CSNbbs

UAB played North Texas back in 1995. It was Watson Brown's first season with the Blazers and UAB had started off slowly. UAB had been blown out a week or two before playing UNT by what is now known at Louisiana- Lafayette (the good old Ragin' Cajuns). Kevin Drake of Gardendale, AL was named the starter for this game and UAB was clearly a decided underdog in just their third D-1A game.

My grandfather had just had his upper left lobe of his lung removed due to lung cancer the week prior to the game. This game was televised on local TV (maybe 68) and I was able to watch the game with him in the hospital. The Blazers hung tough against the Eagles (their nickname back then) and pulled out an improbable 19-14 win earning its first win over a 1-A opponent.

Spending that time with my grandfather was priceless as he was coaching from his hospital bed and yelling at the TV. The nurses came into the room twice to check on him because he was making so much noise. He told me that afternoon that if UAB continued to play like that, we would be in a bowl game way before we should be.

After that surgery, he would have only seven more years with us. He was able to go with me down to Auburn, play Memphis and Vandy and go to numerous basketball games. It was my grandfather who took me to my first UAB basketball game when I was very young.

I share this because I find it ironic that here we are, twenty years after my freshman year and we are playing UNT for homecoming. I miss my grandfather very much. I would love nothing more than to get a win Saturday and make a huge memory with my family on homecoming.

Go Blazers- the REAL GREEN TEAM! ! !

That was a great experience. It was the first time we gelled as a team that year. When Coach Brown came in, the majority of the team was brand new. Most of us didn't know each other, and it took some time to get on the same page. We had a miserable start to the season, but that day in North Texas, we saw what we could be. We laid the foundation for the Steel Shield about that time.

For me personally, it was my first ever airplane ride, so it was a cool experience to travel and participate in major college football.

We had to drive out there for the game. Same as when we played TCU in Ft Worth when they were flying high and when we played Baylor down in Waco. 2 out of 3 W's aint bad I guess. The UNT win was special and the victory against Baylor with our freshman wideout making a great catch and then out ran the defenders for the winning TD was spectacular!

(10-10-2014 12:59 PM)BlazrDawg Wrote: [ -> ]We had to drive out there for the game. Same as when we played TCU in Ft Worth when they were flying high and when we played Baylor down in Waco. 2 out of 3 W's aint bad I guess. The UNT win was special and the victory against Baylor with our freshman wideout making a great catch and then out ran the defenders for the winning TD was spectacular!

Nick Coons!

yep, Nick. I think Ive seen him this year tailgating next to us with some other ex-players.

I still have some great pics from that North Texas game, and a game t-shirt. I was traveling with the team for the Kaleidoscope, and when sitting on one of the buses after the game with the cheerleaders, ga's, etc got off and myself and Kevin Taterik (sp?) both bought a UNT Homecoming t-shirt. The slogan was "time to separate the men from the boys", and it had a UNT player was wearing the number 70 and kneeling down and a little boy wearing a UAB shirt with the number 0, as if to imply they would win 70-0. I know I still have that shirt, I need to dig it out of storage and take a few pics.

(10-11-2014 09:03 PM)Blazer14172 Wrote: [ -> ]I still have some great pics from that North Texas game, and a game t-shirt. I was traveling with the team for the Kaleidoscope, and when sitting on one of the buses after the game with the cheerleaders, ga's, etc got off and myself and Kevin Taterik (sp?) both bought a UNT Homecoming t-shirt. The slogan was "time to separate the men from the boys", and it had a UNT player was wearing the number 70 and kneeling down and a little boy wearing a UAB shirt with the number 0, as if to imply they would win 70-0. I know I still have that shirt, I need to dig it out of storage and take a few pics.

That would have been a great shirt to show us today. Post some pics!

Remember when Coach Clark & team opened up a can of whoop ass on North Texas back in 2014?

(10-10-2014 05:50 PM)BlazrDawg Wrote: [ -> ]yep, Nick. I think Ive seen him this year tailgating next to us with some other ex-players.

He was at the game today. He sat right in front of me.