Tuesday, February 3, 2015

Listen to your heart...

I'm going to warn you now...if you don't know what tomorrow is, this post may not be for you.  Sorry about that.  For all of you that do know (well ok even if you don't)...keep reading!

In case you aren't aware by now I am a HUGE college sports fan.  I quite literally live and breathe it every day.  And tomorrow is national signing day, which for grown ups is like Christmas Day and Draft Day combined into one glorious package.  It's absolutely brilliant.  Especially now with a lot of the "big" announcements being covered live by ESPNU and other various media outlets.  There is even a camera whose sole purpose is to watch signed letters come in on a fax machine.  A fax machine! 

We salivate over the number of stars a recruit has or the overall ranking assigned to them based on their high school or junior college career.  We can't get enough of the highlight reels that pop up on our social media feeds.  We trade trash talk at work and over twitter.  We get our feelings hurt when they don't choose our school, our team.  It is both exhilarating and disappointing. 

I'm sure this won't surprise anyone, but I've never played football in my life.  Not only because I'm a girl, but mostly because I never wanted to.  I always wanted to watch, cheer, boo.  Be a fan. 

But it's so much more than that.  It's yelling at the tv when you're the only person in the room (even if it terrifies your dog), it's standing in the miserable heat/rain/cold for 4 hours just to watch your team lose, it's showing up at midnight the night before a game just to take it all in.  It's anxiously awaiting the decision of an 18 year old kid. 

I can't even imagine what it's like to be one of these kids.  The pressure, the expectations, the fear of disappointing everyone around you. 

Here's the only advice I have to offer.  Listen to your heart.  Follow it.  Choose the school that feels right.  It is your decision and your future.  Embrace it.  Pick the people you want to lead you, to mold you into a man.  Find the place you're passionate about. 

Be passionate about your coaches, your team, your teammates.  Be passionate about your willingness, your dedication, your drive.  Love what you do, every single day.  Be in, be all in. 

As a fan that's all we can ask of you.  All we want is for you to become a part of our team, our traditions, our family.  To know that win or lose we've got your back.  That we won't ever give up on you, so don't ever give up on yourself. 

Thank you for giving us something to root for.  For making your life a part of ours, even if only for a little while.  Thank you for all of the brilliant moments yet to come. We truly wish you nothing but the best.  Oh and just for good measure...Gig 'Em. 




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