For Those Watching At Home
I can’t think of a word for it, but there has to be one. There must be a word that describes what happens when an event goes perfectly until the very end. That’s what about 2,000 loyal Panther fans experienced in the UNI-Dome Saturday for the watch party against South Dakota. The event was a genuine success, with a great turnout and great services. My father hadn’t been feeling well the last few days, so we weren’t sure whether or not we would be in attendance. At the zero hour, though, our Purple Passion ended up winning out.
We immediately confirmed our decision upon arrival. There were already about a hundred fans lined up at the doors waiting to get when we showed up at 12:45. Door prizes were available on the Dome floor, including my version of winning the lottery: a four-person all-expenses trip to St. Louis for the MVC Men’s Basketball Tournament. Alas, I didn’t win. That being said, I’ll still be there anyway.
Back to the matter at hand, though. We picked out our spot on the turf, a place I hadn’t been since UNI’s thrilling 23-3 win over NDSU. I could feel a small, satisfied smile form on my face as I knew that I could always call this place home despite not having been a student for over a decade. I was also pleased by how many young children were with there parents, clearly having a great time. My sincere hope is that they will remember those good times and continue to be UNI fans into adulthood.
The game itself was the only thing that didn’t seem to go perfectly. UNI dropped another game, this time to a Bob Nielsen coached team that seemed to be ready to face one of the Valley’s elite. South Dakota went for the jugular out of the gate with a long fly route that netted them the opening score. UNI seemed to play with a bit of dazed look on their faces the rest of the game.
I’m not alone in this, either. A clearly displeased Coach Mark Farley called his team out in the postgame show. He said that they were not playing up the standard of the logo on the helmet in so many words, and I felt justified in my comments after the game.
“They don’t have the killer instinct,” I told my Pop after the game was decided. I said something about including that in my article, but he was still on the fence on whether I should question the heart of the team. I figure now that if Coach Farley says it is so, it is so.
So thank you to Cedar Falls Utilities for putting on a spectacular event. I will definitely be back if they do it again next season. Also thank you to MidCo Sports Network for allowing our university to show the game in the Dome, as I’m sure that certainly required their permission. Thank you to the volunteers, and of course the fans who made this an event that will always give me a little bit of a lift when I recall it.
I can’t think of a word for it, but there has to be one. There must be a word that describes what happens when an event goes perfectly until the very end. That’s what about 2,000 loyal Panther fans experienced in the UNI-Dome Saturday for the watch party against South Dakota. The event was a genuine success, with a great turnout and great services. My father hadn’t been feeling well the last few days, so we weren’t sure whether or not we would be in attendance. At the zero hour, though, our Purple Passion ended up winning out.
We immediately confirmed our decision upon arrival. There were already about a hundred fans lined up at the doors waiting to get when we showed up at 12:45. Door prizes were available on the Dome floor, including my version of winning the lottery: a four-person all-expenses trip to St. Louis for the MVC Men’s Basketball Tournament. Alas, I didn’t win. That being said, I’ll still be there anyway.
Back to the matter at hand, though. We picked out our spot on the turf, a place I hadn’t been since UNI’s thrilling 23-3 win over NDSU. I could feel a small, satisfied smile form on my face as I knew that I could always call this place home despite not having been a student for over a decade. I was also pleased by how many young children were with there parents, clearly having a great time. My sincere hope is that they will remember those good times and continue to be UNI fans into adulthood.
The game itself was the only thing that didn’t seem to go perfectly. UNI dropped another game, this time to a Bob Nielsen coached team that seemed to be ready to face one of the Valley’s elite. South Dakota went for the jugular out of the gate with a long fly route that netted them the opening score. UNI seemed to play with a bit of dazed look on their faces the rest of the game.
I’m not alone in this, either. A clearly displeased Coach Mark Farley called his team out in the postgame show. He said that they were not playing up the standard of the logo on the helmet in so many words, and I felt justified in my comments after the game.
“They don’t have the killer instinct,” I told my Pop after the game was decided. I said something about including that in my article, but he was still on the fence on whether I should question the heart of the team. I figure now that if Coach Farley says it is so, it is so.
So thank you to Cedar Falls Utilities for putting on a spectacular event. I will definitely be back if they do it again next season. Also thank you to MidCo Sports Network for allowing our university to show the game in the Dome, as I’m sure that certainly required their permission. Thank you to the volunteers, and of course the fans who made this an event that will always give me a little bit of a lift when I recall it.
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