Hold up, dude.
Take a deep breath. Relax.
You thought last Saturday’s game against lowly Utah State was crazy? You left the game early in Oregon’s signature come-from-behind win against Southern California because you couldn’t handle the stress?
Man, don’t even turn the TV on this weekend with that attitude. Stay in bed. Go hiking. Watch Barry Bonds hit No. 71 or walk No. 180. Watch the Mariners set the record of all records. What ever you do, just forget about football, forget the Ducks and their fourth quarter heart attacks.
You have too much on your mind already. Don’t risk your health over some meaningless football game.
You may end up disappointed. Because the ‘Cats are scratching with all their might.
Like all of Oregon’s opponents this season, Arizona is fired up. Perhaps more than any of us thought, and perhaps more than any team the Ducks have seen.
In the words of one student writer/fan at Arizona, “If Jason Johnson can avoid throwing picks to Wesly (great name!) Mallard and Rashad Bauman, the Cats’ll cruise and I’ll be tearing down the goal posts.”
No respect from the fans. And no respect from the Wildcat football team, either. Especially Michael Jolivette, the recipient of the most mind-blowing hit in this reporter’s short memory.
“I remember it like it was yesterday,” Jolivette told the Arizona Daily Star of Mallard’s hit in Oregon’s 14-10 victory at Autzen Stadium last season. “I remember running down the field, and I was breaking stride, and the play was nearly dead, and I just looked to my left and I saw nothing but green in my face. The next thing you know, I saw my helmet in the air and it was all over.”
By no means, though, it is over. It hasn’t even started.
Jolivette has a constant reminder of Mallard’s hit in the form of a four-inch scar across his chin, which he has coated with a goatee.
Mallard will be constantly reminded of the hit, which Jolivette called “a cheap shot,” during the game, and without trying to sound pessimistic, the Ducks may end up with a constant reminder of their trip to Tucson if they don’t bring their “A” game.
Let’s hope, for all our Rose Bowl dreams, that I’m wrong.