[NU Sports] My time in Hell

[WildElk2 at aol.com]

All hands on deck for a good story. I was on a cruise in the  Caribbean last 
week, and what do my purple shaded eyes detect?  That this  was the 22nd 
annual "Hawkeye Cruise".  Before I could say Hayden burns in  Hell, there was 
bumblebees all over the place.  I thought Lucifer Himself  had assumed control!
  I lay by the pool, I see Hawkeye bathing suits.  I'm in  Grenada, Aruba , 
etc. I'm on excursions with 1/2 of Des Moines. So eyes go to  the bar to drink 
away my frustration;  there's dudes wearing Iowa cowboy  hats (let that sink 
in:  at a bar on a cruise ship wearing a cowboy  hat.).
   The purple went on quickly.  Good natured ribbing was the  order of the 
day; begrudgingly most bumblebees confessed that since '95 this has  been a good 
series.
  The complaints I heard were familiar:  the parking at Dyche  sucks, and why 
is there as many Iowa fans as there are NU fans?  My advice  was 2 fold:  
leave the RV at home and use CTA/ party at bars near the "el"  near Dyche stadium 
instead of tail-gate.  More than one Iowa fan knew that  the NU/ City of 
Evanston was "chilly."
   My second "Nugget of Truth"  was that I am a typical NU  fan; I live in 
Pennsylvania, and  NU alumni  and fans are dispersed  far and wide, from coast 
to coast, as well as the fact that NU is small in  numbers compared to the rest 
of the conference. I quickly pointed out that  our bowl games have been well 
attended.
   I also had a wonderful conversation with Iowa LB coach Darrell  Jackson, 
who was on the cruise with his wife ( 6 coaches went, including  Ferentz.).  
What a nice couple they are!  Darrell's wife was "riding"  me about my NU shirt 
by the pool (I had one hell of a burn-I know everyone feels  sorry for me), so 
I told her my line that I used more than once:  " Well,  someone needs to 
root for a decent school, what with all this yellow around  here."  
  That drew the laughter of Darrell.  After striking up a  conversation about 
this/that (very interesting conversation) the subject turned  to the hiring 
of our new DC.   Most of us knew there was some sort of  friction between 
Bielema and Harkwitz;  according to Coach Jackson, there  was a MAJOR melt-down in 
the locker room after Wisky's loss to Auburn in  the...oops, I forgot which 
bowl it was.
   My last yarn to spin...I saw Kurt Ferentz.....in a bathing  suit!!!  OK, 
he looks a hell of a lot better than I do in a bathing suit,  but still I had 
to laugh!
  Anyway, i survived this torment.  Now let's beat those _!@#@$$_ 
(mailto:!@#@$$)  Hawks this year!
 
                GO  CATS!!!                  Eric



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