Seahawks and Fans, I’m Sorry
To the Seahawks, to their fans (of which I am one), and to Seattleites (of which I am also one), please allow me to be the first Aggie to say I’m sorry. I really am. I am embarrassed by the actions of the school I hold so dear. This should not have happened and I hope you’ll be able to forgive us, The Aggies, no matter the outcome. We did not initiate this. No Aggie worth his ring would have stooped to this. Let me also say that I realize this concerns football and property and not AIDS or poverty or the impact of war and so I’ll try to keep some perspective.
Now for the Ags, I’ve got a little story for ya.
The Twelfth Man is a unique Aggie tradition dating back to the Dixie Classic, a national championship football game against Centre College of Kentucky in Dallas on January 2, 1922. During the game, sophomore E. King Gill, a former reserve fullback, was in the press box serving as a spotter. As the rough game wore on and injuries took their toll, the Aggies were down to only one backfield substitute. Coach Dana X. Bible called Gill down to the playing field and asked him to suit up. Though Gill never got into the game, which A&M won 22–14, his willingness to serve started the tradition.
Aggies stand at football games to signify the students’ readiness to enter the game, if needed—to be the twelfth man on that fighting Aggie team.
—excerpt from Footsteps: A Guided Tour of the Texas A&M University Campus
With that, the 12th Man tradition was born. What you may not know is that shortly after the game concluded, Gill decided to sue the administration for not allowing him into the game. You see, Gill had spirit, but it came with a price. After all, how would it look to Gill’s family if he went back home and told them he had volunteered for nothing? He’d look like a fool! And so, the moral of the story and the meaning behind our beloved tradition is always ask for what you want; take it when necessary. And when life gives you lemons instead of diamonds, sue someone. Don’t ever, ever, use it as an opportunity to learn, grow, and change for the better. BTHOtu! A-Whoop!
What? You don’t remember it that way? Neither do I. That’s because E. King Gill offered a part of himself to his team that day and asked for nothing in return. He didn’t ask for a medal, or a statue, or for compensation. So what on earth is happening in Aggieland these days?
If Steven Moore’s statement to the A&M community is to be believed, this issue has nothing to do with money or publicity and everything to do with protecting a tradition that Aggies hold dear. Well, as an Aggie, I have some questions for Steven Moore and the administration that decided to take action.
Why now, the week of the Super Bowl? If you “have no ill will toward the Seahawks,” did you consider how this might affect morale? As you state, there are Aggies on the team and the coaching staff. Did you consider how this might affect their relationships with the rest of the team? If this has nothing to do with money, why not wait until a few weeks after the Super Bowl, when no one outside of Texas A&M and the Seahawks will care very much? You’ve waited two years to file a restraining order. What would a few more weeks hurt?
Because now I have to consider the possibility that this might just be about money. I have to consider that you may be placing bets on the Steelers to win (or have others betting for you, or have powerful friends who are betting) and that a downer like this may be just the sort of distraction for the Seahawks you were hoping for. Just a little edge. Barely noticeable really, but just enough to take some steam away. It sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? Of course it does, but now I have to consider it.
If it’s not about money, then just what are you protecting? What was the reason for trademarking the idea in the first place? Are you trying to keep the Aggie Spirit from leaving school grounds? If so, why? E. King Gill, the original 12th Man, offered himself to his school in an act of self-sacrifice that has inspired countless Aggies and numerous professional sports fans around the world. It seems to me that the world would be a better place if we encouraged others to adopt some of that same spirit.
The Spirit of Aggieland is one that “can ne’er be told.” As the saying goes, from the outside looking in you can’t understand it, and from the inside looking out you can’t explain it. But, if we’re truly Aggies, we should damn well try. The Spirit I took with me from A&M is not one of timidity, of masquerade, of harboring grudges, or of waiting for an opportune moment to sue someone. It is one of honor, integrity, loyalty, passion, “love of God, country, and family, and for that part of my heart which has never left these hallowed halls.”
So how could you take those ideals and pervert them in this manner for your benefit? And at such a bad time? This is such a public relations nightmare for both parties I can hardly understand it. I am disgusted and ashamed of your behavior, Texas A&M administration. You have tarnished something that I thought was beyond this sort of petty quibbling. As an Aggie who loves his school and all that it stands for, I sincerely believe you should withdraw the suit and issue a formal apology to the Seahawks team, to their fans, to Seattle, and most importantly, to the students of Texas A&M, both past and present. That is the honorable thing to do.
Gig ‘Em,
Harry Love, Fightin’ Texas Aggie Class of ‘96
Go Seahawks! And good luck, Steelers.
