Guess Who's Coming to Dinner? Our UCLA Dream Weekend!
by uclafan11 on Sep 14, 2009 7:36 PM PDT
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PrintBumped. Awesome post as usual from uclafan11 w some pretty sweet photos and unbelievable videos (!) that you will want to check out after the jump. GO BRUINS. -N
Okay, I've been dying to tell you all about our weekend in Tennessee! I ended up finding a connection for my camera so my photos and some videos are loaded. I will post something else later with more videos, but I am busting at the seems to share this with BN.
For business reasons, my family has a home outside of Knoxville and we are back here often. Over a year and a half ago when we heard that UCLA would be in town to play Tennessee in 2009, we told our friends at Fan Travel and in the athletic office that if they needed any help with locations etc. to let us know. We also offered our home for a sponsor or donor party if they needed a spot to have a function. We went ahead and gave them some restaurants to check out and that was that. Until a couple of weeks ago...
Continue reading after the jump.
My mom calls me and all she says is "Holy Sh*t!!!!!" Of course, I am thinking "Did the NCAA actually finally come down on $c?" but then I thought logically and realized it must be something else. So I said "WHAT HAPPENED?" and she said "The Athletic Department just called and would like to know if we can have the TEAM over to our home on Friday night before the game for dinner!!!!!" I'm not sure what I said after that, but needless to say, we were BEYOND excited! My mom, of course, said "YES".
So, on Friday evening all the players and some coaches (including Neuheisel) arrived at our door. Below is the front of the house and one of the tables we decorated:
We put old programs and newspapers on the tables hoping the guys might be interested in browsing through them. Turns out, they loved it! One of my favorite shots is Richard Brehaut reading about 13-9:
We had the Tennessee game from last year (starting at the 2nd half of course) playing in the living room. Once we announced that, the living room filled up with players and coaches wanting to watch. The experience of watching a game like that with the team was just amazing! I took a video at one point of the guys sitting. Here it is:
I can't believe the team is in my living room (via uclafan11)
I still can't believe the team was in our house! They were here for about two hours, which was even longer than expected because the guys wanted to see the end of the game!
We blew up a great picture from last year's game and the team signed it for us on the way out:
The thing that stood out to me the most was how polite, gracious and thankful every one of them was towards us. They are just the kind of team that Bruins Nation would expect and be proud of to have representing UCLA. This was an amazing experience for all of us and one we will, of course, never forget.
As many Bruins have blogged here, the game itself was a real treat and seeing a game at Neyland should be on your bucket list. To say it is loud in there is a SEVERE understatement. I've never heard anything close to that at any stadium. Their fans are welcoming and kind, even in defeat. Here is my video of the final minutes of the game and post game celebration!
UCLA at Tennessee Final Minutes 2009 (via uclafan11)
To see more team dinner photos click here and for game photos click here.
GO BRUINS!!!
This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of BruinsNation's (BN) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of BN's editors.
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Let me also add
uclafan11 … I seriously think the way you guys set up that dinner … had a part in our victory. Those guys looked at home and relaxed among familiar Bruin surroundings.
This is exactly why CRN had the team fly in a day early. Just perfect planning on the part of UCLA’s coaches and staff and you guys played a role in the victory.
Take a bow. I am blown away.
GO BRUINS.
Thank you Nestor
We thought long and hard about how to set everything up and it really went even better than we could have hoped. The guys were relaxed, loved watching the game, and a group of them even played pool and darts. They all seemed to really enjoy it. Unforgettable!
GO BRUINS!!!
By the looks of the size of some of those linesmen
I can only imagine their appetites!
Hope you had your Costco card handy!
Thanks for graciously opening up your home to these fine young men!
Jealous, Very Jealous
How could that not have helped the team feel at home? Dunno who was luckier, 11, you or the team. Awesome!
by ucla84 on Sep 14, 2009 7:59 PM PDT reply actions
sweet
easily a top 5 post in BN history
by TheTJCummingsEra on Sep 14, 2009 8:08 PM PDT reply actions
Whoa!
Jealous! They wouldn’t have gotten an answer from me had I taken that phone call, because I would have fainted.
Oh UCLA you sweet bitch, you've BRUINed me for anything else.
As San diego's Dan Fouts...
Apply Soda and Dandruff Flakes…
Arguably, Some Dimwitted Freaks…
I give up.
That's what I'm thinking
When I’m trying to come up with something to express how awesome this is. Clearly I could not express it in words.
Incredible!
Unbelievable! Amazing! Thank you for opening up your home to our team. I’m not surprised that you note how gracious and polite the team was, either. That’s a class team, and a class family that hosted them last Friday.
(and I think one of the three wealthy and influential alumni just got outed! haha!)
greg in denver - UCLA guy for life
This is just amazing!
Wow. Holy sh*t, indeed.
Thank you for giving our boys a home away from home, and for sharing it with us.
Simply Amazing!
How does something like that happen?! That is very gracious of you and your family for opening up your home to our team (and an amazing home it is) and smart on the part of the coaches and athletic department for taking you up on your offer. Great job and thanks for your part in our victory. You and the Bruin contingency that made it out to Knoxville (loved to see the blue in the sea of orange) turned it into a home game. Palo Alto Bruins, you’re next!
Give me 15 years
…and I’ll attempt the same (I can dream, can I?)
I am so proud to call myself a newly minted Bruin ’08. I may be off to another school for grad school, but I know where my heart is when it comes to my collegiate loyalty. Enough of that.
You are to be commended for offering your home. I guess you’re not really inviting strangers in it, but instead offering it to your extended family. This means a lot to these kids, especially to our incoming class – they will share this experience to their HS friend. Who knows, maybe one of them is a premium recruit.
Salut, sir and ma’am.
Truly, it is a Bruins' Nation
when you can have this sort of thing happen in Knoxville, TN of all places! Great job, great story, great pics, great video!
Wow
Thank you all for your comments! This is a pleasure to read! I only wish we had a home in Texas and Nebraska too! lol! GO BRUINS!!!
One question
From your vantage point, did KP make it out ot the endzone, or was it a safety?
by Give me a B... on Sep 14, 2009 9:08 PM PDT up reply actions
Texas Yeehaw
I wish you had a home in Texas, too. Lol. I’m so proud of you! Great entry. xoxo
Still tingling
after viewing your photos. I’m gonna have to upgrade you from uclafan11 to uclafan99. Maximum ursa-tude. Total Bruinity. You do UCLA proud.
Brrrruuuuuuuiiiiiinnnnssss Naaaaaattttttiiiiiooooooonnnnn!!!!!
This community is second to none!
Uclafan and co. prove it daily!!!
Many thanks! Go Bruins!
by mdjohns4 on Sep 14, 2009 9:03 PM PDT via mobile reply actions
Thank You uclafan11
for being such gracious hosts to our team. I’m with the others in believing your hospitality played a part in our victory. I’m sure our team felt the support from your family as well as the Bruin contingent that we could clearly hear on TV in Neyland.
Gotta be in the BN Hall of Fame for one of the best posts EVER.
Soooooooo cool
Sorry I never got the chance to meet up with you 11. Technology was not my friend this weekend so I couldn’t get internet on my phone Friday, then I didn’t get your text on Saturday until I was back at the hotel.
Having the team at your house like that is one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. Talk about an experience you’ll never forget.
by Ryan Rosenblatt on Sep 14, 2009 9:21 PM PDT reply actions
Shame!
It would have been great to meet you, but we’ll work that out next time. Glad you had a good time and GO BRUINS!!!
Next time you're at the Rose Bowl
just shoot me an email. So long as work doesn’t get in the way (being a productive member of society can really suck sometimes) I will be at all of the home games this year. I’m also considering making the drive to Palo Alto for the Stanford game.
by Ryan Rosenblatt on Sep 15, 2009 8:12 PM PDT up reply actions
Except for National Championship Posts, Best Post Ever
Your house looks like another wing of Royce Hall, or maybe Haines Hall.
AWESOME!!!
Wow….so great you got to host UCLA at your home! Definitely once in a lifetime type thing. Your pics were amazing too!! I love it that I still get the goosebumps when I hear the 8-clap.
AWESOME!
And lucky! Talk about the opportunity of a lifetime, and thanks for being such a great host to the team!
That was phenomenal
Big time southern hospitality. I have to agree that you had a big hand in the win on Saturday. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, as the win has given me a wonderful 3-day high.
Hey, I’m going to be in Knoxville next month and I need a place to stay (kidding)
Excellent post
Excellent idea to start with. Excellent decision by the athletic department, And excellent follow up by you.
I think you deserve at least partial credit for the win. I know I deserve some for staying off the BN and not disturbing any mojo, but you deserve more.
Amazing
Just amazing. I’m speechless. Uclafan11, you and your family were truly part of the team this past weekend.
Epic post.
What can I say that hasn't been said already?
Amazing! I’m Jealous! You are incredibly generous! I’m proud to be a Bruin and hear about this event. You make me proud, in so many ways and on so many levels.
That picture of Brehaut reading that old rag the Times about 13-9 was especially poignant. I used to save old newspapers from big like that one. Eventually I threw them all out during a move. But I currently have sports pages from the Knoxville Sentinel and the LA Times reporting on the game.
You have inspired me to put up my own fanshot about the game.
A coach is someone who can give correction without causing resentment. John Wooden
Thanks for sharing your experience.
This is on another level.
Go Bruins.
by Westwood is the best wood on Sep 14, 2009 10:55 PM PDT reply actions
Another great
reason to be a Bruin. It was so cool for the team to make the visit. 11, thanks for opening your home and heart to the team.
I’m glad you and the other BNers had a chance to make it to Knoxville. I might need to go to Austin,TX to watch the Bruins play the Longhorns.
Go Bruins!
by UCLA Championships Made Here on Sep 14, 2009 11:07 PM PDT reply actions
this is truly unbelievable
thanks so much for sharing with us and the team!
William Doolittle at your service, a.k.a. will do.
Incredible Post / Unbelievable Experience
Wow… just wow…
uclafan11
I just wanted so say that your home, along with just about all the other houses I saw, is absolutely beautiful. Knoxville is such a wonderful area and definitely now one of my favorite college towns. I can also second everything you said about the kindness and humility of the Tennessee fans. This weekend was an absolute pleasure for me, and I’m not the one that had the freaking football team over for dinner. Congratulations!
i love how
you started the playing the 2008 tennessee game from the second half. good call haha
Wow!
Awesome!
Los Angeles Rams and the UCLA Bruins!!!!!
by Minnesota Bruinfan on Sep 15, 2009 4:42 AM PDT reply actions
Wow.
Just Wow. I am completely blown away. I regret I cannot find another, unique way to express how I feel about this.
Thanks for: your amazing hospitality, your creative way to entertain the team, your thoughtfulness to document it so well, your time to share it with the rest of us news-starved fans, your generosity, and your role in helping our team relax and be comfortable before a huge game.
Jealousy comes to mind. That, and pride. I am proud to be a Bruin, and to be along for the ride that is this football team.
You were the twelth man
I’m sure the team was inspired by you. The video from last year and the old newspapers were great ideas.
That was exactly what they needed for their first big road game of the year.
Thank you.
Thank You!
To say I got chills watching the celebration video is an understatement. I can’t thank you enough for not only providing a little bit of home to a team so far from it but sharing these moments-of-a-lifetime with us. You’ve made my day!
richramus
That is fantastic!!!
We really are the Bruin Family!
I may work with the Waves, but I'm still a Bruin!
A Perfect Example of What It Means to Be A Bruin
This post, along with Hector’s Adventure post show the world what it is like to be part of the Bruin family.
In just a few weeks of this new season, from so many angles, we are seeing what great kids we have and how our great kids turn into great alums — like you, 11.
11, you and your family really channeled all that is Bruin. And, I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed the tape of the last seconds of the game. You guys were screaming just like most of us who were not there were screaming. Once voice, one Bruin voice, nationwide.
Thank you for this incredible post.
sjh
I want to vote again
I agree 100% with sjh. How can there be a better school to have attended, and how can there be a better family to be a part of? I am vicariously proud to have been a part of it, even though I’m stuck in exile in Geezerville. And Bruins, consider how lucky we are to have such articulate brothers and sisters. Their writing puts the reader in the middle of the action. I was excited. I got tired with Mexi, and got out of breath running with him. I liked the Tennessee guy who generated all that.
It’s plenty obvious that neither 11 nor Mexi spent their formative years in Senora Ross’s class.
Bruins are forever!
This is simply phenomenal. What a great family!
Something truly stands out to me (and brings back lots of memories for me). You look at these pictures and realize that, as big as these players are…they are still just kids! Or I should say, young men. It reminds me of when we travelled with our rowing team and were hosted by our teammates’ parents…sleeping on the floor. These guys have it better, but it really should make people think twice when they attack players on their own team or other teams. Crompton has taken a beating from his own fans, ruthless comments are thrown at him. You don’t do that to guys who represent your school. That is why I love it when Nestor takes people to task for attacking any of our players on this site.
Bruins Nation is awesome, and being a Bruin is awesome. Thanks 11.
But hey, what do I know. I’m just the 800 lbs bruin in the room.
Get Over It!
You young whipper snappers have no idea about what “getting old” is.
But, then again, you don’t know Geezer Power either.
sjh
Think I'm a geezer in training
Class of 1982, I’m not sure when you become a geezer. At 45, 50…. Any answers?
Geezerhood
may be a state of mind, but when I first started using the term I was thinking about those of us who went to UCLA in the ’60’s. We are not an exclusionary group. If you ache when you wake up, have trouble remembering where you put your reading glasses (even though they are on top of your head), and know what carbon paper is, you may be a Geezer.
sjh
A lot of Geezerdom is defined by noises
If more than one joint creaks when you get out of a chair, you need to think about geezerdom. If the only thing that keeps you awake during the news is noises coming from your stomach, this is also a geezular concept. There are more, but I can’t remember them, which I think is a sign of something, but I can’t remember what point I was trying to make.
Old Bruins Rule!
It is bitter/sweet that I got my first senior discount last night at Bob’s in Burbank. The cashier asked me if I wanted one and I said I still had a few years to go. She gave it to me anyway.
I wasn’t sure how to feel about this. I’ve gone from waitresses flirting with me to being their dad!
As long as I’m still younger than Alumni Geoff, I’m doing ok :)
I may work with the Waves, but I'm still a Bruin!
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