Christspeak, Rx

Just got in from a great weekend in Annopolis with 3 pals who attended ECU. Before the 5:30 kickoff, we were treated to a brief tour of the Academy by Junior Midshipman Matt McCallum of Pittsburgh, Pa- my nephew's best friend and roommate (before Brandon transfered To South Carolina to play for Dave Odom.) At Navy home games, virtually the entire student body marches into the stadium, so the only time anyone can spend with their favorite Midshipman is before or after a game.

We knew Navy football is steeped in tradition, that's why we came. Nevertheless, we warned Matt that ECU had it own traditions, namely that at some point during every game there is always a fight between 2 ECU fans, and that when the culprit(s) are cuffed and taken away, the Pirate fans serenade the stadium with that song..."Na na nah, Hey Hey, Goodbye!"

We made sure we arrived to the 35,000 seat stadium early. The first thing you notice about anything related to the Naval Acadamy is that every thing has meaning and none of it is taken for granted. At Clemson or Carolina or ECU, you'll find permanent memorials honoring their great athletes affixed to the inner stadium walls. At Navy, we saw something entirely different, names like SAVO ISLAND- PEARL HARBOR- MIDWAY- CORAL SEA- TARAWA - RABAUSL and others- each commemorating battles where Acadamy alumni had fought and died.

Just before kickoff, the entire student body marched into the stadium by company. The announcer introduced each company as it mades its way to the field- and the company commander. Every time they announced a commander from North Carolina, (I think I counted 4), the ECU fans roared with pride. The Acadamy choir sang the National Anthem - and as they finished- a great ship's fog horn sounded off. Then they announced 2 F16's would soon be approaching from the South. (If one were colorblind, he could tell who the ECU fans were- we were the one's asking which way was South.)

I've seen jets do fly overs before, but these 2 buzzed the stadium by no more than 200 yards. I can't adequately describe the rush we felt or the thunder of the engines. I found myself yelling something incompehensible and feeling so proud and honored to be part of this. I remember feeling embarrased as tears ran down my cheeks, but when I looked at my friends, expecting to be chided, they were as caught up in the moment as I was.

As the stadium quieted the Midshipmen (still in formation on the field) did an about-face and addressed the ECU side of the stadium- (I think about 5-6000 students attend the Acadamy)- In unison they chanted "NAVY -WELCOMES...E-C-U! (at this point they tipped their hats to us), Gooooooo Pirates!" We were blown away. Then they turned to face their alumni and again said something, (we couldn't make it out), while tipping their hats. I believe about 4 companies were dismissed at a time- at which point everyone of them breaks into a sprint and no one stops until they reach their seat.

Three more things of note... everytime Navy scores, the 1200 or so plebes rush the field and do pushups for every Navy point scored. As soon as the final gun sounded, (Navy won a hard fought 28-23 game), the entire Navy squad rushed over to the ECU bench...to shake hands! And during halftime -on the stadium big screen- we were treated to custom tailored drama, ala 24... A young Marine enters his CO's office. The CO explains a plot has been unearthed to undermine the proud tradition of Navy Football. A nefarious group who call themselves the ECU Pirates have been discovered in Annapolis. Subsequent "episodes" throughout the 2cd half show the Marines on a covert mission overtaking a yacht manned by "Pirates."

As a lifelong Clemson fan I have proudly revelled with 85000 others while the Tigers ran down "the hill." (And ECU is an awesome venue as well.) I love visiting the great stadiums and witnessing all the traditions that colleges should be proud of. (I hope most of you have had a chance to vist Kenan Stadium at North Carolina, in my opinion the country's most picturesque stadium.) But for me, at least for now, Navy takes the cake... by the widest of margins.