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Orange Prattle

Money well spent!

By Ryan Greene
January 4, 2008

Journal-World sportswriter and Kansas University student Jason Elmquist makes the trip down to Miami for the Orange Bowl the way most students choose to - the old-fashioned highways. He blogs during his experience both on the way to and in the Sunshine State.

Well, my record for traveling to Kansas University sporting events stays unblemished: 2-0. And while yes, winning helps make the experience memorable, this trip would have been "something to tell the grandkids about" even if KU had lost. What made the actual game experience a memorable one was going from sitting in Section 405; Row 22 (aka "nose-bleed section") to sitting with some old college buddies that flew in for the game. They were situated just eight rows from the field behind the Virginia Tech end zone and I tagged along in hopes there would be an open seat nearby. These were guys that I came into KU with as a freshman, five years ago and went to many Jayhawks basketball and football games with. Two of the three graduated last May and I hadn't seen them in months. So the game was a lot more special for me, getting to see them once again.

Not everything went completely smooth while down near the field, however. I went from having a seat, to not having a seat, to having a seat, then back to not having a seat. Fortunately, at that point, the people around us didn't care and allowed me to stand with them - and we fortunately never sat during the second half. Those "people" that didn't mind, were mostly Va-Tech fans. These fans were quite possibly the best/respectful people that I've been around at sporting events! Yes, there was the occasional ribbing between the two sides during the game, but it never got out of hand and they were still all hugs and handshakes even after coming up short on the scoreboard. At one point, I was even told that I have "Hokie Respect" which I later found out to be - and I quote - "the greatest complement you will ever get." After the way I was received by VT fans, I have to give the complement right back and definitely believe that it is quite possibly one of the best complements that one could get - at least when it comes from Virginia Tech fans. Major props to the Hokies Nation!

While people may say the Kansas fans didn't travel well, those that did show up made sure they'll remember it for years by way of memorabilia. When I went to get a program and a t-shirt for my younger sister and myself just after the first quarter, the selections were limited. And by that, I mean there only two or three shirt options with the KU logo in the design and the only sizes for them were XL and 2XL. There was still plenty of Virginia Tech apparel still available, but if you were a Kansas fan and didn't get your souvenirs before the game, you probably had to settle on just buying a program. This, I'm sure, makes the Orange Bowl Committee happy about their choice of Kansas - which in turn probably makes Lew Perkins pretty happy that the Orange Bowl doesn't regret offering KU a bid to the BCS bowl.

Age doesn't matter: While walking around Dolphin Stadium two hours before the gates opened, with the afore mentioned friends that flew in, we ran into quite possibly the greatest Kansas fan. The recently retired woman, who with her husband spends their winters in Florida, told us about how they have a big Jayhawk in their backyard down here and in its beak they put a gator - symbolizing their distaste for the University of Florida Gators. The couple attended the game with another couple and all four decided to donate the tickets they had but were not using - since they had better seats with the couple they joined. They apparently donated it to a charity back in Lawrence to auction off. They deserve some serious "Hokie Respect"!

Weathering the weather: Part of the purpose of heading to the Orange Bowl in early January was to escape the Kansas winter for the "sunny" beaches of Florida. However, on Thursday, Miami was more like a Kansas autumn: upper-40s, extremely windy, drizzles ever now-and-then and no sun in the sky. This was following an evening that saw temperatures in Miami drop below a record low that had stood for more than 15 years. Of course, everybody's response to the weather was, "You Kansas fans brought all this cold weather with you." Well, it was pretty obvious the Kansas fans - and possibly the players - felt right at home.

Although I didn't get the opportunity to experience all that is Miami; such as the beaches, the night-life, the Hard Rock Cafe - I was really wanting to add to my Hurricane Glass collection - and the nice hotels, this trip has, no doubt, been well worth the money spent. Before "signing off" - and spending another 23 hours driving back to Kansas - I have to give out some "Hokie Respect" - no, I'm not stealing their saying, I'm simply using it as it relates to this experience. First off, I need to thank my dad for giving me the opportunity to earn the money for this adventure, as well as thank my four traveling companions for their willingness to cooperate with me in regards to writing this blog. Of course, I can't forget to thank my bosses at the Journal-World for giving me the green light - and web space - to do this first-person blog. And most importantly, I want to express my admiration for my late-grandfather, who passed away from lung cancer nearly 10 years ago. He is where my roots and passion for writing comes from. The name of this blog, "Orange Prattle", was the title of his columns and I thought it a perfect way for me to honor him.