It’s been a long time since I’ve experienced rain as we did at the University of Washington football game last Saturday. We were soaked under our canopies in the parking lot as we tailgated because the rain was coming down sideways. It was like a Southern rainstorm. Luckily, one of us (I’ll take credit) took along a change of clothes and waterproof gear for the game itself, as our seats are not undercover.
Everybody was wet and nobody was sitting down (because most people didn’t have waterproof pants and didn’t want to get soaked from all sides). However, the rain didn’t stop the “idiots” from making their stupid comments to show they know more about strategy and play calling than the coaches.
One of the frequent complaints in our section was because the Huskies were running the ball a lot instead of passing it. Every time a run play gained two yards or less the zingers flew. This in spite of the fact that due to the weather:
- There were a combined three missed extra points (one because of a high snap).
- The Huskies got a safety when a high snap went through the Arizona’s punter’s hands.
- The Huskies run a precision passing game that requires a lot of quick, accurate throws. Those are hard to make when the quarterback is worried about just handling the snap and holding on to the ball.
The topper to all this nonsense was when, late in the game, there was a penalty of some sort and after it was all settled there was some booing (as always). The gal in front of us broke away from her conversation and started loudly booing, oblivious to why she was booing.
The lesson here is, stick to your game plan, don’t let uninformed outside forces influence you because you’re the one who knows what you’re doing better than they do. Go with your strengths and in this game it was the Huskies offensive line and running game.
“People striving for the approval from others become phony.” Ichiro Suzuki
