SB Nation User Blog: SneezyBeltran

The Tunnel...Texas/ou

SneezyBeltran — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 21:40:20 -0000

This is a post from tornjock from hornfans and I love this story. My friend's dad always sends it to him and me before the game. I figured I'd share, but want to make sure and give credit to this former player for such a finely written piece. It's obvious he's a Longhorn. HOOK EM!

This is my recollection of how things were back before the 1974 game, my last against the Sooners.
It's hard to believe that 35 seasons have passed since that day, but the images, sensory, olfactory, and visual, are as clear in my mind today as they were back then.

I just hope the outcome of this year's game is more favorable than it was in '74.

That was a heartbreaker...
_______________________________________

The Tunnel...Texas/ou

When you're given the final word by the TV guy to leave the locker room and head down the short flight of steps to the top of the tunnel, you step out into a surreal, confusing world of childish taunts and many an inverted "Hook Em" being hurled from the walkway above ... stadium security personnel in cheap windbreakers and several members of the Dallas P.D. man the long tarp-covered gate behind you ... you recognize a couple of the motorcycle cops that led the police escort through the streets of Dallas a couple of hours ago; an officer smiles as he gives you a quick salute and a "Hook Em." You return the salute and mouth a quick, "Thank you" to the officer.

We're told by the TV guy to wait at the top of the ramp ... there's no breeze ... it's hot ...

Someone steps out of a black limo just outside the gate and is quickly escorted by Texas DPS troopers through the gathering and hurried down the ramp. Must be the governor or a senator or Willie ... you can't really see over the glare of all the glistening white helmets shining in the October sunshine.

The smell of diesel fumes, horse crap, and fried food wafts through the air, mingling with the sulfur smell of residue from the Ruf-Neks' shotguns and Smokey's pre-game cannon shots. You can always smell the State Fair.

The ticketless, orange-clad well-wishers behind the chain-link gate, trying to get a quick look or a fingershake from a player or coach are the only friendly voices you hear at that end of the Cotton Bowl.

"Get after 'em, Darrell!"

"Go Horns!"

"Anybody got a ticket?!"

"Can I have your chinstrap?"

No "OU Sucks" chants; these were the days before that sentiment became the norm.

Strangely, above the yelling, the dull din of bus engines, police motorcycles, and the screaming siren from a ride over on the Midway, you can hear the clicking of the candy wrapping machines in the Salt-Water Taffy booth just across the walkway beyond the gate...

You've been taught to keep your focus ... look toward the light at the bottom of the tunnel as you move slowly downhill ... you're wedged so tightly together that your feet are barely touching the ribbed, dirty concrete below. It's like you're slowly floating down the ramp suspended among your fellow team members. You're in the shade of the tunnel now, beneath the stomping, screaming Sooner fans in the south end of the stadium. It's cooler, but you're having trouble catching your breath.

You can't help but steal a glance at your opponents as they assemble and begin to move down the ramp on the opposite side. You've seen them all through pre-game warmups, exchanged subdued good luck wishes to a misguided former high school teammate that wandered across the Red River, but suddenly, this instant is etched forever in your mind. The crimson helmets with the white interlocked "OU" really piss you off at this moment and the bile rises in the back of your throat ... you feel ... like ... you might ... lose your steak and scrambled eggs you ate four hours before in the quiet banquet room at the Hilton Inn. You don't want to puke on your facemask ... or on your teammate's back.

Instead of letting the remnants of your pregame meal fly, you choke it back and begin to yell out an unintelligible guttural sound ... your teammates join in and the sound reverberates in your helmet .... your mouth is dry ... your chest is pounding ... all of a sudden, your uniform is too tight ... you feel enormous ... you think of a cup of ice water ... a huge ground swell of noise begins to engulf you as you move closer to the light ... louder and louder ... you're glad you have your helmet on, not because you think that one of those overserved, jeering Okies will lob a half-eaten Fletcher's Corny Dog at you, but you feel secure and impervious when you manage to reach your hand up and snap your chin strap snugly as you move into the sunlight at the bottom of the ramp. You realize then how much you've been sweating as the swirling breeze on the floor of the stadium finally gets to the back of your neck and cools you ever so slightly.

The roaring sound echoing in your helmet reaches what you think to be a crescendo as the TV guy tries to hold back your screaming, snarling teammates ... You look around and the sudden reality hits you: this is IT. This is the last time you'll ever experience this feeling as a player in what you have grown up knowing as the greatest football contest in the universe. You may get a chance to walk the ramp again, but not wearing this uniform ... with these guys ... against those guys.

Tears well in your eyes, a huge lump rises in your throat as you begin to hear curses being hurled at the TV guy to let you go; just let us run out on that crappy turf one more time. You hear TV Guy yell something about the World Series game being nearly over and to just hold on for one more minute and one of your larger teammates instructs TV Guy to perform a physically impossible task with a baseball.

We surge forward, frenzied and frothing ... I look toward Coach Royal who has appeared just to my left ... he looks to be alone in his thoughts. His jaw is set ... he has to hear the taunts of, "Traitor!" and the like directed his way ... I feel more contempt for the red-clad fans leering over the tunnel walls as they wave red and white pompons at my coach's face. I wish the fat woman would fall over the wall as she screams, "Darrell, you ain't sheeyit...!" He is perturbed at the delay ... he gives us a simple nod .... the human dam breaks; TV Guy is left to fend for himself. He may have been trampled; we don't really care at this point. Smokey sounds out a huge cannon blast; a perfect smoke circle rises above the sweltering field. You imagine a football sailing right through the center of the white smoke circle as you see it emblazoned against the clear, blue North Texas sky. You hear the band playing "Texas Fight" at what seems like an impossibly fast tempo and an ungodly loud volume in your helmet. You run. Your teammates are jumping all over you. You may cry.

You aren't alone.

The swelling noise is louder than ever and you get to run out into that sunlight one last time. You'll never get to feel that way again.

Texas-UNC tickets are now on sale

SneezyBeltran — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 15:08:50 -0000

As we all know, Texas is playing North Carolina on Dec. 19th at the new Texas Stadium in Arlington. My buddy has season tickets for the Cowboys and so he went ahead and bought me some tickets a few minutes ago.

However, I don't think you need to be a season ticket holder to purchase tickets, b/c I just received an email about the tickets. I paid $50 per ticket and was in the 2nd section a little off half court. The lower section was $75 and the upper section was $30. Keep in mind how big the stadium is before buying $30 tickets as you will be pretty far away from the court.

Anyway, I just wanted to remind everybody. We talked about it some last year in basketball threads, but this is shaping up to be one of the biggest college games of the year, not to mention the venue. Best of luck to anybody trying to get a ticket and hook em!

Baseball Game Open Thread

SneezyBeltran — Sat, 30 May 2009 23:19:45 -0000

Thanks to SneezyBeltran for the open thread tonight. /lazy -HB

Chance Ruffin had an easy 1-2-3 first inning and threw about 10 pitches. He's lookin' good and so are the bats.

Horns are up 2-0 in the top of the 2nd as Kevin Keyes just dropped a 2-run bomb to score Preston Clark, who had doubled and obviously himself.

Connor Rowe also just got a single. Let's blow it wide open Horns. HOOK EM!

Avery Bradley can dunk.....in a game also...

SneezyBeltran — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 05:03:28 -0000

Avery Bradley can dunk.....in a game also...

Very nice!

Will we be graced with this beauty's presence during the game tomorrow against the golden...

SneezyBeltran — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 05:22:59 -0000

Will we be graced with this beauty's presence during the game tomorrow against the golden gophers?.....

Texas Independence Day

SneezyBeltran — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 01:09:42 -0000

It was March 2, 1836 that independence was declared from the cruel Spanish dictator Santa Anna and Mexico. The Texas Declaration of Independence was produced, literally, overnight. Its urgency was paramount, because while it was being prepared, the Alamo was under siege by Santa Anna's Mexican army.

With the beginning of the Convention of 1836 on March 1, a committee of 5 of its delegates were appointed to draft the document. The committee, consisting of George C. Childress, Edward Conrad, James Gaines, Bailey Hardeman and Collin McKinney, prepared the declaration in record time. It was briefly reviewed, and adopted by delegates of the convention the following day. Here is the beginning excerpt:

When a government has ceased to protect the lives, liberty and property of the people, from whom its legitimate powers are derived, and for the advancement of whose happiness it was instituted, and so far from being a guarantee for the enjoyment of those inestimable and inalienable rights, becomes an instrument in the hands of evil rulers for their oppression

Here is the end of the Texas Declaration of Independence:

The necessity of self-preservation, therefore, now decrees our eternal political separation.

We, therefore, the delegates with plenary powers of the people of Texas, in solemn convention assembled, appealing to a candid world for the necessities of our condition, do hereby resolve and declare, that our political connection with the Mexican nation has forever ended, and that the people of Texas do now constitute a free, Sovereign, and independent republic, and are fully invested with all the rights and attributes which properly belong to independent nations; and, conscious of the rectitude of our intentions, we fearlessly and confidently commit the issue to the decision of the Supreme arbiter of the destinies of nations.

I don't know if I'm the only one who got chills reading the last paragraph of our Declaration of Independence, but let's not forget this great holiday and our ancestors that fought for the Republic of Texas. Whether you're a 1st generation Texan, 6th generation Texan(like me) or 8th generation Texan(like my friend from work), just be glad that you're a Texan and a Longhorn.

I love this great state and The University of Texas, whether we have 2 of the top 10 recruits in the state or all 10 of the top recruits. Hook em and God bless Texas!

I did compile some of the info from a website or 2(and obviously the Texas Declaration of Independence), but historically accurate to my knowledge of Texas history and respect to what went on at Independence Hall, located at Washington on the Brazos.

Houston TX Exes Happy Hr

SneezyBeltran — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 03:11:47 -0000

Houston TX Exes Happy Hr

Anybody goin' to the Houston TX Exes Young Alumni Happy Hour tomorrow, Thursday the 12th at Lucky's from 6-10? Let me know if you are.

Colt McCoy caught trying to sell drugs?....

SneezyBeltran — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 13:44:53 -0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmKyeKmJ1oo&NR=1

I hope that the Longhorns can move past this, we do have a big game against Okie Light University today.

I think this was his junior year of high school and he did the commercial for his uncle. He is just bein' the West Texas good ol' boy that he is.

Am I up to 75 words yet? ou sucks! ou sucks! ou sucks! ou sucks! ou sucks!

TX/OU Ghostland tickets

SneezyBeltran — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 04:28:03 -0000

Since I was introduced to Ghostland Observatory via some fellow Longhorns on this site, I just wanted to give everybody a head's up on tickets for the show Oct. 11. It is at the House of Blues in Dallas the night of the Red River Shootout and all floor seats are already gone. I got a couple of balcony seats, but was unable to buy more than 2. Get your tix quick if you want to watch a good show after a beatdown of ou....

A funny note from ol' Bomar last summer...

SneezyBeltran — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 03:14:09 -0000

Rhett Bomar
Add as Friend July 9 at 2:26pm Report Message nice picture asshole, i get tired of losers like you talkin shit on facebook but u cant say anything in person cause u are scared, im gonna find you Josh Holden
July 9 at 10:51pm well I'm lookin' for a car, find me when you get a BIG RED IMPORT...BOOMER!...haha... Rhett Bomar
Add as Friend July 10 at 11:43am Report Message why dont u come say that shit to my face Josh Holden
July 10 at 10:29pm dude, chill out...the picture was an inside joke with me and a buddy, I'm puttin' up a VY pic instead...sorry for makin' you so mad...just a joke...

Since there isn't much goin' on right now, I thought I'd share some shit talkin' that ol' Bomar said to me last summer when I had a pic up on facebook of him that said, "Hey Oklahoma, I'm an idiot." He apparently was real pissed and was going to look for me(he has 'roid rage, seriously), so I had to scale it back as I was workin' in the same dump of a town where he plays...