On Truth and Rumors Part 2: Running with the Bulls?...

You know you’re living a pretty pathetic existence when you take great pleasure in spreading untrue rumors about others. Why?.. Is your life that uninteresting?... Are you that bored?... Do you have no friends.. to the point where your mother tied a bone around your neck just so the family dog would play with you?..

Maybe. Or maybe its just pure jealousy.

There have been no less than ten blogs that have popped up over the past few days regarding my appearances at various college football games other than Florida State’s. The most recent ones of course are the ones saying that I’ve thrown my alma mater down the stairs for “greener” pastures, namely the University of South Florida. Since once again you have proved you neglect to do your homework, I guess I can take time from my busy “bandwagoning” schedule to poke a few more holes in your story and fill them with some real facts.

Since graduating from Florida State this past summer, I have been spending a lot of time in the Bay Area. In fact, I’ve pretty much lived in Tampa my entire life. So of course I have a ton of friends down here that go to either Hillsborough Community, International Academy of Design and Technology, and oh yeah.. the University of South Florida.

For those of you that took the time to read my back story, I went to USF for my first two years of college. My parents were afraid that if I just up and left for school that the big mean world would just chew me up and spit me out. They thought I just wasn’t ready to experience the real world yet. I attended my classes, fought for parking spots, and pulled in decent grades, all while holding down a job and being a nanny for a special needs child. This of course, left little time for having an actual social life.

I really had nothing but love for South Florida. They had great instructors, great classes, and were expanding at a rapid pace. The reason I left really had nothing to do with academics, though that’s hardly the excuse I gave my parents. The fact is that I was sick of living at home, sick of seeing the same people, and sick of well.. monotony. I’m sure if I would have joined a sorority or lived on campus, that most of these problems would have been alleviated. But Mom and Dad saw no reason to pay for an apartment while I was living 10 minutes away from the University. And I really couldn’t argue with them. So, the only way I could move out and get my own place is if I left for school.

Enter: Florida State. I guess you could say an even bigger reason for me going to FSU was my rendition of “Good Will Hunting” Syndrome: “I went to see about a boy.” But as most relationships at that age do.. this one fell to pieces about a year after I transferred. It wasn’t really until then, that my college experience began. I was forced to go out, make new friends, and make a separate identity for myself than what everyone else new me as.. “so-and-so’s girlfriend.”

And then, Sept 5, 2005 happened. The Cowgirl was born.

So now, after years of studying, partying, and attending the church of Bobby Bowden at Doak Campbell Stadium… I have returned to my roots in Tampa. With me traveling a good portion of the month, it just didn’t make sense for me to go anywhere else. Why pay rent on an empty apartment?... Who would watch my cat when I was away… though she really seems like she could give two @#$%’s?... When would I ever get to see my family?...

Tampa was just the logical explanation.

Being in Tampa certainly hasn’t slowed down my career any. I still have plenty of irons in the fire… so much so that I am overwhelmed on a pretty consistent basis. And the majority of them revolve around my one true love: College Sports. And I just so happen to be living in the surprise Mecca of them all.

Unless you have been living under a rock or are living your life in a complete miserable denial, you know doubt have noticed a new face in the Top 25 10: The South Florida Bulls. Things have changed pretty dramatically since I was a student in these here parts. For one, the campus is crawling with all kinds of student activities, most of which were just getting started when I was there. Then there’s the off-campus housing. It’s amazing what a few years can do in terms of real estate. I hardly recognize the area around the University. Then of course.. there’s football.

What Jim Leavitt has accomplished over the past few years with this program is nothing short of remarkable. So why wouldn’t their rise through the rankings be a huge deal?..

I have tons of friends in both the athletic departments as well as on the team, so of course its only natural for me to support it when I’m around and available. I’m happy for the Bulls and how their program has blossomed over the past few years. Their administration and athletic department has been nothing but accommodating towards me, and have even gone so far as to thank me for it. But, I have in no way turned my back on my Seminoles. In fact, the majority of the time I have gone to the Bull’s games was in a working capacity with different companies I free-lance for. I’ve attended other school’s sporting events too. And… GASP… even worn their colors. But how quickly we forget these things. (see photos)

In fact, the pictures you used to document your so-called findings are over a year old—when the bandwagon was more of a Volkswagen. Kudos for using some of the most recycled material on the net. Hell, you didn’t even bother to give photo credit to SportsIllustrated.com for it. Nice job douche. Next time try to find some more recent photos to document your findings.

Hell.. I’ll post them here. I have nothing to hide. These are from a couple weeks ago—two girlfriends of mine asked me if I wanted to go to the UCF game dressed up. I understood what I was getting myself into, and hell.. even stopped to talk football and do the chop with FSU fans I saw throughout the day. So make no mistake… my address says Tampa, but my heart says Tally.

I’ve gone to plenty of FSU sporting events in the past year—including last weeks travesty against Miami. Sans hat. I know that’s a crazy concept for some of you to grasp, but sometimes I just want to enjoy the game and forget the hoopla. Don’t worry, the garnet and gold were still in abundance.

Last weekend proved to be a long one as far as college pigskin was concerned. I attended both the Rutgers/USF game and the Florida State/Miami game. It’s not like I am keeping my agenda a secret.. hell, I talk about the games I go to on the radio and television all the time. I guess you’re saying if I ended up at Kentucky last weekend to watch the Gators.. then I am a homer’ also?.. Who’s to say I am not showing up just to see if Tim Tebow’s therapist has helped him come to grips with his emotional instabilities from the LSU game?.. Crying???.. There’s no crying in College Football.

I had business to attend to in NYC, which so happens to be a stone’s throw from Piscataway, New Jersey—where last Thursday night’s match-up was arguably one of the best games in college football this season. I made a lot of friends last year when I visited the Scarlet Knights for the Louisville game. Hell, that game may be one of the greatest upsets I have ever witnessed, barring of course the Boise State/Oklahoma game from last year, and of course Miami/Florida State 2005. It was great to finally take in a game with everyone, and see how far both teams have come since they met last year in Tampa. Though USF was favored by the numbers, history just didn’t bode well for the Bulls. Let’s face it. Any time this season a ranked team has played an unranked team on a Thursday night on enemy turf… well, let’s just say things didn’t go so well. In fact, going back a year from now… Louisville was ranked number 2 going into a similar match up on a Thursday night.. and how did that end?.. EXACTLY. And as usual, Piscataway was rockin, and when Rutgers fans get behind their Knights, they are pretty much unstoppable. Thursday night was a rough one for the Bulls, but nothing they can’t recover from. We’ll see how they fair this weekend against UConn.

Miami/Florida State will always hold a place near and dear in my heart, even though the game didn’t really have the same significance it had in recent years. A game that used to determine Championships is now two teams struggling to find and assert their position in the ACC. Saturday night’s game.. was heart-wrenching. Just when you think you’re beginning to find your rhythm, the boys from the 305 pull the rug out from underneath you. Not that anyone should really be surprised. Whenever Miami’s manhood has been questioned this season… they have always seemed to rise to the occasion. I guess there are a few plus sides to Saturday night’s outcome: The green couch survived another year. My father and I are back on speaking terms. And.. we didn’t have to splurge for a new TV at Best Buy. Now.. if my Noles can just get their swagger back.. that would be great.

As you can see I haven’t switched teams. I’ve simply given props where props are due. So here’s to you Mr. Wanna-Be-Guido hairdo. At least my boys in Jersey know how to rock theirs. I mean, your hair is so greasy, you make Steve Lavin look like an amateur. . You like apples?.. How about them apples?.. And BTW… How bout them Bulldogs?.. Nothing???.. As for your fake boob material.. it’s really tired. I pretend my boobs are about as real as Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy combined. I doubt I could even fool Stevie Wonder into thinking they were made by God. But you know what they say.. if you can touch ‘em.. then they’re real.

The bottom line is I am an avid fan of all things college sports. And there’s nothing I love more than college football. I’m a fan of the underdog. I hate blow outs. If you could give me football 7 days a week, I might be the happiest girl on earth. It’s all about competition, drive, and heart. Pigskin is a passion, regardless of the colors it comes in.

So really..

Don’t have a cow bull, man.