Students go to South Carolina

(me) “FAU!”
(prOWLers) “WHAT!”
(me) “FAU!”
(prOWLers) “WHO!”
(me) “LET’S GO OWLS!”
(prOWLers) CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP

We must have gone through that chant 100 times this weekend – and it was well worth it. 18 students rode in a limo party bus and small van to South Carolina this weekend. It was a trip that will be remember for many years.

The students that went on the trip are part of the FAU spirit team – the prOWLers. For most of them, it was the first time they had seen FAU play football – or in some cases – the first college football game. What a way to break them in: 70,000 fans filling a stadium cheering against us and the other 50 owl fans in attendance wondering why we weren’t in class but loving that we were there.

The good news: No one got arrested, in trouble or started a fight during the game. Bad news: we lost 45-6 so Steve Spurrier and the South Carolina Gamecocks.

On Friday it took us nearly 12 hours to get to the hotel. At 6:45 p.m. Friday evening we attended the Alumni Association's pre-game reception. Coach Howard Schnellenberger came into the reception room and said the prOWLers were his “disciples” and this was the last supper before going into the field of battle against South Carolina. Later that night, we went to the college district of Columbia and visited a few local establishments. This is where some of the prOWLers accidentally ran into some FAU Alumni that made the trip. An hour later, they had their e-mail addresses and phone numbers. THAT’S NETWORKING!

Some of us went shopping early Saturday morning. We went to the USC bookstore which was five-times the size of FAU’s. When we got back to the hotel, most of us laid by the pool – the weaker ones took a nap. Then it was off to the game.

At the Alumni tailgate, the prOWLers were interviewed by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. We were quoted in the sports section in Sunday’s paper. In addition, Athletic Director Craig Angelos publicly thanked the prOWLers for coming. He later pulled $mitty aside and said “We’ll talk about the North Texas game…” That game is scheduled for Nov. 11 in Denton, Texas. Can anyone say…ROAD TRIP!?

We got to the game and made our presence known. Fans and players were surprised we made the trip. After the game, players showed their appreciation for us coming after the game as we waited for them by their buses. Coach again addressed us and said that we really made a difference and he wants us to be at every road game. The chant of “Conference Title” nearly brought tears to his eyes. It was the first time he smiled since FAU scored their only touchdown of the day on their first possession in the first quarter.

It was a 14-hour bus ride home including a blown tire 30 miles from campus.

Good times. Great memories.