The fall is nigh and with its arrival three distinct things always come to my mind: sweet college football, the smell of bourbon poured into plastic cups and back to school shopping for husky pants with my mom I was a little fat kid. This is my first piece for Saturday Down South and as such it’s my duty to explain who I am, where I come from and why you should care to read my expressed opinions. But to explain who I am, first I’d like to share who I’m not.
I’m not a journalist. But I do possess a degree in Journalism from The University of Florida. Much like my buddy who graduated with a degree in Psychology but hasn’t worked a day in his professional life as a psychologist, the career choice on my diploma has never matched the career title on my business card. When I decided not to pursue the field, a mentor told me I’d be back one day in some capacity. It’s 16 years later and he may finally be right.
I’m not a writer. But I enjoy writing about college football. Just because I can mesh a few coherent ideas together separated by paragraphs with a beginning and end doesn’t mean I’m actually a writer. I’ll save that distinction for guys like Tony Barnhart, Stewart Mandel and Mitch Albom. And I’m pretty sure Mitch Albom wouldn’t consider me a writer, either.
I’m not right 100% of the time. But I love voicing my opinion. In today’s social media society everyone has a soap box to prove they’re right and you’re wrong. We all know opinions are like your rump because everyone has one. But they’re also like your arm as not everyone has a right one. With believers, non-believers and those falling in between, the best I can ever hope for is that my opinion is right 33% of the time.
I’m not a gambler. But I do love to gamble. Especially on college football. My passion for the sport combined with statistical matchups and trends, multiplied by an aggressive opinion on who will cover a seven and a half point spread is a beautiful thing. Until you factor in that I’m only right at most 33% of the time and it’s lousy. And things like missed covers by Washington State in the New Mexico Bowl leave me angrier than Florida’s dismal 4-8 campaign last year. So maybe I am a gambler. Admitting it is the first step.
So I’m not a journalist, not a writer and not right 100% of the time. What I am is an overly opinionated fan of college football who loves to gamble, write and debate. I believe every weekend of college football is like St. Patrick’s Day, Mardi Gras and my birthday all rolled into one, but better. I believe the song “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” is not about Christmas, but about Bowl Season.
I believe if college football was a flavor of ice cream, its magnificent taste would bring peace to the world. And I believe without a question that there’s nothing more glorious than the college football games played in the Southeastern Conference, and it has been that way for a long, long time.
I look forward to sharing my analysis, opinion, predictions and chafes with you here on Saturday Down South this fall. I believe at least a third of you will disagree with most of the notions that tumble out of my head and onto these pages. And I believe I am fine with that.
An idiot college football fan spewing his views on SDS. A graduate of The University of Florida, his greatest gridiron accomplishment was several missed tackles on Tommie Frazier in high school. Much like the entire Gators defense in the '96 Fiesta Bowl.
