Rod: In case you missed it...UCLA hosted Cal at the Rose Bowl on Saturday. Esther and I went to the game with my college roommates, Pete and Jason. We had great seats, in Row 3 behind the UCLA bench.
Esther: It was very hot outside. And the Rose Bowl is quite old. And this 8-clap business was difficult to learn. Too much hand-eye-mouth coordination, I think. At Northwestern games, all we did was yell, but mostly boo because Northwestern can be very, very bad. (Go NU!)
Rod: Here's a view of the Cal rooting section of the stadium. The atmosphere was great inside the Rose Bowl, with 83,494 fans making plenty of noise. We were sitting close to the UCLA marching band section and the student section, which was fun.
Esther: The Cal fan section was really loud, and they were always in sync with their hand gestures and cheers. That was impressive. Since we sat next to the UCLA band, I could see all odd dance movements, like "The Robot" and a move that I can only describe as the "Ugh" move. (Looks somewhat like this "Ski" move, but with more gusto. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fi2p_xvpO8E.)
Rod: I didn't think we had a chance after the Notre Dame debacle, but the Bruins kept it close (it helps that we didn't have a third-string QB looking like a deer in headlights on the field. Here's hoping Cowan keeps the starting job for the rest of the year). And, after a spectacular interception for a touchdown, we have... the final score. We picked a great game to attend.
Esther: I didn't think UCLA had a chance. But the crowd was really amazing and kept the energy level up high. Rodney and I and all the fans in our section really were the 12th man on the field. There was this alumni yell crew leader (Geoffrey Strand) who kept shouting "You! You! You! You are the 12th man on the field!" You can watch the video below (of last year's USC-UCLA game) and see he motivates the crowd to get on its feet and make lots of noise.
