
Photo Credit: ESPN U
Today is National Signing Day. I know not because I am particularly interested, but because for the last few weeks, when I’ve talked to my mom she has started each conversation with, “Only a few more weeks” or “Just 12 more days!!” If there was an advent calendar for NSD, she’d buy it.
My mom is infamous in the world of college football discussion boards. Well my undergrad’s college football discussion boards. This time last year she discovered that the top recruit for my alma mater was being secretly wooed by one of our rivals. At that point everyone had assumed this kid was a lock, so to find out less than 48 hours before D-day that he was even considering another program? Her post practically shut down the website.
We were dropping my brother off at the airport. He was on his way to a six month stint in New Zealand. So of course my mom wanted to pack herself in his suitcase and go with him watch him go through security and get every last look at him that she could.We were lingering near the escalators watching Brothaman make his way through the line of people when I noticed a guy in head to toe Rival Team Gear. I didn’t really think much of it, other than it was unfortunate this kid was in a public place wearing such ugly colors and sporting such a dorky mascot. Maybe he lost a bet? But my mom kept looking at him, repeatedly. And she did the squinchy face each time.
The squinchy face is the face people do when they are trying to decide if they know someone and if they want to talk to them. They squint their eyes because they are looking so hard at the person and they pull their eyebrows together because they are thinking so hard about the person and they kind of purse their lips because they are trying to decide if they should say something, first. These people always say something, and generally they say something first.
My mom is really great with faces. She recognizes people all the time and always says something first. Even if they don’t initially recognize her, she’ll explain how or when they met until they do. Doesn’t matter if she barely knows them. I’m the opposite. I will probably not say anything even if I do know you. Unless we make a lot of awkward eye contact or I really want to say hi, which is code for “I remember your name.” Otherwise I’ll probably let you do your thing and I’ll do mine. Maybe a mutual head nod?
I caught my mom checking out the kid a couple of times and I started to get nervous. “I know him. I know him. He’s our top recruit.” She whispered to me. “What? No you don’t. Just leave him alone.” But it was too late. The next time the kid walked by (he was sort of pacing back and forth, probably waiting for someone to pick him up) my mom called out his name. He turned and started walking towards her.
“Oh, God.” I said before walking away from her, fast.
“I don’t like seeing you in those colors.” She told him while motioning to his clothes.
At this point the poor kid looked like he got caught with his hand in the cookie jar and realized he had no idea who this woman was even though she knew his name. I blinked and he was gone, out of there.
The ride home from the airport my mom kept going on about how important this was that she told everyone. And by everyone she meant the people on the discussion boards. The recruiting team needed to know their #1 recruit was about to get pulled right out from under them. “This could change everything,” she said.
After my mom posted things blew up. No one from “our team” knew about the secret meeting. People were shocked and pissed. She started getting hundreds of emails and comments that ran the gamut of, “Thank God you saw him” and “You’re a legend” to “You’re a liar” and worse things. Most of those people later apologized to my mom, after it became clear that she was telling the truth. On signing day the kid went with the other team. It was bummer, but we beat them during season so it ended up being a moot point.
One of main points of disbelief centered on, “How on earth did she recognize him? I’m a huge fan and I would never be able to pick him out of the crowd.” A couple of points to make here. 1. The kid was literally decked out in Rival Team gear in the middle of Home Team’s airport. He stuck out like a sore thumb. 2. You might be a fan, but my mom is a fanatic. So google image stalking a top recruit? Standard procedure. 3. Mom never forgets a face.
My Grandpa B, passed away several years but he was a huge football fan. Even owned his own semi-pro team for several years. So my mom grew up on the sidelines of the football field. GB was also a fan of the college I ended up going to, long before I ever went there. A fan to the point that his racing colors were the same as my school colors (he got into horse racing after the football team) and so was his house. Literally, the house was painted in full on fan colors, and it was a big ranch house.
When I got accepted Mom jumped on the fanwagon and has never looked back. Though I give her a hard time about her FANatacism, I see that by loving this team, or rather “his” team, my mom is able to continue loving her Dad. I think that is really lovely.
Happy National Signing Day Mom! I hope this means you don’t have to pull anymore late night airport runs until next year?
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