24 November 2003

Iron Bowl Reflections

I wish that I could sit here at my keyboard and pontificate to you through the power of prose about the intricacies and emotion that make the Auburn vs. Alabama rivalry as I experienced them just two nights previous. It is, as my guide Matthew told me yesterday, "An experience....one that should be be seen and felt by everyone."

I realize that not all two readers of this modest blog are sports fans, but the experience Matt speaks of is not meant to be felt by lovers of the pigskin alone.

The following is an excerpt from a comment I made on a favorite blog of mine.

Forgive my laziness, as it is ingrained and cannot be harnessed. I didn't feel the need to re-write, so enjoy:

Let me just add that there tend to be a number of times when you are shooting an event, whatever it may be, where you feel that you're watching it on TV.

You don't feel it enough to do it in your underwear, but it's a strange feeling nonetheless.

I had this feeling on numerous occasions, but the one that stands out most is Auburn's latest stud running back Carnell Williams' 80 yard run on the first play from scrimmage.

As I'm working to keep Carnell in frame and in focus, I recall vaguely the deafening collective roar and moan of the entire state of Alabama that engulfed me, and through it all, I felt like I wasn't really experiencing this moment in person.
It's a weird and odd feeling to think that later on that night, I thought:

"I just witnessed what was probably the greatest moment in that kid's (Carnell) life, and a defining moment in arguably the greatest rivalry in sports, and I thought I was watching it on TV."

One other note: My buddy Matt that was shooting in the opposite end zone, said when he realized that he didn't have the shot, he just "sat back and took it all in."

He is, as you might have guessed, an Auburn fan. A man with bragging rights. At least, that is, until next year.


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