The Most Uneasy Feeling in the World

If you read my blog, you have surmised by now that I'm a fan of the Texas Longhorns. If you follow the national sports scene, and a vast majority of you who read my blog do, you know that the Texas Longhorns will be playing in the college football national championship game, on January 4th at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA.

It has been a long time coming. For years on end, I have taken the abuse, disrespect, and tawdry comments from people who love to hate anything that comes out of Texas, and particularly the Longhorns. But this year, things were different.

Sure, people still say that our schedule was soft, and they argue that were we in a different conference we wouldn't be as good, but that's like arguing apples and oranges, because we won all of the games on our schedule, and we're not in a different conference. This year, the Big XII was not as good. That's understandable, because sometimes this thing ebbs and flows, but either way, Texas went undefeated in conference play and on the season, so please...back up.

Last night, the college football season awards were given out in Orlando. Texas QB Vince Young won the Davey O'Brien Award and the Maxwell Award. Those are major prizes friends. That means that he won the Best Player award and the Best Quarterback award. I know that there have been African American quartberbacks who've won this award in the past (qb), but there haven't been many. So, Vince winning that award last night, especially when the knock on African American quarterbacks is that they lack ... insert excuse here ... , it's a very big deal. Micheal Huff, a defensive back with the Longhorns, won the Jim Thorpe award, given to the nation's top DB, and the Longhorns boasted 4 first team All-Americans.

The uneasy feeling that I have right now is something that I've never experienced. I'm a huge Dallas Cowboys fan, and whenever we went to a Super Bowl, I had a certain feeling of doubtful optimism. I knew we would play well, I was just worried that we wouldn't win. Those doubts were normally erased early, as in the case of Super Bowl XXVII, played in...Pasadena at the Rose Bowl. But on January 4th, the '92 Cowboys won't be playing, however the '05 Horns will be. And my uneasiness stems from the fact that the game is a little less than 4 weeks away, and there's so much attention and hype surrounding it, that the emotions well up inside of me too fast.

Am I confident in our chances? Of course.
Am I afraid of Bush/Leinart/White? No.
Do I think we can win? Absolutely.
Do I think we will win? Most assuredly.

But there's an optimism that can border on the absurd, and that's a line and a place that I have no intention of traveling to. The feeling is uneasy because the game is so far away, and the emotion has set in right now. Vince, Huff and the boys winning awards last night, only exacerbates the situation, because I want them to play the game NOW. But, not only is that an impossibilty, but it wouldn't make it all as fun either.

So, what can I take for this uneasy feeling? Some hot chocolate and a stack of Sports Illustrateds. But in the end, I love the most uneasy feeling in the world, because now I know how it feels to have my favorite team in the biggest game of them all, on the biggest stage of all, going for it ALL.

"Texas Fight, Texas Fight, And it's goodbye to A&M!
Texas Fight, Texas Fight, And we'll put over one more win!
Texas Fight, Texas Fight, For it's Texas that we love best!
Give 'em hell! Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!
And it's goodbye to all the rest!"
Excerpt from the Texas fight song, 'Texas Fight'

I'm Joe and that's how I see it...in burnt orange and white.