One more memorable Saturday football game lies ahead

Saturdays in the fall have always centered around football. In the beginning it was listening on the radio and later on television.

A semi-organized file cabinet drawer in my home office is stuffed with game programs that provide proof I have seen my share of games in person.

There’s the 1968 program from the inaugural game of the Continental Football League Spokane Shockers. Another from a 1971 game at the University of Idaho reminded me of watching football in the stadium the Vandals christened that year — outside and the pre-blimp hanger Kibbie Dome days.

Largely absent are programs from Eastern Washington State College or University which I began watching, periodically, a half century ago at Joe Albi Stadium. A quick bike ride from my neighborhood in northwest Spokane and a break in the fence was our free ticket.

Growing up Catholic, I was also a Notre Dame Fighting Irish football fan every Saturday with Lindsey Nelson broadcasting on the Mutual Network.

Going to Eastern games in the early days, be they the Savages or Eagles, lost out to watching many a pitiful WSU debacle at Joe Albi or in Pullman, and there are programs to prove it.

At one point I made more trips — three — to South Bend for ND football than I ever had to Cheney for football. And I’m a twice-baked EWU alum for crying out loud!

I remember sitting at snow-covered Albi to watch Eastern and Youngstown State battle in the 1997 NCAA I-AA semifinals for a trip to wherever, losing 25-14. Never in a million years would I have thought then that two decades later the temperatures would have been colder and the heartbreak more intense in the Penguins’ 40-38 win in Cheney — a mere one second away from Frisco and the title game.

But the tide began to reverse on a freezing day in December 2004 when a group of us gathered to watch Eastern’s first-ever home playoff game against Sam Houston. Comfortably ahead by 13 points going into the fourth quarter, and thoroughly chilled, we opted to hit Eagles Pub to finish the game watching on TV.

Sure glad there was alcohol to put on the wounds following the Bearcats’ 35-34 win on the final play.

Following that came the first trip to Washington-Grizzly Stadium in 2005. My youngest daughter was a student at Eastern so we bought some tickets and went to watch the Eagles’ 34-20 win over the Griz.

Oh, what a feeling. And that’s just counting on two hands the number of times I watched Eastern football live.

Then, in what seems only could be a serendipitous moment, I was hired by the Cheney Free Press in August 2007 as their Medical Lake and EWU sports guy.

Because of a love of photography more than a stuffy press box, I paced the sidelines getting in steps — usually about 4 miles worth — trying to capture that rare moment in time.

Twelve seasons and I’ve missed just two home games at either Woodward or Roos. They were both notable in that weather was, perhaps, the real story.

There was Eastern’s home opener against Montana Western on a Friday night Aug. 31, 2007 when a thunderstorm I was watching from a high school game in Medical Lake forced temporary evacuation of Woodward.

Next was a family reunion in the Bay Area just before Christmas. After all, who the heck plays football outside, in the Northwest IN MID-DECEMBER? That of course was Eastern’s epic come-from-behind overtime quarterfinal playoff win, 38-31 over North Dakota State in a driving snowstorm.

Now, from a work standpoint, one more Eastern game remains, that the Football Championship Subdivision championship game Jan. 5. My employer graciously opted to send me into retirement in a memorable manner — via a detour to Frisco, Texas.

That brought to mind the wildest of notions.

When Aaron Best was hired in 2017 to succeed Beau Baldwin as EWU head football coach, I joked with him that my retirement was planned for the end of 2018. I was giving him two more chances to return to Frisco as I had for the 2010 championship.

“No pressure, huh?” I recall him saying with a big smile. And then there was the congratulatory handshake following EWU’s win over Maine, Dec. 15, just short of two years later. Best gave me a bear-hug and laughed about extending my retirement.

He and that band of Eagles have delivered one more memorable Saturday of football.

Paul Delaney can be reached at [email protected].