Boggling discovery of the week: ESPN will be broadcasting from my alma mater:
Williams College will play host to archrival Amherst College in football at noon in the 122nd meeting of "The Biggest Little Game in America" on Saturday, November 10th.
ESPN's College GameDay Built By The Home Depot with host Chris Fowler, Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit and Desmond Howard will make its first appearance at a Division III game when they kickoff their show at 10:00 ET live from Weston Field.
OK, that's just freaky.
I should note, though, that this is not the first time that ESPN has visited the Purple Valley-- back in the mid-90's (1995? 1997?), a Williams-amherst game was broadcast on ESPN2. It was a horrible, rainy day, the field was a mess, and the game ended in a 0-0 tie.
Let's hope this turns out better for everyone involved.
Saturday is DePauw's big game as well, the Monon Bell against Wabash. We haven't been on ESPN (I think) but we have been carried by other cable stations.
Seeing ESPN GameDay at a Div III game is simply awesome. That your school has a truly bizarre mascot, right up there with a horned toad, makes it even better ... matched only by signs that mix intellectual skills with fanaticism.
Finally, in case I miss the explanation while doing errands this morning, please explain "EPHS" = "eeeps" as the name for that purple and yellow speckled guernsey (?) cow you battled for back in your athletic days. It must be a good story.
Finally, in case I miss the explanation while doing errands this morning, please explain "EPHS" = "eeeps" as the name for that purple and yellow speckled guernsey (?) cow you battled for back in your athletic days. It must be a good story.
The school was founded using a bequest from Ephraim Williams, a soldier during the French and Indian War. "Ephs" is in honor of him (similarly, the hated defectors of Amherst are nicknamed "Lord Jeffs" after Lord Jeffrey Amherst, who put up the money for the school).
The purple cow comes about because Williams's colors are purple and gold, and it's in a rural area, so a cow makes as much sense as anything else for a mascot.