Today my son, my father in law and brother in law all piled into the car and drove to nearby Norman, Oklahoma to attend the annual Spring Red vs. White Game at the University of Oklahoma. It is a traditional scrimmage that they play for the fans. It was indeed time for the men to hit the road and have some real live male bonding time.
Besides…I had already written my 1000 for the day, so I needed a reward, and I couldn’t think of anything more rewarding than to have some great fellowship with my family on such a bright and sunny Saturday.
We arrived a little early, fighting the traffic and finding a parking space, and with giant Jack Link beef sticks in hand we strolled across campus to the Gaylord Family Memorial Stadium where Owen Field has been since the late 1800’s. We went first to a gathering of fans near some giant barbecue cookers who were having a roaring celebration while listening to a rock band backed up by the Pride of Oklahoma Marching Band and the OU Cheerleaders. My father-in-law found our family friend Caanan who sells the most awesome barbecue cookers on earth for Kingfisher Cookers. The thing was the size of a flatbed truck and had exhaust pipes mounted on it as if it were a diesel engine.
After a short visit, we went to the gate to scan our ticket where they checked to see if our binoculars were really binoculars. I later found out that one can order fake binoculars online that can be filled with alcohol . Crazy. We made our way to the top levels just above the 50 yard line where we settled in for the game.
OU’s new quarterbacks looked pretty good, most of them landing passes with ease, but many of us worry about this season. Real OU fans don’t care anyway, and will support our team no matter what. Before the game started they paraded some former players onto the field, some of them veterans from the days of the early 1950’s. It was an amazing history lesson about the long tradition of Sooner football.
Once the game started we found the seats higher up that were under the press box and enjoyed shaded viewing with cool breezes. The seats we occupied regularly are for season ticket holders and cost several thousand dollars to use during a regular season. We lounged in them for ten bucks. Afterward, we had an opportunity to go onto the field and get autographs, but the crowd was so large that we decided to skip that in favor of grabbing a soda off campus.
My son Conner, on the way back to the car, his binoculars slung around his neck, looked up at me and asked: “So…OU won, right?” with a grin.
“Yeah, son,” I chuckled. “I guess they did.”
Writing Is Hard Work 