Rocky Top, You'll Always Be, Home Sweet Home To Me

           

If you know us at all, you most likely know that we are die-hard University of Tennessee fans.  While I will never deny that I am extremely competitive and that does extend to my love for the Vols, this particular post is not about their record, their wins or their losses.  I’m going to try to keep that part out of this, even though, after yesterday’s heartbreakingly frustrating loss, that may be more difficult than I am anticipating.

I come by this love of the Vols honestly.  My family has been full of huge fans my entire life.  I attended my first Tennessee football game in 1985; the year I turned one.  We’ve been through frustrating years, good years, wins, losses, controversies, bowl games and even championships.  I know some of you might fight me on this, but college football is full of tradition, where pro football can’t even compare.  Tennessee has the Vol Walk, the Pride of the Southland Marching Band, the Power ‘T” pregame, Smoky, the Vol Navy, and on and on it goes.  The cheers are mostly the same as they were when I was a child.  The stadium, while it’s been updated, is completely familiar.  I have family members, especially my Dad, who say the same things in the same situations each game day, i.e. “why play anywhere else” as potential recruits watch the Vol Walk.  Tennessee football has been the reason I’ve travelled to quite a few places in the country; whether it was for a bowl game or just a big, hyped up away game, my family was there.  I did miss the 1998 National Championship game in Tempe, Arizona, but that’s another, somewhat bitter story for another time.  To sum it up, obviously, the Vols have always been a part of my family life.  There are no occasions when we’re all together that it doesn’t at least come up in conversation. 

Outsiders may roll their eyes.   As new in-laws marry in to the family, they’ve all had to do their research and at least learn to follow Tennessee football.  I was lucky; Adam was already a fan.  Although, I do like to think that I’ve helped him to take it all up a notch.  Anyway, go ahead, roll your eyes.  We know it’s a hobby and that it’s just a game.  It is; it’s just a game, but it’s a game we care about and a game that has given us all a common interest to share.  That’s really the point. 

This season, Amelia has a cheerleader outfit, a onesie and a dress to show her support of the Vols.  Yep, I have no problem accepting the fact that I’m encouraging her to be a fan.  She has no say right now in the fact that she is a Tennessee fan (She’s also a Wake fan, by the way, and that’s also my fault.  The fact that I also bleed back and old gold is true but isn’t a part of this story.).  I’m completely ok with that.  She will look back at pictures of our family and see that she was a part of things.  She will know that we included her and that we helped her to enjoy the fanfare, the fun, the family bonding and the game.  If, as she grows up, she doesn’t enjoy football, that’s fine.  If she decides to pull for another team, she’ll have a tough time at family gatherings, but that’s fine.  She will have complete control of where she chooses to attend college and if she chooses to attend another university in the SEC that isn’t Tennessee, I’ll miss her for four years, but it’ll also be fine. 

So, win or lose, I’ll keep pulling for them.  I’ll learn the new cheers, buy the new Nike swag, go to all the games I can, cheer when they win, struggle when they lose, be reminded that it’s just a game and be blindly optimistic for the proverbial next Saturday and even next season.  Go Vols.