Wide World of Sports

Even for a family as sports crazed as ours, yesterday was one for the books.  

Shortly after my cup of coffee at Portland Brew, it was off the races as we drove to MBA for Joe's basketball game.  I sat, or stood, near Jude and her parents on the baseline, but still managed to shout instructions to Joe or his teammates, as needed.  Joe's team didn't play particularly well, nor did Joe, but they beat a lesser skilled team by 20 points or so.

After Joe's game, J.P. and I walked over to the MBA baseball field and watched a partial inning of a game against Goodpasture.  The fans were bundled up, as the temperature was in the high 30's.  Next, we hustled over to the Vanderbilt bookstore (Barnes & Noble) on West End Avenue, because J.P. wanted to buy some Vanderbilt gear.

We met Jude and Joe at the house, ate a quick lunch, then I drove to Vanderbilt with J.P. and Joe to watch the Vanderbilt-Army baseball game, courtesy of my sister, Tracy, who has Vanderbilt baseball season tickets.  Because it was still quite cold, and windy, we dressed appropriately and took along a couple of blankets, too.  Sitting on the first base line, next to Army's bullpen, we enjoyed ourselves in spite of the cold weather.  

Happily, we saw Josh Beckman and his son, Benjy, shortly after we got settled and they sat with us.  It was a real treat to catch up with Josh while we watched the game.  I've coached Benjy in baseball for many years, including last fall, so it was great to get caught up on family news.  

We left between the sixth and seventh innings and hurried home.  Jude drove Joe to his 5 p.m. basketball game in Franklin, while J.P. and I went to the Belmont-T.S.U. basketball game, also slated for a 5 p.m. start.  It was Belmont's final home game of the year and, more importantly, the final home game of point guard Grayson Murphy's storied Belmont basketball career.  He's already has more assists than any player in Ohio Valley Conference history and he broke the conference record for steals during the game, as well.  What a career!

J.P. and I got there in time to watch the Senior Day ceremonies, as Belmont honored what I think might be the most impactful senior class in school history - Grayson Murphy, Nick Muszynkski, Tate Pierson, Caleb Hollander, and Luke Smith.  We've seen those boys play so many games over the last 5 years.  It's gone by so quickly, for sure.  J.P. and I left at halftime and, still hurrying, arrived home just as Jude and Joe were pulling up.

Next, we put on more warm clothes - really warm clothes - grabbed blankets, and drove to Nissan Stadium, home of the Titans, where we watched the Predators play the Tampa Bay Lightning as part of the NHL's Stadium Series.  With 68,000 + in the stands, the Predators lost a close one, 3-2, to the 'Bolts.  Watching hockey outside, in the cold, was different and fun.  

By the time we got home, all of us were exhausted.  We collapsed into bed, laughing, and thinking about how crazy our lives are.