Nerve Endings Firing Away

American Football was until yesterday beyond my comprehension. My first complaint always was and still is why the heck it is called football, when your hand skills are considered an asset. But three years on American soil and I still hadn’t witnessed a live major sporting event and I sincerely set out to rectify that on a glorious Saturday morning. I finally made use of the athletic fee that I had been shelling out all these years when I obtained a couple of free tickets and one from the “dus ka bees” waala. The game, fortunately it works the converse way here i.e. I got a $27 ticket for $15. Maybe the fact that the scalper was a student explained it. It can be fun overhearing a conversation when an equally ignorant me trying to explain the nuances (little that I knew of) of the game to a totally ignorant MV. ADS was busy training his new digi-cam, zooming on to the skimpily clad cheerleaders. Either I am growing too old or the cheerleaders seemed too young for college; petite and delicate. Ah-ha! I knew instantly why. The male (how traumatic can that be) cheerleaders play catch with the female ones and toss them around like rag dolls. We enjoyed their antics for a long time and since we landed up in the stadium way ahead of kickoff time, we got the choicest seats.

Two guys and a girl, dressed in yellow were soon joined by a whole lot of yellow and a smattering of red. Georgia Tech was soon out in full force and poor N.C.State was almost shouted into submission. Coincidentally Georgia Tech was celebrating Homecoming 2003 too and that ensured a capacity crowd. Old geriatric work-hard-get-rich alumnus was joined by the young get-rich-quick techies recent graduates on the VIP stands, cheering equally loud. The difference being the wine glass in their hands compared to warm cokes in ours. However, all class differences were forgotten once the players rushed on the field. Tech players were received with cheers and thumping and NCSU got a ton of boos. The hundred-strong marching band was equally rambunctious in raising a cacophony initially, slowly blending with the fan cheering and then moving on to directing the cheers. Now, the game began in the right earnest and slowly began making sense to me. The third play by N.C.State offense almost always raised loud cries of “Go Defense”, making it clear that the third play is a critical juncture. The band often played a tune that was accompanied with singing in the stands; sorta like the school anthem. I barely understood the lines “; hell of an engineer” being one of the few. My undergrad school anthem didn’t make much sense either. But that’s a different story.

Towards the end of the first quarter, I could at least be sure if our team was doing a good job or not. Of course, the scores helped. My initial doubts of why the guys cuddle before starting it off were cleared. Wait a sec, this is a man-sport; guys don’t cuddle, maybe huddle is the word. The hyped quarterback position surely is one hell of a job and he is like a key playmaker guarded by hefty line-backers. No wonder these buggers mint money after they turn pro in NFL. Tech was leading at half-time and we were being baked in the hot afternoon sun, as if on a low simmer. The half-time celebrations crowned the Ms.Georgia Tech and Mr.Georgia Tech and were asked to exchange the “traditional kiss”. I so wanted Pramod Navalkar to witness that. All said and done, Georgia Tech held on to a lead that sent fans into raptures. The usually desolate public transit was bursting at its seams as we finally headed home.

I understand both forms of Football now; with a crimson sun-burned face to show for it.