I want to be like Mike

Mike Leach and his offense brings forth shear joy. JOY in a way, and pardon me in advance if I offend, that is religiously spiritual. I know , I probably ought to reassess that but I cant help it. More on this in a bit because I must explain something first.

I can't speak for my other Red Raider brethren, but I love watching our football team. I have loved the Raiders since I was old enough to realize that I was from a Red Raider family. One can argue that we have always been able to do more with less talent as a school, I think that was true during the Spike era. But everyone that has been a Raider for longer than 10 years can tell you, its an exercise in football masocism. In reality, its still there, I felt it as recently as my trip to Stillwater last month. We are the Red Sox (now the Cubs I guess) of the Big 12 in football. We are good. We are dangerous as we always were. BUT now things are starting to change, I can really feel the vibe from the fans.

After years of consistent improvement in Air Raid, we finally got some help from the Tech D. The Tech D won some games, well actually the team won, but marked improvement in defense. BUT the big difference maker happened last year in San Diego. The win over Cal that propelled Tech into the Top 20 was huge. Recruits we might see consider Tech but go elsewhere are now signing and sticking. Now Mike and the coaching staff can start developing some consistent depth, the true mark of sustaining a top 20 program. Tech should do something that it briefly flirted with in 2002. Our school will start challenging the two powers of the Conference for the top. Believe me, i have alot of orange friends, and the smart ones know. This aint your daddy's Texas Tech.

I am bragging here, but I witnessed some great Tech football victories. When I was a boy we beat Texas, and I remember my Dad and my uncles with the biggest smiles. I was there, too broke top buy a ticket and snuck in, when the arrogant dumbass Aggie RC Slocum was throwing the ball in a tie game against the wind with less than a minute left in the fourth quarter....and then ZACH made them pay! What a great day that was to be a Red Raider. I have tears in my eyes just typing it. I was there, when we broke Texas in half in the season of 2002. WHAT A WIN! I remember, the Texas band pleading and beating out with their drums..."defense..defense" But it didn't matter. Wes Welker cannot be stopped! WE broke them that day ALMOST got them again the next year. I was there, at the Tangerine bowl, taking a ton of ribbing from the overconfident Clemson fans...then it just rained Red Raider points all night long. The greatness of the only sections left in the stadium at the end belonged to the Tech band, the Clemson band, and the rowdiest band of drunken relery I have ever seen outside of San Diego. I was there when Mike refused to give Cal a chance to get back in the game. The silence, jealousy, and disbelief from the Cal faithful when we converted on a fourth down in our own end of the field. The we stuck it down their throut and scored....GAME OVER. Time to party, and boy did we.

Then we beat Oklahoma. Oh it felt so good. Still feels so good. The morning after, I woke up and went and got the A-J. It had this picture...posted above. Well I got back home and immediately ordered a print of that picture...expensive frame job, the works. Anyway, last weekend the New York Times comes out about Leach, and I'm thinking hell yeah! Well there is a point, an epiphany can be reached from the apex of accumlative life experience. I want to be like Mike Leach. Seriously! He is pushing, changing, and sending the college football world on its head. I want to do that too, just not in the world of football. I decided to quit working for other people that are void of that thing that Mike has. Mike has desire to outhink and win, its nothing personal, he is just is going to do his thing. So yesterday, I decided to quit my job and do something with passion that I want to push and change. I am today a full time writer and entreprenuer, and oh yeah I'm a pirate just like Mike. ARRRGGGH!