The Curse.

This post was written in March of this year. I am posting it now because it has become more relevant to events in the near future. I know that a number of you claim to cheer for a different team and that this post will probably incite you to approach the pulpit with an announcement of your affinities. Good luck with that. 

As some of you are aware, I follow college football to a certain degree. I follow one team in particular. This team is in fact one of only two teams I follow in college football, so I would not consider myself a watcher of college (or pro for that matter) football. The other team I follow really deserves as little mention as possible here. So most of this post is about one team in particular. Some of you are going to try to guess which team it is, which will be rather amusing. Certain people have the ability to read between the lines. Others have not been as successful.

In order to perpetuate the code name charade, I am going to refer to the team I principally follow as "Victor Mattingly University" (VMU). Many of you actually attended this university, and its true identity will become clear to those that know any of the basic storyline I address below. I am going to refer to VMU's rival as "The Other Team" (TOT, or The Tots). The Tots is not a Napoleon Dynamite reference, although it could be. If you are unaware who Napoleon Dynamite is, you may be better off in life. But, he is played by a graduate of VMU. Hopefully no one will get lost in the metaphor. That would be about as good as getting a roundhouse kick to the face from someone wearing American Flag pants.

The topic I will be addressing today is the Curse of VMU's football team. Why are they cursed you might ask? I honestly blame a man whom I will call MH. Now MH is famous for some good things and he is also (in)famous for some bad things. His name is only slightly veiled, since he is actually slightly famous.

A little bit of back story is in order. Most of this stuff is pretty well known. MH was the starting QB for VMU for three years, during which he became the winningest QB to ever play for the Victor Mattingly University Ligers. I missed most of his career, as I was elsewhere. So I am skipping his first two seasons and all that 4th and 18 stuff. This brings us to the scene of his final home game. It was the first time in ten years that VMU had worn true Royal blue, not just the "Darkest Shade."

This person is wearing True Royal Blue

After losing to the Tots the year prior, MH came out and beat those Tots in overtime. I was there. I saw him win it. I saw him beat the Tots in overtime. This is something too few have witnessed as of late. Since that day, VMU has not beaten the Tots in football. And I think it is because of the MH Curse.

THE CURSE. The Awful MH curse. 
 
Probably none of this needs rehashing, but after winning the game, MH told the media

"I don't like the [Tots]. In fact, I hate them. I hate everything about them. I hate their program, their fans. I hate everything."

Naturally, the Tots did not like this. But, I am not going to rehash any more of this story. The further reaching aftermath is what I am interested in. Since that day, I think that VMU has been cursed. Different people will point to different sources of this curse. I claim no specific source of the jinx, however here are the results of the curse:

• No wins against the Tots since the MH win.
• An awful 44 point loss against the Tots on their return to VMU's stadium. I was at that game and the only way to describe what I witnessed is "Black Magic." I mean, there really is no other way to describe what I saw.
• No wins when wearing true royal blue (They did win a bowl game the MH year while wearing true royal blue, so I guess you sort of can count that. But not really). 
• A key player being taken away in an ambulance when wearing true royal blue.
• A key player breaking his leg when wearing true royal blue. 
• No wins in overtime since the MH win in overtime (Currently 0-3).
• No QB since MH has started a season as the #1 guy and gone on to play any sort of meaningful minutes in a bowl game victory.
• General QB instability. Broken backs and broken ribs. Five stars turns into five thumbs down.  
• General mass injury strikes the team. This is an ankle biting curse.
• Losses to teams VMU had not lost to since before anyone even knew who Walter Modale was. (Okay, well no one knows who he is anyway, but you get the point.)
• Recruits getting in trouble with the law.
• The Tots begin wearing big boy pants on a new playground.

I think that the curse has even spilled over onto the basketball team to some degree.*

• Again, more losses to the Tots.
• Freak injuries to starters. Last season. This season. 
• Four years ago, we had the number 1 RPI in the country, but......
• Even when we have an incredible season, it ends on a slightly low note when our center gets suspended. And then we just happen to come up against the one team in the tournament that has four starters 6'10" or taller. And then to add insult to injury our point guard cuts his chin on a slippery court. 
• If I have to see one more food hoarding commercial I probably am going to flip. Especially that one with the guy eating mac and cheese from a bucket. Maybe these commercials will continue even if we won a national championship.
• The fish stop biting and I wander in the Sahara. 

How could the MH curse not be real?

Personally, I think that a lot of this transcends any sort of causality by current coaches or players. You may disagree. All I want to know is how to end the curse. What type of reconciliation needs to be made? I already know that redemption does not come from enduring 20 years of pagan proclamations over the pulpit and by the campfire. Been there, done that. What do we need to burn to atone? How will the debt be paid? What will it take? We need to find a solution. Please comment with suggestions if you desire.

*I wrote this post right after a bad basketball loss to a so-so team. The basketball team did get a pretty big win last season, so this is at least a positive sign. And I think that the horizon does look better for basketball. We finally have a few more Mr. Rogers type people. Football......there is still a big question mark for me.