Thursday, September 14, 2006

Go Bears

I haven't really made much of it, since the teams I follow have yet to make much of it for me, but football season has begun. My wife and I did our annual tearful farewell at the door to the living room, where I will be found on Saturdays, Sundays, Monday evenings, and sporadic Thursday nights for the next five months. It's not as tragic as it sounds, since we've both managed to become more forgiving and understanding of each other's peculiarities. I like to pace and curse as I watch strangers play games in distant cities, and my wife - well she likes the stories.
Like this one: The backup punter at Northern Colorado has been accused of stabbing his rival in the leg — his kicking leg. I confess that, even when I lived in Colorado, I didn't follow the progress of any particular UNC Bear football campaign. That would have meant worrying about something that happened in Greeley. Since I know that my wife has a certain fondness for that corner of the front range, I suppose this will provide her more connection to this piece. The stabbing took place Monday in Evans, a small town adjacent to Greeley and about 50 miles north of Denver. Mendoza was attacked from behind after parking his car outside his apartment at about 9:30 p.m. About ten minutes after the attack, a liquor store clerk told police that a car matching the description of the assailant’s getaway car stopped outside the store, where two men stripped tape off the license plate and drove away. The clerk gave police the license number and the car was traced to Cozad, who was arrested Tuesday.
Last Saturday, the Bears fumbled their way to a 45-3 loss to perennial Big Sky Conference power Portland State. The week before that, they rolled over for UC Davis to the tune of 38-7. This Saturday, when the Bears tee off against the Texas State Bobcats, you might expect that no one will care. But perhaps all is not yet lost. I wasn't a huge fan of figure skating, but Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan got me watching. I'm guessing they'll be handing out a few more press credentials up in Greeley this weekend. Welcome to the spotlight, University of Northern Colorado.

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