Utah St. 10/9/10

Wow! Where does time go? It seems just like yesterday that I was up way past my bedtime watching the Haka, drinking red wine out of a bottle and then out of a box! My head still hurts! What are they thinking when they schedule all of these games back to back? We (the fans) show up at the stadium 6 plus hours prior to kickoff so we can mentally prepare for the game. We watch the game in all sorts of crazy weather and give it our all from the first whistle to the last whistle. Then we spend several more hours decompressing and going over the game film in our minds after the game. We all know how to coach and what plays should have been called. On top of that we sampled many adult beverages during the day. I think the fans need a bye week to recover every now and then. Even though we do not get to step on the field, we work and coach hard out there! HaHa! We have met so many amazing people and I would not trade my game day process for anything! I am not sure what to think about Utah St. yet! They hung tough with Oklahoma and they blow away BYU. This is going to be a tough game, but it is one we must win if we have any hope of post season play. Borel is an outstanding quarterback and he runs as well as he passes. Coming into his senior year he already has six Utah St. records in his pocket. I hope our defense takes him out of his game this week. I am sure CS will have the defense playing with mean eyes! I always like to uncover some skinny about the team we are getting ready to play, but this week when reading about the Utah St. mascot "Big Blue" I decided to leave the team alone. Originally Big Blue was a real white bull painted blue before each game. When the Spectrum (basketball stadium) was first built there was concern that Big Blue would scuff up the new basketball court, so Big Blue was donned with red rubber boots; this was a disaster. Because of the damage done to the football field and the basketball court Big Blue was discontinued and sent to the packer. Why in the heck do you paint a bull blue, strap on some red boots and bring them to a basketball game? I can see a football game, but come on, red boots? Which frat house was in charge of painting the bull blue? There had to be alcohol involved! HaHa! In 1987 Big Blue got a second chance when they bought a blue bull costume and put real horns on the mascot head. What are these Blue Aggies thinking, real horns? It is just a mascot uniform! Only in Utah does this happen! Matt said practice has been much more focused this week. The team has worked extremely hard and things are clicking. There will be some new wrinkles in the offense and the defense has a few new things up their sleeve as well. Matt said he was making good contact with the ball on FG's and PAT's. The timing between Josh and Ross has been spot on and they have developed between the three of them incredible snap to kick speed. Some of the times Matt tells me are mind boggling! He said his kickoffs have good hang time and as long as he explodes through the ball after the kick, he was getting the distance he wanted. Kicking off is like hitting a driver on the golf course. When the big stick comes out, you want a swing smooth, a good follow through with your head down and finish. The key in my book is the finish! A good finish equals a good delivery of the ball on the field and in the fairway. Matt also told me that during study hall that he and Vince Cano were playing around with the word Perfect and Per-fect. It is spelled the same and has a similar definition. Matt was trying to explain to me the difference between a homonym and a cognitive synonym. I am not going to lie, but I had no clue what he was talking about. Matt with the help of Missy submitted their questions to Merriam Webster and they responded some crazy dictionary jargon answer. Matt talked with Josh Scobee during the week. Josh made a 59 yard game winning field goal against Indy and is perfect for the year so far. That is a long kick in a game situation and it is every kickers dream to kick a game winning field goal! Congrats Josh! Keep making the Bulldog Nation proud! My dad surprised me and flew in from The Villages, FL. This will be his 3rd game to attend this year and it was quite a shocker when he showed up. Our trip to Ruston started early Friday morning from Dallas. We made a stop at Maxwell's Market in Shreveport to pick up a couple of items we needed to complete our menu for our tailgate. We made our way into Ruston around 1:00 PM and met Matt at Johnny's Pizza for some amazing grub. Matt always gets Pepperoni and Bacon pizza and I lost count on how many pieces he ate. Matt said the team was ready and he had a different feeling about this game. He was in a good mood, but you could tell he was extremely focused. He had to be at the field house at 3:00 for special team meetings and then a walk through. Then it was off to a team dinner at the Log Cabin and a movie before heading to the team hotel. Matt said he was going to see Secretariat. I bet it is a good movie! We said our goodbyes and wished Matt the best of luck against Utah St. We headed to the bookstore to see if there was something we really needed and then checked into the Fairfield Inn. It was time for an adult beverage! I think I need to get mentally focused for tomorrow’s game! If Matt can, I can as well. We made our way over to tailgate spot #52 around 7:30 PM so we could setup our tents, grill and tables. I think it is awesome that the La Tech police keep a watch on the tailgate area at night so you can setup early. We setup a couple of chairs and imbibed on a couple of adult beverages and just took in the surroundings. This university and town are amazing. Why would you not want to go to school here? We ended up at Portico Bar & Grill for dinner. We had a few appetizers and the food was pretty good. The place was packed as well. During dinner Matt sent me a text that he, Ross Jenkins and Vince Cano had come up with a new word and he was going to submit it to Merriam Webster to see if they could get it added to the dictionary. They told CD and he thought the word was hilarious and might just work. It was all based on the answer that Matt got back from them earlier on the word Perfect and Per-Fect. Once I am given permission I will let you know the new word and what the definition is. Morning arrived before I knew it! After a couple of cups of coffee I was in game mode and was ready to head to the stadium. We arrived around 8:15 AM and got the rest of the gear unloaded. It was a beautiful morning! My dad was craving a Bloody Mary, so we had to jump start the morning with one. Bradley Walker was setting up early as well. (Tailgate spot 47 & 48) He had to get the satellite and TV setup and their TV expert was not going to make this game. It was a Bloody Mary for Bradley as well so he and Bryan could focus on the satellite setup. Jambalaya was on their menu today! We got to visit with Andrew and his group as well. (Tailgate spots 54 & 55) They we going to fry everything! They had fish, shrimp, hush puppies, biscuits, pickles and Oreo's. I am going to be close by for sure! JFord, Ms. Toni (Dawgmatic) and Mr. Harper (TechsasDawg) came by and we got to visit and talk about Tech football. The Guillot's (son is #19) stopped by as well. They are all amazing people! It's grill time! We had decided to low key things before the game and them pickup the cookin' after the game. Our pre-game grill grub consisted of pork poppers, bacon wrapped shrimp and the all mighty atomic turd poppers. I guess I should have said I was cookin' bacon. HaHa! As the grill is heating up Bobby & Julie Cockrell pull in to their tailgate spot. (#53) I kid you not; I am surrounded by so many awesome cooks. This is a dream come true! Bobby was cookin' his World Famous Teriyaki Beef. This is something that their family has made for some time and Chef Bobby has perfected it. I am sure if you stop by, Bobby will share his recipe with you. You need to bring pen and paper. There are a lot of ingredients. HaHa! Tailgating at La Tech is an awesome thing! Dusty McGehee and his wife Rachel made some incredible Jambalaya and a fried crayfish beignet that we got to sample. Dusty made the traditional spicy Jambalaya and Rachel made an awesome black eye pea Jambalaya. Thanks for sharing! It was awesome! Chef Bobby and his sous chefs David & Michael continued to cook the teriyaki beef and I finally got to sample it. It was amazing and I was in heaven! Chef Bobby also made this incredible Maque Choux. I sure love all of this food. I also got introduced to my first "Butt Naked" concoction. You start with a big drink dispenser and you add a big can of pink lemonade concentrate, 1/2 bottle of vodka and 6 to 8 cans of cheap beer. You shake it up and serve over ice. I was told that after many of these you will run "Butt Naked" anywhere! I must admit, it was pretty tasty! No, I did not streak down tailgate alley! HaHa! After all of this awesome food and adult beverages I am a stuffed duck. I hear the sirens and the team have arrived. We make our way over to watch the players make the walk through our awesome band. I see Matt and he is lookin' straight forward and I know he is focused. I am ok with him not looking at me. I know his game face is on. His Mom (Janet) wants to see eyes! I was very disappointed when I saw CF peel off and go to the field house around the west side of the stadium and not walk with the team down the field. What message does this give this team? If your a team player then walk with the team! I can tell you I do not like the message! After a couple of more adult beverages I am game ready. We normally sit next to the tuba players, but this time we sat in the upper level right behind the band. I liked these seats. I feel good about this game! Here we go! Matt kicks off and the height was good but the distance was so so. There was some wind, but we were able to stop Utah St. at the 25. Utah St. ran 14 plays and attempted a 40 yard field goal. No good, wide left. Here we go! Ross, Lennon and Tim all take their snaps at QB. Wow! This is different! 12 plays later and Ross connects with Tim! Matt makes the PAT and I am smiling. Back and forth we go in the 2nd quarter and we score again. Who is calling these plays? I like what I am seeing! Matt kicks a 38 yard field goal and Utah St. connects with a 40 yard field goal and the first half comes to an end with Tech leading 17 to 3. Holy Moly! I am first half satisfied and like what I am seeing. The play calls on offense are crazy good and the defense is playing lights out. Where has all of this been? The 3rd quarter goes by pretty quick and Utah St. gets a 22 yard field goal. Our defense is rockin'! The start of the 4th quarter we run one play and Matt lines up for a 45 yard field goal and I watch Matt from my lens and I hear block! I have pictures, but I did not see it. Was it a good snap, was it a good hold, was the line pushed back, did Matt get a low kick off? I just don't know! This was Matt's first block in his kicking career. Whatever the problem was Matt will say it was on him. That is just the way Matt is. I am ok with this and the film and pictures will tell. Matt will still take all of the blame and that is ok. That is what makes Matt, Matt! I know Matt will beat himself up over this and he will be better because of it. Tech gets the ball back at the 9:38 mark and they march down and score with Lennon running for a 10 yard score. Tech goes up 24 - 6 and this would be the final score. I am not sure what happen in practice or in the locker room this week, but we need to try to duplicate the same intensity. It feels so good to get a win! Way to go Dawgs! I make my way back over to the tailgate area while the rest of the family goes over to the field house to see Matt. I would see him later as he and some of the players were going to come over and get some food and visit for a bit. The grill is lit and ready to cook. We are cookin' pork tenderloins for some pork sliders, sausage for some sausage wraps, pork poppers, and some more of those famous Maxwell's Markets atomic turd poppers. The family made its way back over and said Matt was pretty pissed that he had a block. He goes into all FG's and PAT's going 1 for 1 and that did not happen. We all know Matt and he will grow from this experience! Mr. Harper, Ms. Toni, John Sr., Janet, Mr. Rust, Matt, Dan "The Equipment Man" Matthiesen, JFord (Pop Corn Man), Kasie (Matt's girlfriend) and David & Barbara (Janet's Aunt & Uncle) all made their way over and were starving! Food was served and great football conversation was happening. What a great day it has been. I talked to Matt some and he was not sure exactly what happened except the defense got tremendous penetration. He was upset for the special teams and knew they would grow and learn from it. Dan I know you will get your double real soon! There is nothing wrong with a single as long as you have several of them! HaHa! I love ya Dan! With the early start of the game many of our tailgate neighbors cooked after the game. This was really cool and I wished many more on tailgate alley would have done the same! There was even a Dancing with the Stars competition. I think Dusty was the Big Winner, but I must state "What happens in Ruston stays in Ruston! Dusty is going to kill me on this one! Our night comes to an end! Wow, I am tired, stiff and I am in need of a bed! I was so impressed with the whole team! They played as one unit! Maybe it was the players. Maybe it was the coaches, but whatever it was, it worked. My first shout out goes to the entire team and the coaching staff, it was a job well done by all. A win makes everything good. I hope we continue with a similar game plan against Idaho. My next shout out goes to Missy Farrar, she is the academic advisor for the football team and she does not get enough credit for everything she does for this team. She works behinds the scenes and keeps these athletes in check with their school work and study hall. I appreciate everything you do for the team and for keeping Matt in line with his grades. La Tech is very blessed to have such a wonderful person like you! Sunday morning comes way too early! We take the tents down and re-load the suburban. Then it is off to the Waffle House to meet Matt and Dan for a quick breakfast. Matt was anxious to go watch film and see what he needs to start working on for the Idaho game. What a weekend and I hope the La Tech supporters will show up in masses for the Idaho game. We need everyone to be in attendance. I will end my Utah St. experience here! This is going to be a busy week for me. It is the World's Largest Cruise Event week and I hope to be super busy as I share my passion in travel. It is time for me to get my mind right for Idaho. Idaho is 3 - 2 on the season and is coming off of a great season last year. It is going to be a tough game for us, but one I feel like we can win. We had them last year and let them come back and beat us. Matt missed a 56 yard game winning field goal last year wide left. I can tell you that Matt thinks about that kick every day and wants revenge on Idaho this year. Idaho potatoes need to be put back in the ground! They are not ready for La Tech this year. I know it is cold in Idaho during the fall, but why do you have a dome? Who came up with this Kibble & Bits dome concept? You would think that you would want your opponents to have to play in the elements. Is that why you are the Vandals? Are you a person who deliberately causes damage or destruction to personal or property in public view? No wonder why you have to hide in your Kibble & Bits dome! Bring your Vandal butt’s to Ruston! We are ready for you spuds! I have to give another shout out to Josh Scobee! He made 5 field goals and 3 PAT’s on Sunday. Josh is on fire this year. My fantasy team loves all of the points! Congrats again Josh. The Bulldog Nation is pulling for you! I appreciate all of those who are following my journey. It is such a blast to follow Matt through his eyes and the Bulldog team! I write from the bottom of my heart and what my feelings are at that moment. I don’t intend to upset or hurt anyone, but I am very passionate about La Tech Football! Don’t forget to listen to my friends at Tech Nation Radio every Tuesday night from 6:00 – 8:00 PM. It should be a great show as always! May your Football Season be filled with many Football Victories, Sunny Smiles, Sandy Dreams and Travel Your Way! If you need help with your Travel Plans just let me know! Until our paths cross again, have a blessed week! College Football Dad!

Hawaii 10/2/10

The time is here! The time is now. It is Hawaii 5 0 week. I mean Hawaii at 5:30 Island time week! Hawaii? Are you kidding me? I want to go! What an experience for those who have not been to Hawaii. I don't know much about the Hawaii team except that they are the #1 passing offense in the nation. I think what they do is get teams to travel 10's of hours, get them leied, cook them a whole pig and then perform some sort of hula voodoo on them before the game. Is that even fair? No wonder their passing game is #1, they hypnotize you before the game! HaHa! Hawaii is an awesome place to visit on vacation, but it is a long ways to travel from Ruston to Honolulu, especially when you have a game the week before and the week after. What scheduling genius did this, Benson and his monkeys? Come on CUSA please call our name! We are ready! Even though I am in the travel business, Matt has not ventured away from home too much until he started playing football for La Tech. This will be an awesome experience for him if he can sit still for the 8 hour plane ride from Dallas to Honolulu. Matt, it is time to chill, read a book, watch a movie and before you know it you will be getting leied in Hawaii. I have made the flight from Dallas to Honolulu and it always seems like it takes forever. I am not an upright sleeper, so I have to find something else to occupy my time. Looking at the Hawaii team from the outside they have some horses at wide receiver. Salas #1 and Pilares #21 look like to go to guys for Moniz. Both receivers are good size and they have amazing stats so far this year. It is going to be tough to win in Hawaii, but I hope our coaching staff has our team prepared for this all pass team. Here is a little history on Hawaii football. In 1909 The College of Hawaii “Fighting Deans” played and won its first game against McKinley High School 6 - 5. Because of limited travel opportunities, Hawaii only played local high schools, military and club teams for its first eight seasons. In 1920 The College of Hawaii becomes the University of Hawaii and the football team plays its first intercollegiate game against Nevada. They won 14 - 0. In 1923 a rainbow appears over the football field after UH upset Oregon State, 7-0, at Moiliili Field. Reporters begin calling UH teams the “Rainbows.” In 1946 after taking a four-year hiatus due to World War II, UH returns to the gridiron as a member institution of the NCAA. Hawaii played in the "TERMITE PALACE" Nicknamed for its deteriorating facade, Honolulu Stadium was home to Hawaii football from 1926-74. In 1975 Aloha Stadium made its debut and all Hawaii games are still played here. Currently UH has 19 players playing in the NFL. That is an amazing stat by its self. This is enough of Hawaiian Haka football lore. Matt said it was going to be a tough week for him. He had to get all of his school work taken care of in advance and get himself mentally prepared before they took off on Thursday to Hawaii. He said practice had gone well. The ball is still popping off of his foot well. His FG's with team and by himself have been pretty spot on. His kickoffs are getting deeper and his hang times have been all over 4.0. He said he had a few over 4.3 seconds. I would think our coverage team should be able to get down field and pin them within the 20 yard line with 4 plus hang time. One thing that Matt has done this year is limit the amount of kicks he is doing during the week. I feel like this will keep him from getting dead leg at the end of the season along with keeping him fresher for game time. Matt said the team looked good and the intensity on the field was high. Matt has his daily special teams meetings he attends and has been attending the offensive team meetings as well. He feels like this gives him a better grasp of the total offensive scheme. Thursday they have an early light practice before they bus to Shreveport to catch flight #1 to Dallas. The team arrived in Honolulu on flight #2 around 4:30 PM Hawaiian time. They checked into the Marriott Waikiki Beach Resort and they had free time the rest of the evening. Matt, Ryan Allen & Chandler Spence went to PF Chang's on the beach and had dinner. Matt said eating with a view of Waikiki Beach was awesome. They got to walk around the beach some Thursday evening as well. Friday morning the team went to Aloha Stadium and did a walk through. He kicked few kickoffs and field goals. He said the wind was weird because of the stadium configuration. Next they were off to Pearl Harbor. I think this is awesome that the team gets to do this. I hope Matt enjoys the experience. Going to Pearl Harbor is one of those things in life that you need to do. Friday night they have a team dinner and Saturday is meetings, mental walk thru and then it is game time. This will be my first game to not see Matt play in person this year. It is a little sad and all will be ok. My weekend would start off by sampling a few beers from my Pumpkin Pack! I know it is pretty stupid, but I made my own six-pack from Oktoberfest, autumn and Pumpkin themed beers. Some were good and some were not so good. Pumpkin Pie with a fizz is a little strange. My favorite was Sierra Nevada Tumbler Brown Ale and my least favorite was Shiner Oktoberfest. Our lunch on Saturday consisted of Sushi in honor of playing Hawaii. I am good with real sushi, but Janet (wife) is not a fan. I convinced her that she could get some rolls with cooked stuff inside and she trusted me. HaHa! It is true; you can rolls for the non adventurous people. We found 3 rolls that she committed to order and she was surprised how good they were. If you run into her in the tailgate area ask her about her sushi experience. I know she would love to share! We watched the LSU - Tennessee game and I about fell out on the floor when the announcers made the comment when Tennessee did not send out their replacement (Palardy) true freshman kicker to kick a 46 yard FG. Lincoln had a sore hamstring so he was not playing. They said Dooley would not send out a true freshman to make that long of a kick. History tells me that they sent Matt out for a 58 yard FG against Hawaii last year. CBS needs to do their homework! Janet's parents (Meggie & Papaw) were in town and came over in the early evening. We pigged out on wings from the Wing Stop and consumed just enough Red Wine to be roasty toasty before the 10:30 PM CST kickoff. I sure am glad we have to watch only one game this late this year. We ordered the video stream from the UH athletic site. Janet (wife) had a cable that went from her computer to the TV so we could watch it on a larger screen. This was really cool. Last year I did not know what to expect watching games on TV. I wore multiple pairs of drawers and stood in the kitchen and watched. It will be interesting to see how I handle myself, but I am going to start out with only one pair of drawers this year. Well it is game time, my cheeks are rosy (red wine kickin' in), the radio is on in one room and the game is on in the bedroom. Well it is late and Janet (wife) needs to lie down to watch the game. As she gets older it is harder for her to stay up past midnight! HaHa! La Tech kicks off and Matt kicks it 5 yards deep for a touch back. Great kick Matt! Hawaii pulls off a FG after 14 plays and I am numb, but ok with them only getting 3 points. La Tech gets the ball and on no, it is 3 and out on our first series. CF is this how it was designed in the first series? We hold Hawaii to a punt and here we go again with another 3 and out. WTH is going on? Hawaii gets the ball back and continues to pick our safeties apart. I just don't understand! We are now down 24 - 0 and I do not have enough red wine in the house. I am watching in one room and listening in the other. Nothing I am doing is helping the team. With a little more than 6 minutes left in the 2nd quarter we make another QB change. If I were a QB, I would be afraid to start! You know you are going to get pulled! This is the craziest offensive scheme I have ever seen. Instead of High Octane we are watching the Sound of Music! This Musical Chair's game is not a football process. We have made full circle with our QB's and Ross is now in the game! About time we get some senior leadership in for this team. Before I go any further I need a definition of Musical Chairs! Musical chairs is a popular adult’s game throughout the world. Whether you play the traditional version or one of its variations, adults of all ages will have good time trying to impress the coaches and grab a spot at quarterback in this game of speed, hitting the receiver’s hands and agility. Ok, I feel better! We are playing the game correctly! Ross leads the team down the field in 10 plays and we score a touchdown. Where has this been? The play calling looks awesome and the execution looked awesome. Even though we are still down in the game I liked what I just witnessed. The first half would end at 24 -7. We take the opening kickoff in the 3rd quarter, cruise down the field and Ray Holley punches the ball in for a score. Maybe we have found our pieces to the puzzle! We would score one more TD and Hawaii would score 2 more TD's and a FG. Hawaii would defeat La Tech 41 -21. I hate to lose and even though Matt made all 3 of his PAT's and Ross came in and led the team to 3 scores I still question the coaching in this game. We have to get everyone on the same page. Coaches need to call plays that work with our current players and the players need to execute the plays that are called. This is D1 football. It is time to step up and finish this season strong. We need to protect our house and go get the road games we are supposed to win. Ross I am proud of what you came in and did. I saw a leader emerge and the team embraced you. I would love to see the same thing happen on the defensive side of the ball. I hope the CF & CD have a little more patience at the QB position. Putting in a new QB every other set of downs is not working. On the defensive side we have to quit giving up so much open space to the receivers. We should not get picked apart like that. If we can win the game at the line of scrimmage we will finish the season strong! We have to protect our QB and we must get penetration on their QB. With all of this being said, I did see some positives come from the game. I love this team and university and want to win as much as everyone else does. I say things that might upset people, but I say what I feel. I want to give a shout out to Richie Casey, Tim Molton & Ray Holley. Great touchdowns! I also want to give a shout out to the equipment staff and the training staff. Jeff Springer and Keith Bunch do not get enough credit for what they have to pull off at these away games. A special thanks to one of the hardest behind the scenes guys goes to Dan "The Equipment Man" Matthiesen! Thanks for all you do Dan! Utah St., are you ready for us? I don't think so. You are going to see a team that you never expected to see. We play three Aggie teams this year. That is just crazy! What is a Blue Aggie? Do you have an all male cheer leading squad as well? What the heck is your Beno Club? I know what Beno is at the drug store! The definition given by the Blue Aggie web site is stupid. The term Beno came from some Salt Lake City students, while still in high school, had approached their principal at West High about starting a club. The principal's response was that there would "be no" clubs. The experience stayed with the young men, and when they came north to attend Utah St. the name stuck with them.Today one can become a "Beno Club Member" by receiving a kiss on the "A" (statue) under a full moon at midnight by somebody who already is a "Beno Club Member," or on Homecoming or A-Day by somebody who is not. This True Blue Aggie tradition is run by the Student Alumni Association and Beno Club members. I will end my Hawaii experience here! Bring it on Blue Aggies! You are going to get your ears thumped in Ruston! Go kick some butt on Saturday Dawgs! I will be there cheering as hard as I can! If you are out and about before are after the game stop by tailgate spot 52. We have cold beverages and something to nibble on. Matt will be there after the game as well! I appreciate all of those who are following my journey. It is such a blast to follow Matt and this awesome group of young men! I write from the bottom of my heart and what my feelings are at that moment. I don’t intend to upset or hurt anyone, but I am very passionate about La Tech Football! Don’t forget to listen to my friends at La Tech Nation Radio every Tuesday night from 6:00 – 8:00 PM. I was not there to take any pictures and I want to thank Woody Rust, Hawaii Sports, Dan Matthiesen and Gantt Graham for letting me use their awesome photography in my blog. May your Football Season be filled with many Football Victories, Sunny Smiles, Sandy Dreams and Travel Your Way! If you need help with your Travel Plans just let me know! Until our paths cross again, have a blessed week! College Football Dad!

Hawaii 9/30/09

Holy Hawaiian Haka! It is a middle of the week ESPN2 game. It is a Wednesday night all by your lonesome for the nation to see game. 10 days until the game and a couple of days off should help. I can't wait for this one. What the heck is a Haka anyway? They say it is a posture dance performed by a group, with vigorous movements and stamping of the feet with rhythmically shouted accompaniment. It sounds like to me that it is a wide variety of vigorous body actions such as slapping the hands against the body and stamping of the feet. Now that is funny right there! My week started out better with the business, but with a middle of the week game and travel on the bookends it will still take me several days to catch-up. I am trying to get ready for October 14th. In the travel business it is considered the World's Largest Cruise Night. Actually October is National Cruise Vacation Month. Enough of that! This is College Football Dad, not the travel wizard! I talked to Matt several times over the weekend. Since they have a Wednesday night game their Monday practice routine would start on Wednesday and they would duplicate Thursday twice. There must be a method to the madness. Matt's practice week went well. He went back to his normal steps and angle. They still worked on the 5 kick package. There are 5 kicks that can be used at any given time and being prepared for the unexpected is expected. The kickoff distance will fluctuate as they continue working on hang time. Yes we need the hang time, but we have to get our coverage down the field for it to be successful. I head to Dallas on Sunday to spend a few days with my wife (works in Big D full time) before I head over to Ruston on Tuesday. My Tuesday starts dark and early as I head out at 5:40AM. I don't sleep much the few days before the game. My brain tries to coach and run through possible play combinations. No I am not a coach, but my mind thinks it is. My parents (John & Carol) and their neighbors Pat & Gerri Piscitelli drove up the day before all the way from The Villages, FL. I think it was 13 hours. That is a long way to see a La Tech game. My parents (John & Carol) have not been to Ruston before and they were super excited. Matt met them for breakfast on Tuesday morning. He took them out on the field, showed the guys the locker room and took a few pictures out on the middle of the field with them. They could not believe how narrow the goal post were from the on the field view. They got to spend some time in the La Tech Hall of Fame and were amazed at how many athletes they knew had played at La Tech. I hit Ruston about 9:45AM and hooked up with Matt for a little while before they had to be at the field house. Looks like Matt had a few care packages brought to him from Carol and Gerri. There was food and more food. They brought tons of cookies, homemade biscotti, homemade cinnamon streusel, gum, peanut butter filled pretzels, peanut butter crackers, granola bars, peanut butter, jelly, pop tarts and a case of sun chips. I guess everyone wants Matt to gain a couple of pounds this year. With three other roommates I am sure that it will go quick once they get wind of more food in the apartment. Since this was a Red Out game we had to go to Mitchells Pharmacy to check out the gear from the Tech Team Shop. We bought a few things there and then off to the bookstore for more stuff. I think the local economy was supported on this trip. A quick lunch at the Dawg House and Matt was off to grab his suit and head to the field house. We headed to the TAC at 6:15PM for a pep rally before the team headed out for the team hotel for the night. Coach Dooley was intense and to the point. Since the game was being televised on ESPN2, there is always a possibility that the announcing crew could be staying at the same hotel and sure enough, Lou Holtz, Mark May and Reese Davis were all staying at the Fairfield Inn. It was pretty cool to be in the same vicinity as these guys. Reese and Lou even sat next to us at the Log Cabin during dinner. Reese had a huge steak and Lou had a burger and wine. We did introduce ourselves and let them enjoy their dinner. After a few night caps, game day had arrived. My stomach was churning. I don't think I was hungry so it must have been my pregame nerves. We headed to Monroe around 10AM to visit with Matt for about an hour. He was very calm in my book. I could not sit still. Maybe it was still the nerves or it could have been the adult beverages calling my name. He even had a button come off of his suit and had his grandmother sew on a new button. I don't think his ice water ever melts. I wished him luck and back to Ruston we go. My wife and her Uncle (David) would meet us at the hotel. The red is on and at 2:00 we head to the stadium. I am still trying to figure out the lay of the land so our tailgating would remain out the back of my suburban. The cooler was loaded with beer, wine and water. We had a few wine and cheese party like appetizers. My friends back in Dallas and San Antonio are going give me hell again. I am a grill/smoker/meat man and I will figure out where I can cook before the next home game. After a few beers my stomach had calmed down some, but it was still rolling. I don't think the whole ESPN; only game on the tube thing has sunk in yet. About 4:45PM we head over to the field house so we can see the team get off the bus. They must be coached how to get off the bus and walk. Their eyes are looking forward and their game face is on. It is very cool to see your son before the big game. I know Matt to well. Before I can walk back to the suburban, drink another beer and get into the stadium, he will already be on the field. His work ethic just amazes me. During his pregame workout he looked pretty good. I have about got this all figured out. After Matt goes through his routine Coach Tommerdahl will check with Matt to get his range. They chat for about three minutes and Coach Tommerdahl takes torn pieces of paper, throws them in the air and charts the wind direction. I am sure the information is given to Coach Dooley. After watching Matt's warm-ups I had figured his range to be 49 towards the Bulldog and 51 towards the Jumbotron. I would find out later I was pretty close. Game time is here! The crowd is incredible. There is red everywhere. I am very impressed with how many fans and students have come out on a Wednesday night. If you have not been to a game at Joe Aillet Stadium you are in for a treat. They even have guards guarding the Bulldog! This is great! Are you ready for some football? Hawaii kicks off and the game is on. Hawaii marched down the field and threw up a quick field goal. We came back with a running game and a touchdown. Where had that been? Matt would kick a 28 yard field goal in the second quarter. We are looking good. It was almost half time and as I got up to head upstairs to the men's room I see them sending Matt out for a 58 yard field goal. Are you kidding me? Nooooo! Good, they call time out and they were just trying to play with Hawaii. Wrong! They were playing with me. All they wanted to do was remind everyone that there was a return guy in the end zone! They sent him back out there. Why? What are we doing? By the way I no longer need the men's room. That is why I wear two pairs of drawers. The ball is snapped, the kick is on the way and it ended up a tad short. I could not figure out the reasoning behind this. The half ended and my mind is coaching again. The kick was not that bad as it would end up about 3 yards short. I was very proud of Matt's efforts, but still very confused. I guess I will have to wait until after the game to find out. My oldest son called me at the half and said that after Matt kicked, the camera was on Coach Dooley and he had a grin on his face. I guess it could of been a look at what we have for the next four years fist pump grin. I know Matt too well. If the band would not of been on the field, he would of gone back to the same spot and kicked that 58 yarder again during half. La Tech would come out and dominate Hawaii on both sides of the ball. Matt would kick another short field goal of 26 yards and the offense would rack up 2 more touchdowns for a 27 - 6 victory over Hawaii. What a game! This was just the jump start that we needed as we head into conference play. We got to go over by the locker room and talk to Matt for a little bit. He was ok with everything and the 58 yarder did not faze him. I told him that it fazed me and he just laughed. He said he had good contact and height on the ball. He was disappointed that he missed, but if you have to miss, it is better for it to be a 58 yarder. We snapped a few family photos and head over to Chili's for our after game meal. I don't think Chili's was prepared for all of the people wanting to eat after the game. The manager was accommodating and asked us to be patient and they would get everyone fed. They did and good football conversation was had by all. When Matt was asked why Coach Dooley would kick a 58 yard field goal, he said that the time was right. Did Matt expect it to happen right then? I am not sure. My explanation is that Coach Dooley not only wants to teach these guys how to play football, but he also wants to teach them about life. I call it always be ready for the unexpected in life. He wanted to push Matt into something he was not expecting and see how he would react. Was Matt ready? No! I call that lesson learned. Matt will grow from that experience. I asked Matt what his range was for the game and I hit the 49 yards toward the Bulldog on the nose, but his range to the Jumbotron was 53. I was off by 2 yards in that direction. What a game and victory for La Tech. Our goodbyes are said and our lives head in different directions for another week. As I am driving back to Dallas for a couple of days before I head back to San Antonio, I reflect on how lucky I am to get to live college football with his eyes. I talked to Matt around noon on Thursday and he was in Coach Dooley’s office watching film. It never stops! Nevada is up next. I am not making this trip so I will be stuck to the TV. I feel like this is also a must win game. If we play the same way on both sides of the ball like we did against Hawaii, we will win this game. I just wanted to thank all of the family and friends for making the trip to Ruston along with all of the supporters watching the game on the tube. We truly appreciate all of the support. Until our paths cross again, have a blessed week! College Football Dad!