Last weekend, I made the trek up I-45 to partake of the festivities that surround the much-anticipated OU/TX game. Obviously, I attend neither of these schools, and therefore was faced with a difficult decision.
Which team do I support/which shirt do I wear: Oklahoma or Texas?
I would be meeting a group of friends in Dallas, and within this group, half of them are Longhorns, and half are Sooners. I am simply the Odd Man Out — the Bearkat.
I thought about it for weeks on end (okay, a day) and I tossed and turned and lost hours of sleep (minutes, at the most). Should I go with the burnt orange, paired with the denim skirt and cowboy boots that seems to be proper game day attire for every school-spirited lady that attends UT? Or should I choose the crimson jersey, with a temporary OU facial tattoo — an outfit that affords much more comfortable footwear.
In the upcoming 2008 election, I am a fairly middle-of-the-road voter, and because of this, I have come to equate my choice between these two teams with my choice between the two presidential and vice-presidential candidates running for office.
Texas’ quarterback Colt McCoy represents the McCain of the game. He is older than his counterpart, has more experience leading his team, and in doing so, has won numerous awards and honors, including the 2006 Big 12 “Newcomer of the Year” and National “Freshman of the Year”.
Sam Bradford, Oklahoma’s quarterback takes on the role of Obama in this match-up. He is younger and fresher, he stole McCoy’s thunder by breaking his NCAA freshman record of touchdown passes, and, quite frankly, he was favored to win in the game.
But who is the Joe Biden to Bradford’s Obama? That would be head coach Bob Stoops, of course. He has led OU to one national championship and four conference titles in the past eight years, he is fairly reserved on the field, and he goes out of his way to not give any crazy answers to the media, so as to repel judgment from onlookers.
However the honor of being deemed the Sarah Palin of this competition is bestowed upon Texas head coach Mack Brown. In the past eight years, Brown has led the Longhorns to one national championship and one conference title, and sure, before coming to Texas he coached North Carolina, but what did they ever win? The ’95 Carquest Bowl? Most importantly, though, Brown says a lot of rather ridiculous stuff, claps too much on the field, and I am pretty sure I have seen him wink into the camera a time or two.
This is the kind of absurd comparison that makes me believe that my attire for the weekend is crucial to the outcome of our country.
Though I eventually decided to wear burnt orange, I first considered wearing one of my Bearkat shirts. That’s right. Because a Sam Houston State shirt at an OU/TX game would go perfectly with my “Vote for Nader” pin.