Mountaineer sports have ended for 2005-2006. What to do? It's 1:24am, and I'm thinking back to some personal fun with WVU sports over the past year. Consider this me "thinking out loud". 1) My son being bat boy for WVU... There are no better representatives of WVU than those on the WVU baseball team. Guys like Coach Andrew Wright and shortstop Doug Nelms have made an everlasting impact on my son's life. I have listened to hours of things that happened in the dugout, about secret handshakes, and about how my son wants to play baseball for WVU. I can never thank them enough for this experience for my son. 2) I went to WVU, and I experienced many a good party. However, one can not put into words the craziness at the Park Tavern on New Year's Day in Atlanta. I met many good people that night, and everyone of the rumored 5,000+ truly believed in our chances the next day. No one knows how to throw a bash better than WVU alumni. 3) After the Sugar Bowl win, the team hotel (the Hyatt downtown) was a scene of legend. The hotel has an open-air architecture all the way from the lobby to the roof. So, our room on the 18th floor overlooked the lobby, as well as all other floors. The hotel was a sea of people waiting for the team to come back. You haven't heard anything until you hear thousands of people at 2:30am chanting "Let's goooooo..... Mountaineers" in a building meant for echos. Even this guy in his underwear got involved. 4) 3 strangers riding in an elevator at the same Hyatt... Me, Tony Caridi, and a guy claiming to be a state trooper. This trooper, in plain clothes at the time, was supposedly on the Rich Rod detail. He decided to share his Sugar Bowl predictions to Tony and I, based on his expert "inside knowledge" of the team morale. He had no idea who Tony was, and when I looked over, Tony rolled his eyes in jest. I truly cracked up when I left the elevator. 5) We are self-proclaimed experts at tailgating. We arive very early (6:45am-ish) and we take pride in the event. Much to the dismay of my friend Tom, I implemented a plan of warming pre-cooked food... instead of cooking at the tailgate last year. When you have a lot of people for a long period of time, the last thing I want to do is "man the grill", with the dual task of keeping food available, yet minimizing waste. So, the idea of catering trays and burners keeping pre-cooked food warm was really appealing to our day management. However, we always ended up with frozen meatballs. Everyone blames Tom, so I'll go with that. 6) My son and I went to Detroit for the NCAA tourney, and I wrote an Auburn Hills Trip Report on this. Don't ask how, but we ended up with front row seats under the basket... and next to the WVU pep band. How awesome is that? In one of the overshown highlight clips of Northwestern State's last second 3 to beat Iowa, my son and I are right under the basket. We'll never forget that. Last year, we were in Cleveland to see the last second heroics against Creighton. This year... Detroit. 7) Ah, the Syracuse trip. My wife and I went with another couple. The night before the game, we were in a sports bar on the "High Street of Syracuse". The first time we saw ANY orange was 11:00pm when a group of about 12 guys came in. We were sitting at the bar, and these guys sat across from us. They were jovial, as were we. But, despite graduating from a school with 6 times the tuition of WVU, they didn't have the cognitive power to realize the bar was completely filled with WVU fans. We threw some fun barbs back and forth, and then it happened... their "loud guy" decided to start a "Let's Go Or-ange"... clap, clap, clap-clap-clap cheer. Being a little inebriated, he was loud and slow. So, his "Let's Go..." was immediately interrupted with about 100 nearby fans yelling "Mountaineers!". His face completely dropped. To this day, when I think back to his expression it still makes me laugh. 8) Another Syracuse tidbit... You know it's going to be a good year when WVU fans are forced to stand because they have too much beer. At the Carrier Dome, they sell beer. Actually, they sell 4 beers per ID too. However, after halftime (or something like that), they stop selling it. As the 2nd half got under way, the 8 people immediately to the left of us were standing, as 32 beers lined the bench seats. 9) The story of Herb Hand's trip to Orlando really hit me hard. It really has changed the way I think about things, and assuming all is well in his future, I hope it remains a catalyst in remembering what's important in life. 10) We have great friends. I had friends in high school that were future Ivy Leaguers. And, a lot of people questioned my decision to attend WVU, based on the perceived "standing" of the school in the late 1980s. However, EVERY one of my WVU friends has a great career. Every one of these folks is a true friend and a great person. I truly believe the people that survive WVU's sink-or-swim atmosphere are some of the most talented you will find. We always joke that WVU teaches you to "multi-task" while in school. This past year gave me several moments where I realized how great my friends really are. 11) I have grown to love Morgantown for many reasons. One that stands out this year is the effect it has on my young daughter. Attending WVU gymnastics meets and soccer matches invokes immediate realizations in her that women can do anything. Meeting these female athletes after an event makes them real to her, and is almost the equivalent of getting an autograph from Minnie Mouse. Marisa Kanela even leads her youth soccer league. Morgantown is one heck of a place to raise kids. 12) We did our best to get to some of the "smaller sports" this year. Of the 2 wrestling meets I attended, I quickly realized there are no more knowledgeable fans than wrestling fans. Unlike many newcomers, I did know the scoring system. However, WVU wrestling fans constantly yell tips, suggestions, relapses of history, and anything relevant to both the ref and the wrestlers. I understand the WVU student section at basketball games has a movement to be very informed about the personal history of each of the opposing players. I truly think the WVU wrestling fans could easily match their wit and knowledge. By the way, I made it to one swimming meet, and I just happened to see a school record by Chris Hagedorn. I wonder what I'll reflect on next summer. Please put this next sentence in the proper context... I hope my reflections involve more guys running around hotels in their underwear at 2:30am. But... in Tempe, not Atlanta, this time. May the meatballs be warm and the seats lined with 2nd half beer. Have a great summer.   -- Jim