Kids Say the Darndest Things

So, I'm sitting in seat number two last week at the Husker debacle with Oklahoma State. Cassandra is in seat #1. As soon as we sit down, seat #3 leans over, tapping Cass on the arm, telling her he hopes the loudmouth sitting behind them at the Ball State game does not attend today's game. Quickly, she clues me in how a person sitting behind our seats was loud, obnoxious, and basically, did not understand the game of football.

So, before the game begins, a person behind us taps Cass on the shoulder and asks if she can snap a pic of the two sitting behind us. Cass looks at me, then at them, back at me, and nonchalantly asks, "Were you here for the Ball State game?" Guess what the reply was.
(Go ahead, guess. You know you're going to be right.)

So, the game's underway. I will not even begin to get into the level of Husker play performance. (There were positives and negatives). And suddenly, I hear this screaming coming from behind us. It's this loud cacophony of high-pitched screeching, constant complaining, and general disrespect to the true fans of Husker Nation. Cass looks at me and rolls her eyes; seat #3 looks at me and shakes his head in disgust, row 15 seat #4 turns around and glares at the row behind us. I realize it's the same person who was there for the Iowa State game, with a little girl in tow, and she was loud and unpleasant at that game too.

So, I think of the role models I had for Husker fans. You see, the people who sat in that area when I was growing up were kind of like family. We were friends, sent Christmas cards, attended a Husker party at the Lynch's house in Lincoln after a football game. We watched the game. We understood what the calls were, and if we didn't we asked a neighbor - like seat #3 - to explain the call. We didn't boo the refs. We cheered the opposing team when they exited the field. We were respectful Husker fans. My parents taught us that you stand behind a team - win or lose - and you applauded the efforts just the same. Yes, there might be missed opportunities, dropped passes, unraveled plays and seasons, but true Nebraskans appreciated the effort, the tradition, and kept disappointment quiet.

So, after a quarter and a half of listening to the continual complaints about the players, the coaches, and the refs making the calls, Cass decided enough was enough. On a review play, the person behind started yelling at the refs. Yeah, yeah, she wasn't the only person in the stands booing. But a well-trained football fan can see across the field, as the play was in front of us but on the east side. Or a well-trained football fan can watch the action on Husker Vision, and see that the player did not step out of bounds and that the actual review was whether or not the Pokes QB had crossed the line of scrimmage when he threw the pass. After a minute tirade by the faux fan, Cass turned around and politely said, "He was in bounds." High fives for Cassie from a two-row, six-seat area! Literally.

So, the fun began. Faux fan started complaining to Cass that 'if you know everything about football, why aren't you the coach,' or 'then why is everyone else booing,' or 'oh, so you think you know it all,' or 'I bet you don't pay for those seats.'

So, I've been quiet long enough. After a comment from Cassie about these seats being in our family for over half a century, and a follow up comment from me, faux fan is silent. For awhile.

So, she keeps making snide remarks which prove she isn't a true Husker. She also proves she knows absolutely about the rules of the game - not only the game on the field, but the game known as respect.