When I was a kid, my old man had an idea. He decided to spend the warm months on a scaffold aside our Victorian home. He removed each shudder and stripped the old paint. In colder days, he'd sit in a little house on our farm and repaint each one by hand.
It was an admirable project. He was an admirable man.
Fall would roll around and I'd run around outside as he worked. We'd turn on a radio and catch his alma mater — my future alma mater — play college football. Hokies broadcasts appeared on the tube less often back then. Most games came on the dial.
Those days offered simplicity. Part of it was childhood, another part was the radio. The biggest factor was Virginia Tech's football program.
We didn't desire more than what the team offered. Instead, we listened and hoped they could beat Pittsburgh and Miami. The Rutgers and Temples of the world normally gave way to TV by the third quarter. Still, we listened on an AM station, the sound rang through the patio and sometimes, inside the house.
Imagination was important then. So when Keion Carpenter took Miami quarterback Scott Covington's pass 100 yards to the house in The Orange Bowl in 1996, it came alive. It lived in a dream-like state as we could visualize a maroon helmet bobbing down the sideline. When Carpenter crossed the goal-line, we crossed the Canes out of the big slate. Tech closed the season with wins over West Virginia and Virginia. Nebraska crushed them in the same Orange Bowl. But hey, that was expected.
It all changed after a while. Dad died, the Hokies made a national title game and each game was on TV. The alumni base gradually evolved, too. My father remembered his march to Roanoke's Victory Stadium for the VMI games. Now, a march is a dash for those who are watching Florida and Georgia on flat screens in Lane's parking lot.
That's what happens with time. It ticks at the same pace but it always seems so far away. In 16 years since we shared father-son moments, the past became a story of what once was.
Tech grew up. The program became relevant on a year-to-year basis. That's what we all wanted. Now, stores carry merchandise. I remember the first Hokies jersey Nike sold and the eight weeks I impatiently waited as it was backordered from my Eastbay catalogue.
But, Saturday night in an Arlington bar with the game on several TV's and even more orange-and-maroon jerseys around me, I stepped back into the old days.
Perhaps it was my old man or maybe my young naive self who pushed the attitude we had back then. It meant no game was a given victory and the toughest challenges would always be a Carrier Dome or the dreaded state between home and Ohio. No opponent went overlooked because Tech wasn't good enough to do so. Frank Beamer wasn't a household name and few outside the Commonwealth knew Blacksburg's location.
Each contest offered a chance at respect and the lone representation the university had on the east coast. Lane Stadium's loud now because of those who came before — the ones who sat in a somewhat-simple stadium with temporary end-zone seats and yelled out their brains. The school didn't have a pedigree to hang its hat on. We watched them create one.
That mattered. I believe the stretch of Beamer's woes against top opponents helped make Saturday matter that much more. There was a lull of the program — in its constituents' eyes — and the 35-21 win rectified downtrodden beliefs.
Expectations are a tricky thing and don't offer much in the way of imagination. When a team should win a game, they never win it by enough points. Shoulds turn into demands. Then, the whole damned thing gets stuck in a universe where it becomes untouchable and unexplainable.
Saturday night, the Hokies played like the teams who were out to put the school on the map. They punished the Buckeyes with tenacity and toughness. When Ohio State tied the score at 21-21, that's when it became clear to me Tech would pull it out.
After years of watching outcomes cut from the same template, familiarity with a pattern struck me. Alabama, Boise State, Florida State in the title game and many other games — they held the same traits. Beamer's squad would come out flat, make a miraculous comeback to take the lead or tie. Then, the wad was shot and the opponent ended the contest on a high note.
This time, the big, daunting foe tired itself with catch-up and the result couldn't have been any clearer.
The uncomfortable comfort set in and the Hokies marched down the field. Bud Foster's sharks circled. The Buckeyes never had a prayer. A group of fans stood in a bar and cheered as they chanted the words — "Let's Go Hokies." The same refrain used to echo in 75-percent capacity stadiums against Rutgers. I'm not sure many of those fans thought about the space and time between.
I did. For the first time in years, I genuinely felt the reattachment to the school I came to know in the last few years of my father's life.
It was a football program looking for respect and a tad of awareness. Eventually it found it. On Saturday night, it found it again.
Back then, it was an admirable goal. In the Horseshoe, it was an admirable win.
Comments
Well that was just a beautifully written piece! +1000!
I don't even have words. Beautiful.
Now this is a storyline for the ages. Actually made me misty eyed. Legs for you.
Mark, thanks for sharing. Go Hokies!
Well written and a little tug on the heartstrings...
Mark, as you know our relationships with our individual fathers have more than a few things in common. As Donovan Riley's pick 6 put the icing on the cake Saturday night and I was jumping up and down hugging my close friends (and people I had just met) about 30 rows from the top corner of the Horseshoe I was fighting back tears knowing my old man had the best seat in the house looking down on the stadium from above.
Of all your pieces I've read over the years this is my favorite and definitely hit me the closest. Bravo.
Beautiful piece. Thanks for sharing.
Well that is quite a piece of work.
Mark - Excellent piece!
My dad also went to VT, so our family grew up listening to the games on the radio. My brother and I would argue who would imitate Deshazo, Freeman, Druckenmiller, Banks, Oxendine, or Carpenter in the backyard while mimicking the plays as called by Bill Roth and Mike Burnop on the radio. Simplicity. Perfect way to describe it.
Such a beautiful piece. Thank you for sharing these memories with us.
This was a great and heart felt read. Thanks for posting. My dad was a VT fan, too as 5 of his kids are VT grads (including me). We would always watch the VT-UVA game together during Thanksgiving. I miss those days and him, too.
Much appreciated , brought back memories of attending games in Miles Stadium & listening to Tech games on the car radio in the late fifties with my dad! Such great memories.
Well done Mark.
Last night was the drive 2.5 hours out of my way to help my aging dad with 20 minutes of lifting he couldn't do himself, and hasn't accepted that he can ask others to help him with.
And then I log into my work email this morning, and find my bosses dad just passed away. A WWII hero who my boss just idolized.
My thoughts have been a crumbled mass of the passage of time, and the impermanence of life.
Thank you for sharing this. It helped in ways you probably didn't imagine it would.
My Keydet dad had to come to terms with my being a Hokie, but now he pulls for us. In fact, he feels Beamer has done such a great job, that over the last few years some calling for him to go proves how much he spoiled the Hokies with victories.
Outstanding piece. Damn, it just got a little dusty in here...
Wow. It starts off with just an incredible pic dominated by Frank's expression of toughness and determination. Hands on hips, looking around defiantly, perhaps trying to catch someone's eye and daring them to return the gaze. He surely looks ready for a fight. And the players - young, confident, looking to follow Frank's lead into battle. I lingered on that for quite a while.
Then the brilliance of your writing followed. Literally transporting the reader to the time and place you describe. Catching feelings we all share of our fathers - particularly us older readers who long ago lost ours, too. We all become our fathers, I think, in time. And in turn our sons will remember our projects, maybe even chuckle at all the energy expended on something seemingly trivial. But in the end, the demonstration of hard work, will, and perseverance, is what will be remembered most, to hopefully be emulated by those sons that follow. To me, it seems much like football, and more particularly, Frank Beamer football.
Thanks for putting together such a thought provoking article. You should think about putting your talents into a book.
Great point. That picture is awesome. It reminds me of the painting of George Washington on the boats crossing the Delaware River to the Battle of Trenton on Xmas Eve. That was a turning point in the Revolutionary War! OK, that's a stretch, but you see what I mean.
Ready for battle!
Great write up! Legs for everyone!
Love it. This brought me back to the good 'ol days as well watching the games with my dad, and my teddy bear named Frank. Ironically I just got the bear fixed this year so he is back in action watching games with me!
I never saw that bear freshman year, Trey. Were you holding out on us?
Thank you for the nostalgic perspective. I have been following VT football since the Will Furrer days and I too have missed the tenacity of those teams years ago when we were trying to make a name for ourselves. You're right. It did feel like that again watching this team Saturday night. I hope we continue to have that fight and chip on our shoulder all season long and for years to come. Thank you for sharing and reminding us of our roots. I love this team and this school and Hokie Nation.
What a great read. Thank you!!!
Thank for reminding me of how lucky I was to witness this game with my
Father. Precious memories. Great story!
Thank you all for your kind words. I really appreciate them.
Awesome! My old man as well as my two brothers are UVGAY fans so I missed out on the Saturday fellowship as they barred any Hokie talk in the house while they were in the midst of all things Charlottesville so this was like the childhood I never had and am trying to provide for my children. SO far I am 4 for 4. Seriously though, that was a well written, emotion provoking read. Well done sir. Well done.
Well said. I share the sentiment and a very similar Hokie experience.
This article is outstanding. Perfectly summarizing the relationship between family and family (Hokie Football). After reading this I could only wonder who was slicing onions in the office.
Bravo!
Man, their are not right words in the English language to say enough thank yous for this story. Nothing to say other than to say this is so touching. Legs galore.
beautifully written piece. There was something truly special about listening to those old games on the radio. I make it a habit to listen to tech talk live and pre game pieces on the radio and it brings back those old memories. Great post.
That hit home.
My dad (BS'53) passed away last month. We shared a lot of things- VT being one of them.
He loved "VPI". He and another VT grad buzzed a game in 1969 flying VaANG F-84's. You can't get away with THAT shit today. (They both passed within a month of each other this summer- I took my dad to his funeral, then planned his 3 weeks later)
He'd "work" up here for the day so he could fix my car when I was in school- so I could get to class...although it never really helped. haha.
He used my season tickets in '98 to go to a game with his girlfriend. (She knew nothing about football and it pissed him off trying to explain everything to her.) When he got home, he told me he'd never go to another game in person.....that game was Temple....and he never did.......although he did go to a couple spring games with me and his grandson.
He never took his ring off- I mean, in every freaking picture I ever saw of him he had it on. He was able to see a VT ring on his grandson's finger this year. He'll miss his graduation this December.....but he knew.
Thanks for the article. Shit... I miss him.
Great piece. I too listened to games with my dad while working on Saturdays as a kid. I remember listening as Ashley Lee returned two picks for TD's against Vanderbilt, or when VT beat WVU and Major Harris, or when Cyrus Lawrence was racking up carry after carry. Good memories....even better perspective.
Thanks for the excellent article, Mark.
My perspective, from the other side of the equation: I had the pleasure of watching the game Saturday with my oldest son, who was home from school for the weekend. He attends a college without a football team, and really hasn't been that into football. I've taken him to one Tech game, and he fancies himself a Tech fan. Saturday, he said he wanted to watch the game with me. He has no idea how much I treasured that. We found ourselves yelling at the top of our lungs (to the disdain of my spouse), and giving each other high-fives when Tech made a big play. It was a great father-son bonding experience. I probably enjoyed the game more with his company. My Dad has never been into sports, although he used to watch more baseball than anything. I remember watching baseball with my Dad on Saturday afternoons. This makes me wonder, as he is in failing health now, if he felt the way I felt about those Saturdays as I felt about Saturday night with my son. I think I should bring this up with him. Thanks for making us remember that there are more important things than football.
Wow...really shouldn't have read this at work...teary eyed in front of my coworkers.. This was an exceptional piece.....i really can't put into words how this article makes me feel..My father is my hero, and he's the reason i went out into the world to "be somebody"...and why i will teach my daughter how to "be somebody"... thank you for this article...i can't explain why...but it really means the world to me..
Fantastic article - superbly written. Although I can't relate to the childhood memories of listening to VT games (I actually grew up in NC as a UNC fan...), I can totally relate to the playing for respect and acknowledgement piece. It was very refreshing to watch the team play with passion, desire, and drive. Here's hoping for that same level of intensity this Saturday and beyond. Even if we don't win every game, play hard and give it all we have every minute on the field. Let's Go!
Beautifully versed. Made my night :D
This story hit home on so many levels. Thanks for sharing this story. I am sure it is the story for a lot of us older Hokie alums. There were many times I sat in the car outside to get the VT game because that was the only placee to hear the game. I can't tell you way back when, how excited we were when we saw VT run across the bottom of the screen. We thought we had really made it. When we hit top 10 after the Texas game, I knew we were on our way.
That was just...beautiful. I swear I saw your father on the scaffolding working on getting the shutters off while I see a young kid running around in the yard. Thank you for sharing. Thank you for reminding us why we love sports. Because its another connection to our past, with family and friends. Go Hokies!
Probably the best non-analysis article ever written on TKP. You have a great OpEd voice Mark. Hope to read more of it in the future.
Not only is this a terrific article, I'm impressed by the overwhelming response that people are giving this article and Mark in particular. Proof that the Hokienation is not only rabid about their team, but "get it" regarding life in general.