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Oh what a difference ONE game makes.
Now that the Bruins are once again the City Champions, local fans want to get back on board the bandwagon. Quietly bubbling under the surface was a mass hatred of SUC and their crooked Program, so fans who were on the fence, as well as impressionable youngsters, are now ready to wear their blue and gold. Add to that the Easter Weekend resurrection of old-time Bruin fans who had gone into hiding during the torturous 7-year drought, and suddenly, the Football Bruins have a fan base.
The problem is that the Event Organizers must have forgotten about that glorious 13-9 triumph, or not realized that it would have such powerful ramifications. These folks were simply NOT prepared for the amount of people who arrived, which made the Fan Appreciation Day fans feel pretty unappreciated.
The e-mail invitation said that the gates would open at 11:00am, but that a fun zone with food and activities would be available at 10:30am. Also, they said that there would be giveaways while supplies last, and autograph cards to the first 1000 fans.
So, we showed up 15 minutes before even the Fun Zone was scheduled to open, and 45 minutes before the practice gates would open. It was so early, in fact, that there were no parking attendants at Lot 8, which overlooks Spaulding Field.
So we park in the lot east of Spaulding, but they make us walk all the way around, the long way, back across the Lot that had no attendants. When we get to the West side, we find a line of waiting fans that runs the length of the field, then down past the tennis courts, down the service road, down to Strathmore. It was appalling. There were little kids playing ball in the road, as a Party Rents delivery truck was trying to dangerously squeeze by. This was a lawsuit waiting to happen, and the Organizers would have been at fault.
So at 10:30am, the Fun Zone may or may not have opened -- we don't know because we were in a non-moving line, down the hill. Finally, a little after 11:00am, the line started to inch forward. We got up to the area where the giveaways HAD BEEN around 11:30am, with the practice already well underway (By the way, we can prove these times with time-stamped photographs).
At 11:40am, we took a photo of the only Cheerleader that we saw all day. Talk about a lack of appreciation!! How could there be no Band and no Spirit Squad at a so-called Fan Appreciation Day? Apparently, there were some girls there, but we saw only one, giving away temporary tatoos right outside the gate. She was right next to the table of free crocs and free t-shirts and free autograph cards that were all gone before we got there (despite arriving 45 minutes early).
When we entered the field area, the bleachers were full, and people were being herded into standing room only, grassy sideline areas. Instead of following the group to the South side, we went in front of the bleachers, all the way to the Pauley side. That was a wise decision, as the bulk of the action happened on the Northern of the 3 parallel fields (meaning that those fans who went to the South were in another zip code).
We got a good spot, in FRONT (luckily, for photos), at the 15 yard line. However, the group along our sidelines was 6-7 people deep, and those in the back had to stand and strain to see anything.
It was very uncomfortable for many, with very little to entertain the non-hardcore fans (or kids). No music, no dancing, very little cheering, and only the announcements of raffle winners to get a tiny rise out of the crowd.
There needed to be an announcer to help the fans see what was going on (and who was making the big plays during the scrimmaging).
The powers-that-be just didn't understand how crowded it would be. They needed more of everything: Traffic help, parking help, seating, refreshments, crowd control, signage, information, giveaways... everything.
It was an insult to the attendees, and the repeated apologies didn't make it any better. It was already chaotic with Softball, Tennis, Water Polo, and Easter Baptisms all ongoing, so this unexpected show of support for the Football Team really shut down the campus. In fact, Geof Strand, who was the de facto emcee, instructed people to attend some of these events after the practice, but when we drove up the hill to the Pool, there were "Area Full" signs and we weren't allowed in. At least the Water Polo team BEAT SC.
Speaking of Beating SC, the team that did so last December (killing their entire season, we should add), is not to be blamed for all these organizational snafus. The Coaches and Players put on quite a show for the SRO crowd, taking the practice really seriously, and digging in to give 100%.
Here are some nuts and bolts Football observations that will interest only hardcore fans:
We were near the Linebacking corps, and they were being drilled hard. Special emphasis was being given to the footwork, and DIGGING IN on cuts. The Coach was screaming (in a good way) over and over, and he didn't let slackers slide just because a crowd was watching. He whipped the entire unit into shape in just a matter of minutes. You could actually SEE the improvement right in front of your own eyes, as groups of guys made sets of three continuously-improving zig-zagging cuts. Then they worked on hands. Specifically, hand placement to fend off blockers (and the hand placement of the Receivers that were there to do the blocking). Once again, the Coach took no prisoners when someone did it wrong. Later, they worked on coverage. The key here was to NOT look back at the Quarterback at the risk of losing your man. Once again, the instruction seemed to "take," right in front of us, as it led directly to a couple of interceptions (just in the drills, not in the scrimmage).
During the gameplay, Pat Cowan was the QB, as Ben Olson was nursing a minor hamstring injury. Also, Chris Markey has a fractured foot, so he did not play either. Without an announcer, and because of our (disad-)vantage point, it's hard to make sweeping genralizations about who or what looked good, but we can tell you that Wide Receiver Terrance Austin (#4) made two acrobatic catches, although he landed out of bounds on both of them.
After the brief mini pseudo-scrimmage Coach Karl Dorrell said Happy Easter and made a few more appreciative comments, and then the field was open for autographs.
As has been the case ever since Dorrell took over, all his players were gracious, well-mannered, and very respectful of all the obnoxious fans. And we're not talking about all the A.D.D.-afflicted kids -- We're talking about the parents, and their requests for photos with their kids who refuse to pose, and with their stupid and obvious comments about Football. We don't know how the Players have so much patience.
But year after year we have been impressed with their willingness to keep smiling, as shutterbugs flash, flash, flash in their faces, and with their ability to be friendly and answer silly questions.
We even asked our own silly question: We asked Dennis Keyes if he was helping bring in the recruits whom UCLA has targeted from Birmingham (Keyes' High School). He said that he HAS done his part, but that it is a very PERSONAL decision that was up to them, so that he couldn't make any promises to us.
We thought that it was a pretty honest and candid answer, instead of just some sugar-coated false optimism. Birmingham doesn't turn out no dummies.
Speaking of well-behaved young men with high tolerance levels, Ben Olson was getting barraged with autograph requests, when he was pulled away for Press Interviews. When the fans started whining, he maturely promised that he would come back and sign for anyone still there (and we believe that he did).
Finally, as we were leaving the field, we went by Dorrell, to say thank you for Beating SC. But before we could say the words, another fan hollered the same thing. Seems that we are not alone in our appreciation for someone who can Beat SC... especially if he makes a habit of it.
Below are 15 photos from the Practice, with sadly, just ONE Cheerleader photo (and she's obscured). We hope they get you fired up for the Bruins' campaign to Defend the Victory Bell as Reigning City Champions.
And by the way, the HIDDEN CAPTIONS are back. Be sure to MOUSE OVER each photo for a comment.
Oh yeah, and just one more thing...
13-9!!!!!!
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