Fan appreciation
posted by LW, Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Leaving the press box early Saturday evening after Clemson's loss to TCU, a few sportswriters and I bravely battled the elements with umbrellas in hand as we headed toward the field level for the postgame press conference.
It was a long, hard three minutes. But hey, you grit your teeth and soldier on.
"Man," a fellow ink-stained wretch said. "What if we'd have had to sit outside for the last three hours?"
We were walking elbow to elbow with people who did sit through an often unrelenting downpour ... to watch their team lose.
Looking around at the waterlogged masses, I initially thought that something is just not right with people who put themselves through that.
Then I began to feel a sense of admiration, because these folks were fans in the truest sense of the word. All the folks who came for a social event were long gone ... or had never come at all.
In today's column, The State's Ron Morris sends a shout out to all the fans who brave the rain, the economy ... and the evilness that is Thursday night football.
Not sure why Ron thinks Thursday night games are such a pox on all we hold dear. I think it's quite cool and has become an institution much like the NFL's Monday Night Football.
Guess that's easy for me to say when I'm sitting home watching it on my couch.
Those preseason magazines? Chris Dufresne of the L.A. Times says it's time to chunk them in the trash can.
Maryland beat writer Patrick Stevens has a blog post on the woes of the Terps' O-line recruiting.
Makes Clemson's batting average on OL recruits seem downright respectable by comparison.
Looks like Ralph Friedgen had a colossally bad read on his team entering the season.
It was just one month ago when Maryland Coach Ralph Friedgen appeared downright bubbly as he walked around the Gossett Team House. He had thoroughly enjoyed preseason camp because he believed players had worked as hard as any he had coached in College Park.
Then came the games.
FSU's Jimbo Fisher says the Noles need to play like they're hungry every week.
FSU is 5-5 in its last 10 games against I-A competition, by the way.
In the ACC Sports Journal, Barry Jacobs ponders succession plans.
Uh-oh ... dissension in the ranks at Texas Tech, courtesy of Twitter.
Photoblogger extraordinaire Travis Sawchik presents his latest dispatch. And just in case the press box denizens had forgotten the sight of those sketchy hot dogs, Travis provides a refreshing flashback.
Willy Korn just wants to play. What is it about guarantees when Clemson is prepping for a trip to Maryland?
More on what Sawchik called the Monday of discontent.
I prefer "case of the Mondays," but to each his own.
LW
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Leaving the press box early Saturday evening after Clemson's loss to TCU, a few sportswriters and I bravely battled the elements with umbrellas in hand as we headed toward the field level for the postgame press conference.
It was a long, hard three minutes. But hey, you grit your teeth and soldier on.
"Man," a fellow ink-stained wretch said. "What if we'd have had to sit outside for the last three hours?"
We were walking elbow to elbow with people who did sit through an often unrelenting downpour ... to watch their team lose.
Looking around at the waterlogged masses, I initially thought that something is just not right with people who put themselves through that.
Then I began to feel a sense of admiration, because these folks were fans in the truest sense of the word. All the folks who came for a social event were long gone ... or had never come at all.
In today's column, The State's Ron Morris sends a shout out to all the fans who brave the rain, the economy ... and the evilness that is Thursday night football.
Not sure why Ron thinks Thursday night games are such a pox on all we hold dear. I think it's quite cool and has become an institution much like the NFL's Monday Night Football.
Guess that's easy for me to say when I'm sitting home watching it on my couch.
Those preseason magazines? Chris Dufresne of the L.A. Times says it's time to chunk them in the trash can.
Maryland beat writer Patrick Stevens has a blog post on the woes of the Terps' O-line recruiting.
Makes Clemson's batting average on OL recruits seem downright respectable by comparison.
Looks like Ralph Friedgen had a colossally bad read on his team entering the season.
It was just one month ago when Maryland Coach Ralph Friedgen appeared downright bubbly as he walked around the Gossett Team House. He had thoroughly enjoyed preseason camp because he believed players had worked as hard as any he had coached in College Park.
Then came the games.
FSU's Jimbo Fisher says the Noles need to play like they're hungry every week.
FSU is 5-5 in its last 10 games against I-A competition, by the way.
In the ACC Sports Journal, Barry Jacobs ponders succession plans.
Uh-oh ... dissension in the ranks at Texas Tech, courtesy of Twitter.
Photoblogger extraordinaire Travis Sawchik presents his latest dispatch. And just in case the press box denizens had forgotten the sight of those sketchy hot dogs, Travis provides a refreshing flashback.
Willy Korn just wants to play. What is it about guarantees when Clemson is prepping for a trip to Maryland?
More on what Sawchik called the Monday of discontent.
I prefer "case of the Mondays," but to each his own.
LW
For questions or comments on this blog entry, please visit The West Zone message board.
Link to this entry - Discuss this entry - Return to Blog Home
Donnie Patterson. Donnie Patterson is the founder of Patterson Tax Service, located in Easley, S.C. He has been active in tax preparation since 1970, and offers a full range of tax and bookkeeping services.
Larry Williams. Larry has covered the daily beat at Clemson since 2004. Williams, who worked for the Charleston Post & Courier from 2004-08, joined Tigerillustrated.com in November of 2008. He may be reached by email at ldubya08(at)gmail.com. Replace (at) with @.