And to think that Bear Bryant’s widow moved to San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly) to escape college football!
Who would have thought?
First, I have to tell you that I am NOT a big fan of Cal Poly on many levels… however, I am impressed that sandlot kids from C.P. playing in their street clothes could whoop San Diego State!
The local paper did a fine job covering the unusual event… with some of the expected hyperbola:
“Saturday’s victory not only ensured a fourth straight winning season for Cal Poly but cemented its place in the top 10 and keeps the Mustangs’ playoff plans in order.”
Gosh, I just wish they wouldn’t write about playoffs or National Championships… someone outside of SLO might actually read this! However, the ‘talk’ is bound to leak out as their sports writer is now a blogger. On his blog he has a few links to how others view the debacle…
The Cal Poly Coach — who I defended in the local paper for getting a modest salary increase might have been reading too much of his own press when he was quoted:
“In assessing the talent gap between his team and Division I-A schools last week, Cal Poly coach Rich Ellerson said he believed the Mustangs had reached a point where they could be competitive against middle-of-the-pack programs from the Mountain West and Western Athletic conferences.”
Ya think? Hmmm…. well, I did read the Cal Poly Athletic web site… and it looks like a good site… if you compare it to any univesity circa 1996. I can’t understand why their athletic site is sooooo cheap… it’s not like the better schools can buy more electrons. In any event, they tell of the rivalry between the two school that has recently been reenacted in this great duel… but that was different times and long long ago.
Today — I hear — that a so-called ‘full-scholarship football player’ at Cal Poly recieves a 1 shirt and 1 pair of shorts for free… but he must buy anything else he needs. As you can imagine, the other ‘sports’ get less. Oh, if you ‘letter’… you are awarded a Cal Poly T-shirt… just like the ones you can buy in their student store. whoo-hoo!
So, San Diego State, nothing good came out of this meeting for you. To be humiliated by guys who have to buy their own shoes has got to hurt.
Cal Poly is a funny place where the President of the College actually makes three or more times as much as the football coach.
In my opinion, Cal Poly’s program died 20 years ago thanks to a President who has tried to turn Cal Poly into a quaint college… the kind you see dotted in the North East of our country. However, there are those individuals and a few teams from time to time that hang in there… hoping to make it something more.
Congrats to Cal Poly’s Football team… that won in spite of it all.
Roger Freberg