The Game Itself

Congratulations to Alabama. They were the best team on the field that night. They are not a Dynasty as Sports Illustrated has tagged them. They will lose a minimum of two games next year even returning their Heisman winner. That team can run the ball well and has a decent defense. However, the best quarterback in the game this year, our QB, was knocked out of the game on the 4th play, as in a tragedy, and yet we nearly emerged victorious with our freshman, and future star, taking the snaps. Down 3 points with 3 minutes in the game, Alabama sealed the game with yet another turnover. Next to Vince Young's comeback in the Rose Bowl 5 years ago, I have never been as proud to be a fan of this program. No sportswriter has embraced this story. It has been eye opening to read about your team when on the losing end of a championship. The real story of the game is never told. The victor is glorified, and in the case of Southeastern Conference, to an absurd extent. The loss was the best of which I have ever been a part as a fan. Whether due to chronic denial or dying loyalty, I will remember this game not for the loss, but for what almost was and what would have been.

Crimson Tide

In hindsight, sitting among the Alabama fans was a gift not a curse. It made the loss less bitter, as odd as that may seem, because we could see and feel the anxiety caused by the near comeback. Behind us sat older alumni and at our feet were younger alumni. They were loud and proud - at least for the 1st half of the game. We made friends by chatting about the two teams and offering our insights into what would ensue. We did our best to be ambassadors for our own school. It was surely difficult at times and when sitting among the enemy one must always be aware of his surroundings. However, at game's end the Bama fans earned my respect. They were relieved in victory but understood our loss. As true fans, we had cheered when winning and losing. As a result, I had multiple fans shake my hand, sincerely wishing us well. I must add that my cousin experienced the complete opposite treatment from the Bamas. With mild reservation due to my cousin's experience, I opine that, despite it's history, the University of Alabama, in the year 2010, was well-represented on and off the field.

Setting

A necessary element to any good story is setting. It is as important as the characters - at least as it is analogous to real life. For instance, country music isn't as good without the hats, boots, sun, and outdoors. Strip mall bars will never compete with the neighborhood dives of New York. And football needs roaring passionate fans under the tall beaming lights. The setting inside the Rose Bowl was idyllic. The misty fog moved in off the golf course. Crimson red and burnt orange stained respective halves of the stands. Paratroopers dropped in overhead waving the flags of the two teams. Fireworks soared into the night sky while Air Force Jets did a fly-over. We settled into our 2nd to last row seats in the Alabama end zone. The perfectly bad seats in a perfect setting.

Gametime

What really excites your soul? Whether reasonable or not is an irrelevant point. Longhorns football flows through my blood, it has since I was a child and it will until the blood stops flowing. The minutes before entering the stadium were anxiety filled. My uncle applied the eye-black under my eyes - you know, in case of the improbable event that our starting QB gets knocked out on the 4th play of the game. We as a family embraced outside the gates, said our goodbyes, held hands and practically prayed silently. "The next time we see each other we will be national champions, again." My heart pumped the burnt orange blood faster as we departed ways and I walked into the Rose Bowl.

The Ticket

The Rose Bowl issued 4 types of tickets for the championship. 4 unique looks with a significant Pasadena landmark embossed on the front. Basically, they are all boring, except 1. That is, the ticket with the actual Rose Bowl depicted is the best of them all. As we were a crew of 4 people we needed to democratically decide who got the best ticket. They were shuffled in an envelope and the tickets were drawn at random. I hoped my choice was a harbinger of events to come.

Our House

With all due respect to UCLA who plays their home football games here, the Rose Bowl is our house. For the 3rd time in 6 years the Longhorns played a championship game here. Many joyful memories are tied to this stadium. It is a second home. A place of comfort. The illuminated rose on the facade is a sign of victory. We were back home, and it felt that way.

Texas Exes Tailgate

For the last two national championships the Longhorns alumni association has sponsored a tailgate party outside of the stadium. The entire fairway of the adjoining golf course is filled with Texans. I attended the party in '05 and the attendance has grown considerably since then. Fajitas are served (slowly) and the beer and wine flow like milk and honey - as only found in a promised land. We ate picnic style and basked in the SoCal sun. No alcohol was consumed on my part. This is the national championship and to be taken seriously. The adrenaline was intoxicating enough.

Gameday

It has been over 13 years since the Garcia family has attended a championship game of this magnitude. Not since Superbowl XXX have we descended upon a town in full uniform for pride, state, and team. In the early 90's we donned Dallas Cowboys blue, in the 00's we have rocked burnt orange. Hats atop, beads dangling, boots strapped, and car magnets placed, we were ready to drive over to Pasadena to support our Horns.

Freddie Roach - Wild Card Boxing Gym

I went looking for Manny Pacquiao, like I said I would. I told my family that someone needed to avenge all the Mexican and Chicano fighters that have been floored by the the Filipino superhero boxer. Lucky for him he was absent the day I walked in to the 2nd floor bustling gym. It was as packed and busy as a sweatshop minus the sewing machines. The hit HBO documentary series 24/7 portrays the gym as larger than it actually is. I had to throw a few left hooks just to walk through the joint. Trainer and owner Freddie Roach is the main man in charge. Freddie's brother intercepted my friend Kiki and I and gave us the royal tour of the grounds. He also added that he had spent some time in Texas locked up in fed prison in Texarkana; He unveiled his collage of tattoos to prove it. We shook the hands of future title contenders and they shook ours. Mutual respect pervading the embrace. I offered my insights on the boxing scene with a few trainers and they reciprocated with theirs. It was verbal sparring by way of knowledge of the sport. Boxing gyms are refuges, communities of their own and the hospitality always abounds. This picture with Freddie is proof of that. The photo will soon hang in Richard Lord's boxing gym, my home gym, back in Austin, TX.

Quick Prayer

Dear guy who looks like Jesus wandering Melrose street outside of the Village Idiot bar, please deliver the Longhorns a victory over the overhyped Alabama team from the SEC. Deliver us from evil. Amen.

Anerican Gladiators

Venice Beach

Killing time the day before the game we rode over to Venice Beach to get a feel for the California winter. The sun was high and the plastic multi-colored sunglassess were necessities - both for the sun and to look badass. The other necessity was a quick 5 minute workout. I hit the speed bag and tried to do the olympic rings. Brian and Mickey played American Gladiator on a balance beam. The participants from the reality tv show Biggest Loser played games of knockout on the basketball courts. This tourist site is a favorite of mine, as is any hippie gathering place such as Haight St. in San Francisco, Guadalupe St. in Austin, and Union Square in NY. Chillin' the Cali way is all we did. It was fun, but that is all. Truthfully, I felt in a bit of a daze. The impending game was already weighing heavy in my thoughts. The beach setting was calming, but it was a false calm. One that would be inevitably interrupted by a Crimson tide of Alabama supporters in a few days.

Oscar De La Hoya Statue

Chicanos are 0-2 when it comes to statues. Allow me to rant for a post. The Staples Center recently erected a bronze statute of the greatest boxing draw of all-time - Oscar De La Hoya. An East L.A. native, the sculpture was to be a remembrance by which future patrons could pay homage to his legacy. One day I will bring my kids to see it and they will ask me to explain the figure. Problem is, the figure looks awful. The body is of a pygmy or something out of Lord of the Rings. The face is more of a gargoyles than the typical good looks of a young Chicano. Cough cough. In addition, The University of Texas put up a statue of Cesar Chavez. THE Cesar Chavez of the United Farm Workers movement. It must have been molded by the same guy who does the Ronald McDonald Clown ones in the playpens of McDonalds. The shoes are the same - oversized and same style. Basically, both works are not well done and a shame. I was excited to finally see the piece in person and left utterly disappointed. I couldn't even muster a smile for the pic. Oscar, if you read this - C'mon man, you have a billion dollars, do something about it.

Houston v. Lakers

20th row at Staples. We Longhorns fans were in full force supporting the Rockets. The Houston NBA team just happened to be in town while we were there and we took the opportunity to support our fellow Texans. Staples Center is a venue for the stars. Spotlights circle into the sky overhead. The blue and red trimmed lighting on the outside, the quality stadium food on the inside, the palm trees, the celebrities, it all makes for a sporting experience that is only found in the city of the stars. Kobe and the Lakers pulled it out in the end but not before we gave him a good heckling.

Orange Roses

Burnt Omni

The owner of the Omni Hotel in downtown LA is an alumni of the University of Texas at Austin and a huge fan of the Horns it seems. He had the foyer decked out in burnt orange roses, UT flags flew out front alongside the Texas state flag, and Welcome Texas was projected onto the waterfall in the valet pull up. We absolutely take over this town. There is saying about painting the town red. The longhorns paint the town orange. The pride falls somewhere between the comical and the obnoxious but if you are part of Longhorn Nation then it is nothing but good 'ol Texas spirit.

Texas! Fight!

Getting Started

I associate trendy sushi joints with with LA. Its health conscious food, mixed with hard drinking, and mixed with an urban ambience. So there was no better way to kickoff our arrival in the City of Angels than with sake bombs. Instead of a countup of 1-2-3 we decided to use Texas - Fight! Go hard or go home.

Los Angeles Skyline

Los Angeles is still one of my favorite cities. The layout is Houston but bigger. The people are Dallasites but more fashionable. The weather is incomparable as it is practically laughable to be this nice in January. It is rough and luxurious and a true American city.

Baaaaaack

Once again, we Longhorns invaded Los Angeles. This is the 3rd time in something like 6 years that we have played inside the Rose Bowl - the Grandaddy of them all. At this point I am sure the shiny-shirts of LA flee the area during bowl weekend. The ones that are left trapped by an onslaught of burnt orange look at us in our cowboy boots and hats as if we broke loose from a stable. We were actually asked if "we had guns in the car." LA has become a second home, and "our house" in the Under Armour way. I was a cordial host to the Alabama fans we encountered. I welcomed them to the Rose Bowl and reminded them this was not our first rodeo.

Fiesta Bowl

Go to a championship game in which your team is not playing, bring flasks and bring friends. It is therapeutic to attend an event of such magnitude and not have a rooting interest. There is no stress. The game of football is an art and it helps to view it objectively to be reminded of all that it is. Fans were divided by color and passions. We watched as Broncos faithful jeered Horned Frogs followers. There was back and forth and we were happily caught in the middle of it. We wanted to instigate further as if were the producers of Mtv's Jersey Shore. We refrained but thoroughly enjoyed the night's occurrences. Boise State was victorious - yet again - in the bowl.

Neutral Colors

I tried as hard as possible not to be the kind of fan that goes to a game in which his team is not playing and wear his team's colors. It was a difficult undertaking because I pretty much only packed burnt orange. I scrounged up this look but still threw up the horns from time to time to let everyone know who's boss. The Alabama fans sitting directly behind us decided to take a different route and actually be "those guys." And let me draw your attention to the awesome hat I picked up while there. That is not a football under my arm, but a potato hat. Idaho = potatoes and bowl championships.

Stadiums

Last June I visited the Colosseum in Rome and my eyes watered up in romantic comedy fashion. Stadiums will never be the same for me. Will the colossal spaceship-like behemoths in Glendale, Dallas, and Houston be visited by backpacking college students in the future? Are they built sound enough to stand the test of time?Long after the Armageddon of 2012 when the Mayan calendar runs out, will those who come after us marvel at the feats of engineering? I'm living during the time of giant stadiums and can't help but stare in awe.

Glendale, Arizona

It just ain't right. Look at this picture. This is Arizona - in the winter. Every single time I pass through this state its as if I am in the Garden of Eden. The Phoenix basketball team was aptly named the "Suns." There are legitimate reasons that the Superbowl, winter bowl games, and retiring seniors flock to this oasis. After a quick stop at the liquor store and our hotel we set our sights on our first sporting event of the trip - the Chips and Salsa Fiesta Bowl.

Amarillo, TX

There is nothing worth writing about between Dallas and Amarillo. In Amarillo, located in the Texas panhandle, lies the Big Texan Steak Ranch. The inside resembles a large saloon but ornamented elaborately with christmas lights, trophy deer racks, and cowboy paraphernalia. This north Texas disneyland is complete with souvenir shop, air-soft rifle range, and slotmachines. Even more, it is home to the free 72 ounce steak. The mammoth piece of meat only becomes gratis if the courageous consumer is able to down it in its entirety - within an hour. None of the crew was up to the task this early afternoon. Instead we settled for 12 ounce chicken fried steaks. A few Alabama and Oklahoma fans sat at the tables among us. I was hoping to start an old west war of words for dessert but refrained - for now.
This is a picture of an Alabama houndstooth hat wearing fan failing at the 72 ounce steak contest. I believe it will be indicative of his prospects to come.

BCS National Championship Bound

Four years ago I flew to Los Angeles, with a stop over in Las Vegas, to watch the Texas Longhorns and Vince Young in the National Championship game at the Rose Bowl. I was 6 months shy of legal gambling age so I birdwatched the Vegas strip. On gameday, I had a $1000 to scalp a ticket and there were no tickets to be had. I watched the game from outside the stadium on a flat screen among similarly situated fans. Today I depart to complete my life. I will bet on black and I will watch my Horns from inside the stadium. In life, there are rarely opportunities for a do-over. This trip is my second chance.

Updates will be regular as I plan to document every single second of the dream. Here is the trip: Houston to Dallas to Albuquerque to Phoenix to Los Angeles to Las Vegas and then back.

3 games: TCU v. Boise State - Fiesta Bowl, Houston Rockets v. Los Angeles Lakers at Staples, and Texas v. Alabama - BCS National Championship Game.

Texas Fight. Hook 'em Horns.