This Glorious Madness 8/7/2022

By: Jennifer Richardson Holt

Something is coming. We are nearing the precipice of a time when people change. They will begin to live their lives differently. They will turn much of their focus toward something that for the rest of the year was stored somewhere in the back of their minds, and while it may have still been important, this is the time of year when it is thrust to the forefront of most everything. This monumental time is one of the many things that make the region that I live in, the American South, wholeheartedly another thing altogether than the rest of the land within which it rests. If you are from here or have been here for any period of time you may well know of what I speak. True, I cannot guarantee that the entire population of the South will embrace this change but even if an individual doesn’t, oh, they will be impacted by it.  It all sounds very serious and sobering I know but it is truly anything but.  The season that is coming is not the obviously approaching autumn. The time at hand is football season and for many people, this time of year changes everything.

I know what you’re thinking.  If you are not from the South or a staunch football fan, (and of course I do mean the American version; not soccer), then you are certain that my cheese has slid thoroughly off my cracker for going on like this about a sport.  However, I assure you I am not playing any overly dramatic card here.  In the South we take our football so, SO seriously.  While we do love our high school teams but that is a different type of affection. We align with our alma maters and/or where our children attend school.  Everyone can easily find somewhere to put their devotion to the Friday night lights. However, the most loyalty, the most fanaticism is definitely found in the realm of college football. This time of year we focus everything on and schedule everything around it.  The seriousness of this cannot be overstated. I suppose all of this will be obvious and boring to those who live here and are immersed in this glorious madness. However, when I sit and ponder the magnitude of this season I cannot help but to try and look at it from foreign eyes. I do not even necessarily mean from other countries (though that is probably the audience that finds it the most amazing) but even people from other parts of this country cannot fully wrap their heads around what happens here.

Weddings immediately come to mind. The standard schedule for college football games are Saturdays. Here, most people avoid having a wedding on game day.  Perhaps this seems ludicrous that it should have any bearing but, I assure you, there are people that will miss a wedding before they miss certain matchups for their team.  Perhaps if it isn’t a particularly formidable opponent a diehard fan will still attend a wedding however, the relationship must be close and it would still be preferred if the game could be on a TV somewhere during the reception at the very least.  This is factual.  I myself made sure to get married on a Friday. I squeaked it in right before football season began the next day.  Oh, and at a wedding any time of year, do not be surprised if there is some reference to the couple’s team/s of choice.  Grooms cakes are often decorated accordingly. I have known rival couples sabotage each other’s cakes with different colors on the inside and the outside for a good natured prod. By the way, southern marriages between football rivals happen far less than you’d think because, well, clearly if we take it this seriously, marriage is hard enough, no need to make it more so.

Even color itself is a delicate topic here.  Let me explain. The arch nemesis of my preferred team has crimson as its main color.  Due to this, in my entire wardrobe, I have possibly one item of clothing that falls in the spectrum of the red family. I don’t dislike the color in and of itself.  Red and even crimson are lovely on a bird or blossom or a Christmas tree. But I do not wish for anyone to see me wearing it and get confused about where my loyalties lie. Is that a tad ridiculous? Perhaps. Will I continue this practice? Absolutely.  Just this week I was helping prepare for an event to help raise funds for the elementary school my daughter attends. One lady (a fan of the nemesis) was painting a sign and one color just slightly looked like the colors of my team. She was appalled and immediately had to repaint it. See, it isn’t just me.  Was it a big deal? No. Did she insist on taking the time to hide that color anyway? Yes she did. And to further the point, when I saw the original color scheme did I think about what she thought about? I most certainly did.  I smiled about it too.

I could go on and on to the point that I fear that I might not only make this blog entirely too long but there is the bit of concern that I have for those people who are unfamiliar with what is happening around me. I can see how the things I am describing are outlandish at best and mentally ill at worst. I cannot deny that we do probably go to extremes. No, there is no probably. We definitely do. I could tell you more extent but for the aforementioned reasons I won’t. But, while there definitely are the problematic areas those are usually the exceptions to the rule. During this time people join together in such wondrous ways. We have joy and comradery. We forge new friendships over the games. Huge populations of loyal supporters rejoice together in victory and agonize together in defeat. We gather together for the sole purpose of revelry in sport.  We are suddenly surrounded by a whole new family of all kinds of people, but all in a like mind about this one huge thing.  If you aren’t privy to have experienced the beautiful insanity that is college football in the South, I highly recommend it.  Yes, it may lean a tad toward lunacy on occasion but in the best possible way.