As the title (an excerpt from "Every True Son") might suggest, this post is about Mizzou. I am a lifelong Missouri Tiger football fan. I have, Saturday after Saturday each fall made treks to Columbia, from before I could walk and it was an easy walk to the game in the five falls I lived in Columbia. I, and fellow Mizzou fans have loved the football team through thick and thin, through losing seasons (there have been a few), and everyone always saying this just might be their year (year after year). Well, this might actually be their year (which you can't say in front of any other Tiger fan because they might accuse you of jinxing the team or getting ahead of the game this Saturday). So when will it be okay to be excited about this team?
We all love Chase Daniel, Jeremy Maclin, and Derrick Washington and marvel at how wonderful they play on offense. But then we have to always follow up with concern for our secondary if there is any praise. I read an online article recently from an Oklahoma newspaper about the Mizzou/Oklahoma State match up this next weekend where people were allowed to post comments after the article and one OSU fan was saying that Mizzou saw this game as a no-brainer and we probably scheduled them for Homecoming (No, we are playing Colorado for Homecoming [and yes, MU invented Homecoming]) because we were just so confident. I don't know where this person got their information, because if you ask any Mizzou football fan that I know they are worried about this match up just as much as they were for last week's game against Nebraska and as much as they will be for Texas next week. Mizzou fans know nothing if not that a win is never guaranteed for the Tigers. I never hear boasting out of Pinkel, his coaching staff, or any of his players. Mizzou doesn't do a lot of trash talking because we don't have a lot to trash talk about (except kU, but that's an entirely different story).
I seem to be rambling a bit. My point is, I wish Mizzou fans could be happy about the success the team has has this year (which we are). But be more confident instead of nervous because after each victory the Tigers achieve come Monday morning all the fans can think of is all of the ways we could lose next Saturday.
I read a blog this morning that I feel sums up how I and many other Mizzou football fans feel:
http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/therundown/2008/10/mizzou_football_has_arrived.php
p.s. I love Chase Daniel. Go Mizzou!!!
