My first 40 (plus) games

It all started with one split-second decision. “Put me there,” I told video coordinator John Sells. And the fact that he had enough faith and trust in the kid who had just screwed up the video at San Diego State, to put me in the endzone in the first Big East conference game of 2007, told me a lot. I’ve been there ever since.

San Diego State-2007, the final game I was on the sideline

Forty games later, I have been through a lifetime of memories, hundreds and thousands of miles of air and bus trips, and have three shiny rings to show for the work that I have put in.

When people ask me what I do, it’s tough for me to explain. Teachers don’t understand my job, but they must yield to my “get out of jail free” absence excuse forms. My friends don’t get it, well, most of them don’t, but even parts of my family don’t understand exactly what I do.

But my dad has the best line of all, if you ask me. “When they say we’re going to go watch film, that’s him,” he’ll tell friends, family and co-workers. I’ve adopted the line and use it as my own.

Hawaii from 2008

Also, let’s be honest, there’s not much I can do to influence the outcome of games, and my stellar record in the endzone mostly has to do with the genius of the current Notre Dame head coach, Brian Kelly. And although UC fans were afraid Butch Jones wasn’t going to be as great after the 1-3 start, everyone is beginning to see the Bearcats turn around, and they now believe that a third straight Big East title is still within reach.

Forty games and 40 different experiences. No one game is exactly the same. But this much is true: I’ve had a blast.

In 40 games, I’ve seen 30 wins and 10 losses. I’ll take a 75% winning percentage. In conference play, I’ve been a part of 18 Big East wins, and only 4 losses. I have seen two conference championships and two BCS bowl games.

The view from the New Orleans Saints practice facility in prep for the 2010 Sugar Bowl

Going undefeated last season certainly didn’t hurt my overall record and my conference record.

I took over in 2007 for the Rutgers game in early October, a game that we won 28-23. The next two games were losses. My record was a less than stellar 1-2. By the end of the PapaJohns.com Bowl in 2007, my record was 4-3.

So I wouldn’t take full credit for being mediocre, but as we joked about these seemingly meaningless stats, Sells and fellow video team member Joe Stanek both noted that maybe we should have pulled me from the endzone.

The box we use to keep rain off our laptop, from West Virginia in 2008

Problem was, no one else wanted to do it, or knew how.

In 2008, we went 11-3, and won our first Big East title at 6-1 in conference. Losing to Oklahoma on the road was no big loss—after all, they played Florida for the National Title that year. Losing to UConn in Connecticut was not good, but hey, we ended up with the ring, and that was all that mattered that year.

Then there was the perfect regular season last year, 12-0 and 7-0 in conference play. Even with a loss to Florida in the Sugar Bowl (and the second head coach I ever worked under, even though Jeff Quinn was technically the “interim” head coach) it was a very successful season.

Sitting at .500 this year has certainly been somewhere many UC fans aren’t used to after two years of almost nothing but winning. But, the Bearcats are beginning to turn the corner. This is neither the time nor the space to discuss that.

Oddly enough, I’m a perfect 3-0 on Thursday nights. USF is 0-2 against yours truly on Thursday nights (for more on the 2008 Thursday night UC/USF duel, check back later this week). And the other game was the ’08 opener against Eastern Kentucky, an FCS opponent, who we beat soundly.

Friday nights, including the most recent win over Louisville**, have also been nice to me. I’m 4-2 including 4-0 in the regular season. The two BCS bowl game losses were both Friday night games. I’ve been a part of one Monday game, the thrashing of Rutgers in 2009 that began the perfect season that propelled Brian Kelly to South Bend.

The Oregon State set up last season

As for my “stat junkie” need to explain more, I broke down my record against opposing conferences as well. Here they are:

ACC: 0-2
Big Ten: 1-0
Big East: 18-4
Pac Ten: 1-0
Big 12: 0-2
SEC: 0-1
Conference USA: 2-0
WAC: 2-1
MAC: 4-0
FCS Schools: 3-0

And if you missed my overall record by year, here it is in more plain sight:
2007: 5-3
2008: 11-3
2009: 12-1
2010: 3-3

The ultimate question is, does the impressive record of the UC football team have anything to do with my video? Probably not, but it’s been a fun ride.

And it’s not over yet.
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**Note, after doing some quick math, it turns out that I’ve been in the endzone for 41 games, and this Friday’s game will be number 42. But, nonetheless, it was fun compiling some stats.