Blogle here. I’m bringing in a weekly columnist that goes by the name of AUWisdom. He’ll be nostalgic. He’ll write stuff to give you chill bumps. He’ll impart a little… wisdom. Welcome him.
It’s a grey headed fanatic holding his grandson’s hand walking through the crowd holding two fingers up, talking about the good ole days and taking his uncle to see Bama punt the ball back in ’72. Two tickets come just in time to make it in the stadium for kickoff.
It’s that second home game in October when the air gets crisp, the leaves have fallen, and you hear: “The correct Jordan-Hare Stadium time is 5:05. We are one hour away from the kickoff of tonight’s game!”
It’s the wonder in the eyes of the toddler in his dad’s arms watching the eagle fly for the first time. Dad hides his sweating eyes behind his sunglasses and is beaming from ear to ear.
Maybe you’ve experienced something similar. Maybe that was just me.
I have lived through many great Auburn moments. I grew up watching Auburn football in the days of Tuberville, Cadillac, and Ronnie Brown. I witnessed, as a freshman, the 2010 “Cam Newton Experience.” I watched with anticipation the Miracle in Jordan-Hare. I rushed the field after the Kick Six. Auburn’s gonna win the football game!
I’ve seen some of the greatest moments in the history of the program, but those moments, as of late, have been few and far between. To say the least, the past two years have been nothing but painful.
We hired a guy who “knew Xs and Os.” He walked in blind to a culture that demanded much more than a guy who just showed up when he had to. Some say he didn’t have a chance. Some say we didn’t give him one. What I saw and have seen since is a man who didn’t care about the orange and blue on the jerseys or the players wearing them as much as he did “about ball.” Maybe he never paid attention to that famous quote from Coach Dye. Auburn fans love Auburn.
Today is a new day in Auburn. We’ve got a new coach, a new quarterback, and a renewed spirit of excitement and hope. My wife asked me if I thought people were getting too excited so early. You know what I told her? It’s ok to be excited again! It’s time to believe again.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t know if “this is our year” or not, but for the first time in a long time, I feel that we are one step, no, a few steps closer to those magic moments. Those moments that live on forever in the stories that we tell. I can’t wait to experience those moments again. Who knows? Maybe we will make some memories this year worth remembering. Maybe twenty years from now, we’ll be talking about ’23.
