Did you watch the Razorback game today? Wow! It didn’t even look like our team out there. They really stepped it up today and brought their “A” game to the early-morning-shootout! I am proud of them. I will be even more proud if they bring this same intensity to the field next Saturday against Florida. Root Hog!

I started going to Razorback football games with my dad when I was very young. Everything was so loud and exciting. The pre-game show was my favorite part: the band, the cheerleaders, calling the Hogs and watching them run through the “Big A.” When that was over and the game was about to start, I would poke my dad and tell him I was ready to go. However, through my dad’s popcorn and cotton candy purchases, I was able to stay. As I got older, I started to pay attention to the game and really enjoyed it. I was even brave enough to start high-fiving people I did not even know! My dad would always take my brother and me to Shoney’s after the game. This was always my favorite part of the night because he let us order off of the adult menu! Sitting with my dad late on a Saturday night discussing football over a huge cheeseburger has always been a great childhood memory. My dad still swears that we only went to the game for that late-night dinner at Shoney’s and I think he might be right.

 Last weekend I went to the mecca of football stadiums, Cowboys Stadium, to watch the Razorbacks play the Aggies. As I sat in my seat with amazement at this beautiful stadium (and my OWN cup holder), I realized that I still felt the same excitement at age 26 as I did at age 5. My husband, my brother, my great friend, Chris Ann, and I took in what was now the modern age of spectating: cupholders, gigantic screens, lots of sparkly objects, a shop for fans that looked trendier than the GAP and even MORE expensive food! I thought of my dad when I saw the cotton candy man and knew he was at home cheering just as hard as I was in that moment.

Here’s to dads who take their little girls to football games! They will never forget it (just make sure to have cash for the cotton candy man)!