the invite.  Sorry I didn’t make it. 

But the Underdogs were alive and well.  
And you guys nailed it!

Thanks for reading.
Underdogs out.