OK, so who was the genius who wrote the column last week stating that BYU must be crazy to schedule Oklahoma, that the Cougars were biting off more than they could chew (or tackle), that history, not to mention a lot of Oklahoma talent, was against them, that this just sounded like a bad idea?
What idiot wrote that?
Oh, me.
No sooner had the curtain fallen on BYU's 14-13 victory over No. 3 Oklahoma than many BYU fans did exactly what you might expect them to do at such a high point in their lives.
Rub it in.
They ran to their laptops and dashed off an e-mail to, ahem, moi.
I know you're going to get a lot of these, and it's easy to pile on after the fact, but I just had to rub it in. Scheduling Oklahoma was the best thing BYU could've done!!
I couldn't have said it better myself.
I just wish I had said it last week.
So pile on.
I hope you're planning to write a retraction/apology for your article in which you described the BYU/Oklahoma game as a "not so bright" idea. Your article was upsetting when I read it, but reading your squirming apology should make the sting all worth it. Looking forward to your public admission of error.
And so the e-mails went. One of the kinder BYU fans wrote that during the fourth quarter she turned to her husband and said, "Wouldn't it be ironic if BYU won? I wonder what Doug Robinson will say then?"
I'm an idiot.
How's that?
This must have been about the same time my wife turned to me and said, "What are you going to do if BYU wins?"
"Move to Oklahoma."
The e-mails kept arriving. I hadn't had this much fun since I poked fun at marching bands (don't ask). Some fans were gracious, others acted as if I'd just insulted their mother, country and religion.
Dude, sometimes opening your big mouth is NOT bright.
How about opening my big laptop?
Doug, we really need to see a follow-up to your Sept. 1st column.
You got it, pal. This is it.
You have just proven what a biased and horrible sports writer you are.
I'm not sure why predicting the home team to lose big makes me biased and horrible. Besides, if I could pick games I'd be in Vegas instead of doing this writing gig.
Well, I'll step up to the plate now; it's time to accept responsibility and be accountable, time to face the music, time to place blame where it belongs.
It was Benson's idea.
Maybe now you can be nice to the Cougars.
OK, as penance I promise to sing "Rise and Shout" every morning in the shower for the next week.
Yes, as crazy as it seems now, I went waaaay out on a limb last week and wrote that BYU didn't have a chance. It turns out I was the only one in the universe who thought BYU was going to lose and lose by a landslide.
So now I'll be "nice to the Cougars." This is my "nice" paragraph:
BYU thumped the Sooners. All we needed was Bryant Gumbel to take a bow at midfield to make the night complete. Yes, there were some lucky breaks in the game — otherwise, Oklahoma would have been beaten a lot worse. (How am I doing so far?) It wouldn't have mattered if the Sooners' Heisman winner had played the entire game. It was 7-7 when he left the field.
This win was no fluke. The Sooners were outplayed, outcoached, outsmarted, outhit. They were beaten in the trenches, they were beaten in the secondary. The Cougars were even — and I can hardly believe I'm writing this — faster than the Sooners.
I read the Deseret News this morning and did not see your article of apology for your article. Are you eating crow?
Yes, I am, and thanks for asking.
e-mail: drob@desnews.com