Joe the Tide Fan
By a wide margin, Crimson Tide fans outnumber Auburn fans among my patients. For the most part, they’re not white collar professionals and technical people (i.e., engineers, computer programmers, etc), but instead down-home, salt-of-the-earth farmers and laborers who may not be able to tell you a lot about current affairs or the latest bestseller, but who can recall with great pride and fondness their favorite Bear Bryant story or the precise details of that stunning, last-second win back in 19-whatever.
Many of them are as big as 365 lb (and some change) Bama noseguard Terrence Cody, but not nearly as nimble or quick.
Most of them have probably never set foot on the Capstone or managed to scrape together enough cash to attend a game. They don’t buy their Crimson Tide gear online at the official store or at the Bama Boutique down at the mall. Instead, they pick up their cheaply-made ball caps, t-shirts and sweats at the local flea market or the corner Circle K.
But they wear their Tide colors loud and proud, nonetheless. When they see the Alabama lanyard that I wear around my neck to hold my ID badge, they often greet with me a hardy, “Roll Tide, Doc!” and I “Roll Tide” ’em right back.
There’s been a lot of “Rollin'” up and down the hallway of my office this fall, and it’s not all been from those electric wheelchairs. My medical clerk, who’s a suffering Tennessee fan, just rolls his eyes and sighs.
Coach Nick Saban has described his current team as “blue collar.” That seems about right. We don’t have a flashy offense like Texas Tech. There are no Heisman Trophy candidates on our roster. We grind out our yardage in the old-fashioned, north-south, off-tackle, 5-6 yards-at-a-time way. You may beat our defense every now and then, but you’re going to pay a dear price in the meantime.
Such old-school, ugly-as-sin football may not be enough to win the NC in this day and age of “Wild-this” and “Spread-that”(we shall see), but it is enough to be ranked #1 in the country for the first time since the end of the 1992 season, and for the first time during the regular season since November, 1980, back when I was a skinny, 135-lb college freshman and right before another very important national election.
Somewhere, “The B’ar” is smiling–I can practically feel the love.
So, this post is dedicated to all you Joe the Tide Fans out there who’ve spent a long, dark night of the soul suffering in the wilderness. Your time has come again.
Well, at least for one week.
Roll Tide, Roll? Darn right, you betcha and all that.
9 Comments
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Mike the Eyeguy
There were a lot of other interesting pics of Bama fans when I Googled the phrase, but I couldn’t post them.
This is a family blog, after all.
Mike the Redneck
Hey Eyeguy, how ’bout shootin’ me the link to them thar otha’ pick-chures you talkin’ ’bout!
Donna
Sometimes you make me feel so normal…
Ain’t it sweet..?
Mike the Eyeguy
Come on, Donna. I know you’ve got some Bama ink on you somewhere. You’re not fooling me.
whoopigsooie
Not to rain on your parade 20/20, but this is an unusually weak SEC West this year. Yes, you guys are indeed a powerful team and deserve your #1 ranking this week, but the Spread teams are lurking and killing giants week by week..ie..TT, Boise St., Tulsa, Utah, and yes…Florida with their version of B-Ball on turf. Should be a fun SEC championship. Don’t let CTT be a blemish on your finish. The Iron Bowl IS their bowl this year…
Mike the Eyeguy
Tulsa? TULSA? Is that supposed to make me pee in my pants after last weekend? 🙂
We have another week off before CTT. We have special plans for him. Maybe even a little “going away” party.
UPDATE: This just in: Phil Fulmer has agreed to step down. He’s one of a growing list of coaches who have been “Sabanized.”
dunderwood
GREAT post my Tide brother!! I think we are going to the BCS Championship game this year!! ROLL TIDE ROLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
DU
whoopigsooie
Not Tulsa so much…but Texas Tech should make your bowels move a little. Graham Harrell is the real deal. Coolest guy in the pocket since…uh..Joe Willy Namath!
Mike the Eyeguy
DU–I hope you don’t mind that I used that pic of you!
WSP–I thought Colt McCoy (what a name!) was the biggest gunslinger in Texas, but boy was I wrong.
Graham Harrell’s got to get a nickname, though. Sounds too much like lawyer or a financial adviser.