Ah yes, football season is upon us, and tonight at 5:45 my Georgia Bulldogs kick off the action against — guess who — the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Usually Georgia football is an afterthought for most folks here in Soonerland, so it’s been a bit weird this year to see my team mentioned on the local news.
It’s also been encouraging to find that a few folks out here Oklahoma bleed red and black, just like me. News 9 meteorologist Zach Daniel got his bachelor’s from UGA and remains a die-hard bulldog fan. He even pulled out a Dawgs ball cap after doing the weather a couple of days ago, much to OSU grad Kelly Ogle’s chagrin.
Today’s ball game could be a tough one for the Dawgs. The Cowboys are better than most of the chump teams we play for season openers — and we don’t always give our best performance right out of the gate. I’ve got plenty of OSU fans lined up for some trash talk, should we lose. But I’m confident the Dawgs will rise to the challenge.
One piece of advice for Cowboy fans: Don’t get too comfortable, even if you get up on us 21-0 in the first 10 minutes. The Bulldogs play four quarters of football, and they don’t even get interested until they’re down by at least two touchdowns.
Win or lose, the greatest thing about being a Georgia fan is having the best coach in the nation — Mark Richt. The fact that he’s a great football coach isn’t nearly as important as the fact that he’s a great person. He and his wife, Katharyn, are members of the Prince Avenue Baptist Church in Athens, Ga., the same church my roommate Erik Benson attended when he was studying at UGA. Though those of us in Churches of Christ don’t always see eye-to-eye with Baptists on everything, you’ve got to admire the way the Richts live out their faith.
In addition to their two biological children, the couple adopted two children from a Russian orphanage. This summer the entire Richt clan made a mission trip to Honduras. (I’m hoping that me, Jeanie and little Josephina will do the same someday!)
John Helsley wrote a great piece on Mark Richt for The Oklahoman. Check it out.
And, once again, GO DAWGS!
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