WinChill Factor: It’s Time – Bundle Up, Show What It Means to Be a Razorback Fan

Mixageddon is upon us.  And no, I’m not speaking of the unchecked proliferation of mix tapes among our youth (although that is sorta getting outta hand).  Instead, I’m speaking of the coming wintery mix.  Yes, WinChillers, it’s gonna be coooooold Saturday night.  The wind chill factor will likely dip into the low 20s during the game.  We know it.  LSU knows it.  

So what?

Are we a sweater-vest wearing, fair weather fan base?  No!  We are Arkansas Razorback fans and we are on the cusp of a milestone:  that elusive first SEC win under Coach Bielema.  Don’t you want to be there when it happens?  To count down those final seconds and see the joy on the players’ faces when their sacrifices have finally been rewarded?  To hug other fans in the stands that you didn’t know three hours earlier but are now essentially family?  It will be a memorable moment for everyone in Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium.

I know, I know…the weather.  I get that it’s hard to compete with the warmth of a fireplace, deer chili and an HDTV with all the trimmings.  Yes, I suppose that would arguably be the common-sense thing to do.  Stay home, stay dry, stay warm and toasty.

Just please do me two favors.  First, think back to your first Razorback game.  Maybe you were eight or nine.  Old enough to no longer hold your father’s hand but young enough to know to stay close to him in the crowd.  Wide-eyed, you walked into the stadium, up the tunnel, and there it was – the greenest gridiron you’d ever seen.  Then at one end, you saw our Razorbacks warming up in those beautiful cardinal and white uniforms (and if you were really lucky, you saw Steve Little booming 60+ yard field goals during warm-ups).  And then the band…the Big A marching down the field trumpeting the most awesome fight song ever…the calling of the Hogs with a thunder you’d never heard or experienced before…and then…“HERE COME YOUR ARKANSAS RAZORBACKS!!!”

Until you hit puberty, those words were among the sweetest you’d ever heard.  There’s just something about “Your Arkansas Razorbacks!” booming from on high and our Hogs streaming through the A that send chills up the spine.  We’re not yet another generic set of Bulldogs, Bears or (yawn) Tigers.  We are THE Razorbacks.  A team blessed with rich tradition and history – especially when we play LSU (see Markham, Miracle on).

The second favor?  Well, we have before us a Saturday night game against a tough rival in questionable weather.  A situation where we find ourselves up against the wall against very tough odds.  A circumstance where an entire season’s worth of challenges – the weather, the streak, an opponent coached by a documented Herbivore – have all decided to converge at the Hill on a potentially magical and surely memorable night.

In short:  it’s time.

Time to bundle up your son or daughter (or both) and make the pilgrimage up the Hill for their first Razorback game.  I promise you that the good folks at Nike make more than just the most awesome windbreakers on the planet.  They have all kinds of cold weather gear to keep everyone reasonably warm.  Plus, there’s steaming hot chocolate at the stadium (but you might wanna sneak in some marshmallows; by the way, you didn’t hear that from me).

It’s simply time to show them what it means to be a Razorback fan:

• You brave the elements.
• You enjoy the other brave and hearty souls around you.
• You scream Woooo Pig Sooooieee until you’re hoarse.

And if you’re really, really lucky, years from now on a cold November night you’ll be sitting by the fire at some family gathering while bouncing your new grandchild on your knee as some generic football game blasts away on the latest 3DTV, and your son or daughter will sit down beside you and fondly say “Dad,…remember that night you took me to my first Razorback game?”

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This week’s WinChill Factor is, let’s face it, the weather.  Coach Bielema has urged us to embrace the chill and I say we take him up on the challenge.  This team has worked hard week in and week out and deserves our support.  We get precious few Saturdays each year to watch our guys at home.  This week’s game is setting up to be one for the memory books.  Plus, if I heard this correctly, we’ll all get boots when Arkansas wins…so, we got that going for us.

In any event, if you have a creative or fun way you’re planning to deal with the chill on the Hill this weekend, let us know.  Please tell us on the Twitter using the hashtag “#EmbraceTheChill” and let’s help out our fellow brothers and sisters deal with the elements.

Until next time:  Fear the Sleeves.

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Coach Bielema’s Windbreaker made its physical presence known on August 31, 2013.  It is chock full of Razorback spirit, has an unhealthy hatred of sweater vests and fears nothing (other than a hot iron on the “Cotton/Linen” setting).  As game days approach, the Windbreaker can be found interacting with the Razorback faithful on Twitter (@BielWindbreaker).