i am a super loyal fan. i grew up in the bay area so my teams have always been the cal bears, the niners, the warriors and the A’s (billy ball!) back before the TV networks determined the times of the games and scheduled them for all different crazy times, the cal game was always saturday at one. fall saturdays were spent cheering for the bears (GRRRR - RAH! GRRRR - RAH!) in the “family section” of the stadium. you didn’t have to sit anywhere particular once you were in so it felt like an extension of high school where we roved around and chatted about the party from the night before. we didn’t have to pay too much attention to the game because the bears were never very good (save a few glorious moments like THE PLAY when we beat stanford - i WAS present for this unbelievable touchdown but didn’t understand what was happening until i heard the cannon go off, indicating that cal had scored.) sundays were frequently spent at candlestick cheering for the niners… they WERE good, so good that they brought home FOUR superbowls under joe montana. he still makes my heart flutter (i seriously considered becoming a flight attendant after i read that he met his wife, jennifer in the air!) we were always dressed properly (blue and gold for cal, red for the niners) except for one unfortunate saturday when my dad mixed up his gear and sported a red niners shirt at the cal game. he had to endure hollers of “TAKE OFF THAT RED SHIRT” (stanford’s color) for the entirety of the game. so fierce was my loyalty that i was stunned when a dear friend of mine decided to attend stanford. never mind that it was and is one of the BEST schools in the country, i just couldn’t wrap my head around how she could cheer for a team whose mascot is a walking tree after a lifetime of growling for the bears. she managed… in fact she LOVED it, but did admit recently that she never felt comfortable wearing any stanford stuff when she was home in berkeley… not even a hat.
(THE PLAY - famous because cal scored in the last few seconds while navigating around the stanford band)
(just look at the twinkle in joe’s eyes… totally DREAMY!)
(this stanford tree is just ridiculous)
(oski, cal’s bear, is so dapper!)
even though i lived in new york for a decade and LOVED that city with my whole heart, i never transferred my team loyalty or even expanded it to include ny teams. i would watch niner games in sports bars with other transplanted californians and sometimes get into it with the new yorkers who disparaged my guys. so when we moved to boulder, it did not occur to me to cheer for the buffs (or the nuggets or the broncos.) we would happily attend tailgate parties at CU (i DO love a good hotdog) but the only time we would stay for the game was when they were playing berkeley and then we would be all decked out in cal gear rooting for the bears. (i will say there is nothing more exciting than seeing ralphie race around the field at the start of the game. we have never had a live bear at any cal game so i DO cheer for ralphie!) last year the buffs just STOMPED berkeley (it was the only game they won that season) - the students were so excited they stormed the field while we humbly snuck out of the stadium.
(dad came to town for the cal/buff game when we first moved here - we stayed true to our bears!)
(theo DID break down and throw on some buffalo horns after seeing ralphie run around)
(ralphie is super impressive! she is actually a LADY… her handlers always have a hard time keeping up with her!)
(three bears in a sea of buffs last year)
but this year is decidedly different… this year we have COACH PRIME! i cannot adequately express how energizing and exciting it is to have him at CU. after more than a dozen years in boulder during which i have not cared one bit about the buffs (except ralphie), i am ALL IN with prime (he WAS a niner after all and many say his best football playing was in san francisco - he DID get a ring while there and i remember being beside myself when he joined the team.) i LOVE his swagger and flashiness - his shiny, self-designed sunnies paired with his thick gold rope of a chain are amazing. i love how he brings his whole family into everything and defends his mama and supports his kids. i love his clarity about his purpose and how straight forward and unapologetic he is about his intentions. and i really love how he has embraced the fans. he went to meet peggy, who has been cheering for the buffs for over EIGHTY years - she’s NINETY-EIGHT. i am always a sucker for a granny. seeing the two of them dancing and pepping up the team together was just outrageous.
(deion as a niner… he helped bring home one of their many superbowl wins!)
(he also played in the WORLD SERIES for atlanta - NO ONE else has succeeded in two sports on this level!)
(LOOK how prime pulls off stylish cowboy!)
(deion and his five gorgeous children)
(prime’s mama is just adorable!)
(how CUTE is peggy the super fan holding hands with coach prime?)
there have been quite a few nay sayers (who don’t flap prime in the least) and after our devastating loss to oregon they have stepped it up. but i am standing by him, i still BELIEVE because now that i have converted (this is literally the first “new” team i have cheered for since childhood except the dutch national football team) he has reignited in me the FUN of being a fan. the first three games: texas christian (we were predicted to lose to by 20 points!), nebraska (who would have thought we could beat those giant cornhuskers?) and CSU (boulder’s stanford) who we finished off in double overtime were heart stopping and terrifying and beautiful all at once. i cannot wait for the rest of the season. the loss to the ducks may be a setback but after totally taking responsibility for the “good old fashioned butt kicking” prime simply said, “one thing i can say honestly and candidly: you better get me right now. this is the worst we're gonna be…” i can relate to a setback. i recently worked my way through all EIGHT seasons of suits. this took a lot of dedication and focus and caused me to get behind on several of my other shows. and then i found out there is a NINTH season AND meghan isn’t even in it. i was shocked and a little overwhelmed, but then i thought of prime and put my head down and pulled out my remote. i am confident that i will be able to meet this challenge. he may not win every game (USC might be a doozy) but he has injected this town and school and ME with pride and passion on a level completely unprecedented. NOW GIVE ME MY THEME MUSIC!! x0x
(we DID really get into the dutch football team when they went to the world cup - theo and i are cheering on the dutchies as they parade down the canal outside our apartment.)
