Sunday, July 28, 2013

I want a Dr Pepper bottle!

As any Baylor fan can tell you, a great point of pride at Baylor and in Waco is the fact that Waco is the birthplace of Dr Pepper.  Created in the 1880s at the Old Corner Drug Store, it is now enjoyed around the world, but the ties to Baylor remain strong.

One sign of those ties is the tradition of Dr Pepper's production of bottles commemorating conference championships.  Unfortunately, these are rare items, treasured by Baylor fans.  In recent years, we have enjoyed seeing a couple of commemorative bottles after the Lady Bears' basketball national championship seasons.  I don't want to downplay those championships at all, but I am ready for another football bottle!

The last time the Bears won the conference championship was in 1980, with Mike Singletary, Walter Abercrombie, and Jay Jeffrey.  (Technically, they shared the title in 1994 with half the conference--five teams were 4-3 in conference play--because undefeated A&M was ineligible. . . . But that doesn't really count.)  We've had some great seasons in recent years.  After a long drought, with years and years of losing records, we finally have gone to bowl games--three in a row!  We have our Heisman Trophy winner, we have a new stadium taking shape.

But we don't have a bottle!  I want a bottle!  With all the hype and optimism surrounding the Bears this summer, I beginning to BELIEVE!

Two bottles.  Let's have another "season of glory" and get a third!


Thursday, July 25, 2013

An on the field moment: Parents Weekend 1989

I never have doubted that I have the greatest parents in the world.  I believed it growing up, and still do today.  It was nice when, in the fall of my junior year at Baylor, that feeling was affirmed by the Baylor Parents' League.  Mom and Dad were announced as Parents of the Year at After Dark on Friday night, then recognized on field at the Baylor/Tech game on Saturday.  (By the way, Baylor won 21-15.)

My oldest sister Laura, a 1985 graduate, and my brother Mark, who was in high school at the time, but who would graduate in 1994 from Baylor were there.  By coincidence, I was the only current Baylor student in the family at the time Mom and Dad were honored.  I can assure you that when they were evaluating potential honorees, I didn't come into consideration!  They must not have realized that we were related until after the decision was made and it was too late. . . .

I was proud of them, and was pleased that they were recognized for all they do to support and promote Baylor.

Thanks to Mrs. Moore for putting together this cool framed memento.
Mom and Dad still have it displayed at home.


Sunday, July 21, 2013

Camping at Fort Fisher

Wow, it's been 2 months since I have posted here, and now there are less than 6 weeks until kickoff of the 2013 season!  As game day approaches, I'll continue with some reminiscing about Baylor games over the last 4 decades.

When I was growing up, part of the fun of going to a Baylor game was camping at Fort Fisher.  Today, the space behind the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame has a building and a park area, then gives way to the law school.  But in the 1970s and 1980s, the RV park filled up with Baylor fans on game weekends.  We alway camped next to the Moores, usually backing up to the big central lawn where many a football game was played.
The huge trees and large grassy areas made for great camping and playing.
You can see the cemetery in the background.
Other families usually joined us for the pre- or post-game meal, and we could walk to campus for Pigskin Review, the Homecoming parade, a visit to Judge Baylor's statue, or to shop at the Baylor Bookstore (remember when it was in the SUB?).  At night we would scare each other in the adjacent cemetery, and we could sit by the river on the simple concrete piers.
View of the new stadium from a Fort Fisher pier.
The construction of the law school and other projects closed down the RV park.  If not, that would be a prime camping spot for game days next year!  How things have changed in the world of Baylor football.  Anybody else have memories of camping at Fort Fisher?
You can still see the RV parking spots and the piers along the river.
Texas Ranger Hall of Fame top left; law school parking lot bottom right; cemetery bottom left. 
(Photographs courtesy of TXSVT2012's photostream on Flickr. Used without permission with hopes that he won't mind. Aeriel photo from Google maps.)