University of North Carolina Athletics
Lucas: Notes From The Road
September 12, 2001 | Football
Sept. 12, 2001
By Adam Lucas
TarHeelBlue.com
SOMEHWERE OVER BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA-If anyone is going to write the story of the 2001 football season for North Carolina, it will be Jack Kerouac. The author of "On the Road" already has the perfect title.
Finding a three-week series like this in UNC football history is difficult. They've certainly never faced three high-quality opponents, two of them in the nation's top five and the other a pivotal ACC contest, in succession.
Here's a notebook of ten questions that come from three weeks of traveling across the country and racking up American Airlines AAdvantage miles.
What was the most frequently question asked of the author? "What are Texas and Oklahoma like in terms of football atmosphere?"
What was the answer to the most frequently-asked question? Surprisingly, the two are fairly different. In Norman, fans were lining the streets around the stadium four hours before game time, arriving in plenty of time to boo the UNC team bus as it tried to navigate through the endless tailgating.
Sooner fans are serious about their football. They were in their seats early and stood up for much of the game.
Conversely, at Texas football largely seemed to be a show. Even the players were more demonstrative, less businesslike than Oklahoma. Leaving Joe Jamail Field at the Moncrief-Neuhaus Athletic Center inside Memorial Stadium, which has been renamed for Darrell K Royal (if they name anything after Mack Brown, it will have to be a fish tank or something), there was more a feeling of having watched a circus than a football game.
Did you see any t-shirts in Austin that you thought about purchasing for the folks back home? Yes, of course. The top choice was a burnt-orange number that came complete with a strangely familiar slogan on the front. In white letters, with the omnipresent Longhorn included, it read, "Come early, be loud, stay late, wear orange."
Can you believe that they made t-shirts out of Mack's slogan? Yes. If Mack Brown suddenly told Texas alumni to send all their money, in the form of large bills, to his personal address, at least 75% would comply immediately.
Do you think that Bevo was drugged? It is entirely possible. That was the sickliest cow I have ever seen. Reports were that the cow stormed out and pranced around the field. Instead, it mostly sleeps down near the corner of one end zone. At one point in the second half, his handlers weren't even bothering to hold onto his lead rope. At his current rate of speed he will be on someone's plate at the Angus Barn before Halloween.
What is the highest point in the world? The top of the Oklahoma press box. The team was staying in Oklahoma City, roughly an hour away from Norman, and there was serious debate in the press box about whether or not it was possible to see the hotel from the stadium.
Does anyone have original ideas anymore? Apparently not. At Maryland, Ralph Friedgen has instituted "Terp Alley," one of those paradoxical "new traditions" in which the fans are supposed to cheer the team as they walk to the locker room. He stole it from Carl Torbush who stole it from Ole Miss who stole it from Auburn who stole...
What did the flags at Maryland say when the cheerleaders toted them around the field? "Spret."
What is "spret"? It sounds like a minty-fresh breath mint, but it's "Terps" backwards. Back to the drawing board on the flags.
What was the most moving part of the road trips? Touring the Oklahoma City bombing memorial.
Would you want to do the three-week tour again? Yes, but only if someone explains the Dallas-Fort Worth airport to me before I go. There are people in that airport who have been riding the gate-to-gate train for two consecutive weeks without being able to figure out how to get off.
ALSO BY ADAM LUCAS
Adam Lucas is the co-publisher of Basketball America. He is a lifelong observer of UNC sports and can be reached at JAdamLucas@aol.com.
