Tomorrow brings the Huskers’ first away game for the season, against Miami in the Sunshine State. It also brings a change to my routine in following the progress of the Big Red, as I will go to one of the numerous “watch sites” to follow the game. Many people living in Nebraska are aware that there are Nebraska fan clubs all over the country, but they are probably unaware of exactly how many groups of Nebraska ex-pats and other fans gather to watch the game each week.
In Texas alone we have fan clubs known as the North Texas Nebraskans, Houstonians4Huskers, Capital of Texas Nebraskans, and the Huskers of San Antonio. All together there are at least 10 different watch sites spread around the state where Big Red fans gather to cheer on their team. I am looking forward to visiting some of these and other interstate locations during the season as the team plays its road games.
Indeed my first experience at a Nebraska watch party remains clearly etched in my memory. It was September 2001, just a couple of months after I had moved to Fort Worth. My Omaha-born NU-educated girlfriend (now my wife) suggested that we go watch that week’s game at a nearby watch site for the North Texas Nebraskans. Up until that time I had only seen the team play from the comfort of our living room, and thus I liked the idea of going somewhere to watch them on a big screen. Nothing could have prepared me for the experience I was about to undergo, but the number of red vehicles and flags displayed thereon should have given me a hint of what was to come.
The game had just begun when we arrived and walked into a sports bar filled with around 100 noisy and highly animated fans, every single one of whom was dressed in red. Nebraska scored a touchdown not long after our arrival, and suddenly a DJ operating an elaborate sound system started playing the fight song at high volume. I looked around me at the smiling faces and waving arms as the prelude to the song began, and I could scarcely believe my eyes and ears as the fans responded with their rhythmic clapping and loud yells throughout the song. Their affection for their team was obvious and their enthusiasm contagious. As if this evidence of team spirit was not enough, the seminal moment came when the Blackshirts were called upon to make a goal-line stand and prevent the other team from scoring.
“Let’s hear it for the dee-fense!” cried the DJ and 100 voices were immediately raised in unison, creating a loud din intended to prevent the opposing offense 600 miles away from being able to hear their quarterback’s play calls and snap count. Once again, I could hardly believe what I was hearing and I even said out loud (to no-one in particular) “They can’t hear you!” But before the game was over I realized I had missed the point of this raucous display. Cheering for the defense was only a part of the day’s purpose, for which the overall goal was to gather with fellow red-clad Nebraska fans and recreate the experience of being at the game and cheering on their beloved Big Red. When the friendliness and warmth of the Nebraskan ex-patriates that we spoke with during the game was added to the lively atmosphere, it was no wonder that my wife and I became regular attendees at these events.
I’m looking forward to seeing the game tomorrow along with the North Texas Nebraskans. It will be easy to spot me, because I’ll be the guy dressed in red cheering for the “dee-fense!”