Monday, October 8, 2007

Dynamo vs. LA Galaxy Weekend

One night can change a lot of things. One night's events can set a chain reaction in motion. After one month here in Houston, homesickness had sunk in and I was questioning why I even had come down here in the first place. However one night changed all that. Last Friday night I sort of went on my first date in quite some time. I asked a girl from my apartment complex to join my friends and I for an evening in Houston's Midtown. My friends already were quite "happy" by the time we arrived and not before long, it was just the two of us. But we had a great time nonetheless. I enjoyed our coversation and getting to know her better. Connecting with someone of the opposite sex is a feeling like no other. The feeling sets a man free. I look forward to our next evening together.

Saturday night the same theory applied as I watched LSU's surprise come from behind win over the Florida Gators, and Stanford's surprise upset over USC. Once again the BCS system has been rocked and all the rules thrown out the window. I cannot remember a crazier season for college football in my lifetime. On any given Saturday David can overcome Goliath. I really do not see two undefeated teams going to the BCS National Championship Game. Ohio State is the lone Big Ten school that remains undefeated but has remained under the rader with all of the crazier events occurring on the grid-iron.

And last but certainly not least the big MLS Western Conference clash between Houston Dynamo and LA Galaxy. We had completely sold out the stadium two weeks prior, so we anticipated a large crowd despite the unlikelihood that a certain LA midfielder named David Beckham would make the trip. We arrived at the stadium at 8:30am to begin our preparations for the gates opening at Noon and a 2pm kickoff. I had to help pass out materials once the gates open, and the people just kept coming and coming. When I finally entered the stadium with 10 minutes remaining in the first half, I was overwhelmed by a sea of Orange. Every corner of the stadium was packed with dedicated Dynamo fans. The game was by far one of the best soccer atmosphere's I had ever been in for a regular season MLS game. Despite the front office's performance to sell out the game, the team on the pitch did not perform live up to its end of the bargain. Even though Dynamo scored first, a lackluster defense and overall team effort allowed LA to score to unanswered goals losing 2-1 in front of 30,000 Houstonians. The loss puts the MLS playoff picture into a scramble once again.

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