This post is sponsored by EA Sports NCAA Football 2011.
I'm one of those people who can literally say that I've been an Oklahoma football fan my entire life. I can't remember never not watching, following and supporting the Sooners. There never was a choice for me and had I been given another option I wouldn't have taken it. When it came to college football it was OU or nothing!
Growing up the fall meant scheduling our Saturdays around Oklahoma football. We didn't plan any events or make any commitments until first looking at the television or radio broadcast. I can remember more than one occasion when my mom had to attend social events by herself because she broke the cardinal rule of not first consulting the football schedule before making a commitment. Did my dad and I feel bad about that? Nah.
Once I discovered Sooner football I was hooked. Thanksgiving weekend wasn't complete until after the OU/Nebraska game and the quality of the leftover turkey was based solely on the outcome of that game. When Oklahoma won there was nothing better than a turkey and bacon sandwich but when the Sooners lost, "We'd had turkey for three days now. We need to order a pizza."
The first team I truly remember following was the 1979 team. Oklahoma went 11-1 won that year and won the Big 8 by going 7-0 against conference opponents. They also beat Florida State in the Orange Bowl, a game I still remember watching on New Year's Day in the living room of my grandfather's farmhouse.
The first game I ever attended in person was the 1988 Kansas State game. Oklahoma won 70-24 and my life was never the same again. I've been to at least one home game every year since then and have had the pleasure of getting season tickets for the last 8 years.
Its funny how time changes a person's perspective on things. When I was a kid there was nothing bigger than OU football. It meant spending time with my dad and screaming at the television for three hours. Those are cherished memories that I wouldn't trade for anything. Now though, there are a lot bigger matters in life than college football. Paying bills, putting a roof over my family's head and striving everyday to set an example as a man that my children can look up to and be proud of. Still though on Saturday's football is king. You'll find my sons and I up and dressed, in our Sooner gear, at 9:00 am with Game Day on and then off to the stadium for home games or off to lite the grill for the watch party for road games.
Its a tradition in my house now. That's what Saturday's are like in the fall. The boys cook the food, the girls clean the dishes and we all enjoy screaming at the television and passing around high fives all afternoon. I wouldn't have it any other way. That's my story, now tell us yours!