Over the years, I have found myself in a position to help people. I try to take advantage of the opportunities to help when I find them.
Many years ago my daughter spoke to me of a friend of hers, whose family wanted to marry her off to a much older man. My daughter encouraged her friend to set boundaries and not allow herself to be tied down at such a young age, especially to a man so much older than her and who she didn’t know. Friend was certain that wouldn’t work as long as she continued to live there, and daughter (after discussion with us) invited her to move in with us. Friend came and lived with us for a while, didn’t marry much older man and generally used the time and space to figure out what she wanted in life, then set out to get it.
I’m fuzzy on the details, but friend ended up in Massachusetts, where she ended up matriculating at (you guessed it), the University of Massachusetts! Then, I received a text from her because, although she wanted to come for Mr. Squillian’s birthday party last week, she wasn’t able to come then. So instead, she asked if she could come for a week and be here over Thanksgiving!! I was so happy for her to come visit that I even agreed to pick her up at the airport at 11PM on a Friday night (that actually ended up being closer to 12:30AM).
Once she had purchased tickets, I remembered our opponent was going to be her alma mater, so I invited her to attend the game with me, and she happily agreed!
Despite my asking while she was still at home, she did not arrive with any UMass-wear, so she borrowed a UGA jacket from Mr. Squillian, and off we went. We were a bit late for the Dawg Walk, but still there in time to see the players walk through and hear the band (albeit from further away than my usual spot right on the fence). I showed her the Ugas’ resting place, showed her the hedges, picked up poms and made our way to our seats (with a stop for a Chick-fil-A sandwich and souvenir Cokes).
Despite her insistence that she would root for her alma mater, I caught her following my lead, chanting with the band, etc. We quite enjoyed the game and stayed until the band left the stadium (my normal habit).
As we started walking up the hill to catch the bus back to the car, there was an elderly gentleman with his walker also headed up the hill. It was obvious to me that he was having trouble walking (even with the walker). One of the people who obviously was working crowd control noticed both him and another elderly gentleman in a wheelchair, and notified the crowd to make room for both gentlemen to come to the front of the line to be first on the bus.
It also became obvious to me that the gentleman in the wheelchair was accompanied by two people that I believe he was related to. It was also obvious to me that the gentleman with the walker was by himself, and he was struggling. When I say I felt obligated to help him, it isn’t because I’m looking for any accolades or atta-boys, but just setting the scene. It turns out that the gentleman was 85, a UGA graduate (class of 1969, if I remember correctly) and a Vietnam veteran. Several people thanked him for his service as he made his way along, but I was the only one who tried to assist. I’m going to chalk that up to an (erroneous) assumption that I was with him all along.
Yes, we did manage to get him to his vehicle without any injury. Yes, he did attend the game solo. No, I didn’t actually catch his name, but I did figure out that his wife’s name is Barbara, and they live in Roswell. I sincerely hope he was able to get back to Roswell without incident.
He told me that there is a star waiting for me in my crown in Heaven. I don’t know that is necessarily true, but he was sweet to say so.
However, it is our intention to celebrate Georgia Bulldog Football Wins whenever and wherever they occur. The ugliness or beauty of any particular win is irrelevant for the purposes of the Winning Smart Victory Post. It is therefore my deepest honor and privilege to bring to you this week’s edition of: The Winning Smart Victory Post.
Coach Kirby Smart coached his 121st game this week for the Red & Black. He currently boasts a 103-18 record and a 0.8512 winning percentage, having carded his one hundred third win overall in the eleventh game of the 2024 season against the Minutemen of the University of Massachussetts.
At the identical juncture in their careers:
Vince Dooley’s 121st game as head coach resulted in a Georgia Bulldogs loss to the WarPlainsTigleMen in the tenth game of the 1974 season, giving Coach Dooley a record of 82-35-5 and 0.6983 percentage.
Coach Mark Richt was 92-29 (0.7603) after a loss to Kentucky in the eleventh game of the 2009 season.
One hundred and twenty one games into his head coaching career Kirby Smart is eleven games ahead of Coach Mark Richt and ahead of Coach Vince Dooley by 21 games. As of now, he is holding his own versus the two winningest coaches in Georgia Football History.
As always . . .
Go ‘Dawgs !!!!