On the Road with Karyl Henry and the Oklahoma State Cowboys

If I’m being honest, and they say that’s always the best policy, I’ve soured a bit on sports lately. Lockouts, egos, alleged sexual abuse scandals have a way of doing that. It just doesn’t seem like an escape anymore; it’s no longer entertainment for me.

Plus, I’ve lived in three states in three different time zones and attended three universities (one transfer and two degrees for those of you scoring at home). So while my roots are in Cleveland, Ohio, my branches are spread wide throughout the country. I guess I’m having an identity crisis. Who is my team? Who am I supposed to root for?

I now cheer for my friends to enjoy success. Now in my fourth year with ALSD, I’ve met some incredible folks who have turned into some incredible friends. One of my best buds is ALSD member Karyl Henry, Director of Premium Services for POSSE at Oklahoma State. Earlier this fall, I followed Karyl and her now second-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys to Austin, Texas for a Big 12 showdown with the Texas Longhorns. The objectives were simple: research the away game experience of the OSU faithful for the report you are reading now, and have fun and escape the lockouts and the scandals. Here’s a running diary of my journey, an aggregate of mental notes and iPhone notes… Go Pokes.

Let’s pick things up Friday night, the night before game day…

8:00pm
I park my car in the lot on the corner of 7th and Trinity which is clutch. It’s right next to the pita buggy. I’m already salivating over what will be my late night snack. Oh the simple joys of life.

8:04pm
I walk a block south and arrive at the famed 6th Street of Austin. I look left and see bar, bar, bar, bar, bar, bar, convenient store, bar, bar. Gotta love Austin. I look right- bar, bar, bar, bar, hotel, bar, bar, Blind Pig. Found it. It’s party time.

8:07pm
The “official party headquarters” for Cowboy fans starting at 6:00pm Friday is the Blind Pig Pub. Karyl and Pam Stubbs, Director of Chapter Relations, Oklahoma State University Alumni Association (OSUAA) are on-hand to greet OSU donors, alumni, player families and fans of all ages. The party, hosted by the Austin Chapter of OSUAA, is a sea of orange. The party, already a couple hours deep, is, by my estimation, a steady tide of 400-500 cowboys and cowgirls.

8:10pm
I see Karyl. As I expected, she’s flanked on all sides by orange and black, sharing a laugh with a group of OSU fans. I surreptitiously tip-toe into the circle and say hello to my friend who introduces me to many, many new friends. Word has gotten around that I’m on-hand to do a story for ALSD.com. I’m an instant celebrity.

Not sure if the OSU “freebies” are the magnets attracting the cowpoke nation, but anything branded with OSU mascot Pistol Pete is sure to go quickly. Included in the swag given away are the now famous stickers. “This year we started giving away these little stickers,” Karyl explains as she shows one to me. “You would think we’re giving away pieces of gold. Our fans think it’s the greatest thing in the world to get their sticker. They love these things.” Within 30 minutes, all 200 stickers are gone.

“Give him a sticker,” shouts one of my new OSU friends. “He’s gotta have a sticker.” I will wear my OSU POSSE star proudly the entire weekend. It is my orange badge of courage.

9:30pm
I’ve learned so much in just 90 minutes. For instance, did you know the real life Pistol Pete was named Frank Eaton? That doesn’t make sense to me either. I can’t explain; just sharing the fact. Also, although the overall experience is pretty standard for a regular season game, and OSU has a vast, coast-to-coast alumni network, the OSUAA Austin Chapter is the only one that hosts a party at the team headquarters bar. But Karyl is quick to point out, “We would have a good crowd here regardless of whether or not there was a party. It’s a place where people can call home, and they know they’ll be hanging out with other [Oklahoma State fans].”

If there’s always expected to be a party, there must always be an establishment willing to host it regardless of whether the destination is familiar with OSU or not. “It’s not necessarily more difficult [to find a host headquarters] for non-conference games [versus conference games],” Karyl explains. “In most towns, there’s a bar that caters to the visiting team.”

So it seems whether the Pokes are traveling to College Station, Texas or Athens, Georgia, there’s an entrepreneur everywhere willing to host the visiting team as a business opportunity. “When we played Georgia in ’07, the bar owner actually offered his bar to us,” says Karyl. “He called us and let us decorate and put up banners.”

10:00pm
The band on the rooftop of the Blind Pig is jamming OSU chants and fight songs in between Sublime’s “Santeria” – a precursor to a happy night of music. So with “Cowboys a riding, lassoes a-flying, under the western sky,” it’s time for me to go out and explore 6th Street and help the locals “Keep Austin Weird.”

10:10pm
First stop is the Driskill Hotel, a landmark of Texas hospitality. A walk through the restored lobby with its columns, marble floors and copper trim is like reaching 88 miles per hour in the DeLorean. I close my eyes and hear the songs of the Old West, beckoning me to “remember the Red River Valley,” smell the cigars and see the good ol’ boys broker a cattle deal over a game of 5-card stud.

After coming back to the future, I take my time with a glass of bourbon and enjoy the bar room troubadours. I’m pretty satisfied with my trip to one of the “Historic Hotels of America.”

11:00pm
Austin is the live music capital of the world. On any given night, you can enjoy the local talent as well as the occasional drop-in from famous musicians. And on any given night, you’d never know which is which. Patrons cram into each skinny bar, cheer loudly and investment themselves completely into the music no matter who is performing it. Tonight playing are the Guilty Pleasures, a four-piece female rock band who could pass for Heart. From Adele to Joan Jett to Aerosmith, their range of covers is vast. And they have the crowd eating out of their hands.

Next comes the tongue-strumming guitar player. Yes, you read that correctly. This guy is playing his guitar with his tongue. Unreal. Jimi Hendrix would be proud. 

12:00am
I was taught that nothing good happens after midnight. My nights have certainly eclipsed the witching hour on occasion, but tonight I am technically “working.” So it’s best to head back to the hotel for a good night’s sleep. Tomorrow is game day. But first… time for the pita buggy.

Saturday: Game Day…

8:00am
Another perk of being in Austin is its commitment to outdoor and healthy living. Located on the edge of Texas Hill Country, Austin possesses a calming beauty. To enjoy this serenity, I take to the trails of Zilker Park for a morning jog. Zilker Park is the site of the annual Austin City Limits Music Festival. But today, there are no stages; there are no temporary porta-potties. In its place, there are ultimate Frisbee games and dogs chasing butterflies.

9:00am
After my refreshing run, it’s time to prep for game day. This is a business trip. To fuel my preparation, I turn to a curious elixir of cucumbers, apples and limes. Again, gotta love Austin.

12:20pm
Here we go. Sporting my newly purchased vintage T-shirt featuring the scowling Pistol Pete, I’m off to the tailgate. It’s time to turn the heat up.

It’s Road Rally time – OSU’s “traveling home field advantage.” Enveloping the northwest corner of Darrell K. Royal Memorial Stadium near Gate 7, a crowd of 500+ is cheering loudly to welcome the OSU Cowboy football team and coaches.

The OSU pep band, spirit squad and Pistol Pete mascot are on-hand for every rally as well. All of these cheer leaders energize fans with chants and fight songs as they wait for the team buses to arrive. "The Road Rally would not be the same without them," states Karyl.

The Road Rally has also quickly become one of the most anticipated moments of the bowl game experience. Typically held in the team hotel lobby instead of at the venue, crowds number not in the hundreds but in the thousands, including at last year’s Alamo Bowl where a posse of over 3,000 fans crammed into the lobby and three floors looking down on the lobby to send the Cowboys off to a 36-10 victory over Arizona. “I walked through the lobby with [Head] Coach [Mike] Gundy, and you could tell he was in awe of the crowd,” Karyl remembers. “He stopped numerous times to turn and wave at the crowd. It was really awesome, and honestly gave me the chills.” 

1:30pm
Meanwhile back at the Blind Pig, a BBQ lunch is being served to another 500 Cowboy fans. For those without tickets to the game, the watch party is the next best place to be.

2:30pm
It’s minutes before kickoff, a time when adrenaline joins your bloodstream on an emotional cadence through your body. The human response to competitive triggers affects the fans and players alike. You can feel the knot tightening. 100,000+ people assembled in one place at one time is an incredible experience, an intoxicating boost of energy even for an unattached fan like myself as evidenced by my pregame text to Karyl: “Bevo is a bum. Mack Brown is a hobo.” Wow, I’ve been brainwashed. No hard feelings Bevo or Mack.

After a rendition of “Deep in the Heart of Texas” by the Longhorn marching band (with lyrics playfully and respectfully changed by the OSU pep band), the teams take to the field. It’s game time.

Vegas has the Longhorns as a seven point dog at home. They got trounced by rival Oklahoma last week, while OSU woodshedded Kansas by 42 points on the same Saturday. You know what that means? Trap game alert.

Living in the South has its perks. It’s the middle of October and the game time temperature is 85 degrees. In fact, it’s almost too hot, and, certainly, without my white and orange Titleist hat covering my thinning coiffure and shading my fair-skinned mug, I’d be dealing with some sunburn issues by day’s end.

6:00pm
I avoided the sun and the Pokes avoided the trap. Final score: OSU 38 UT 26. There were lots of points and lots of performances of the Waving Song, another OSU tradition, after Cowboy touchdowns.

“Oklahoma State! Oklahoma State!
We'll sing your praise tonight;
To let you know where e're we go,
For the Orange and Black we'll fight
We'll sing your worth o'er all the Earth
And shout: Ki Yi! Ki Ye!
In books of fame we'll write your name,
Oklahoma State!”

Coming Up Next…

Currently, to spread the details for each away game experience, OSU advertises online. All information can be found at the athletic department website, www.okstate.com. Karyl pushes this fan guide out via email each week to everyone who bought tickets through the OSU ticket office as well as to player families.

She also works closely with the alumni association to coordinate things. Under the direction of Pam Stubbs, OSUAA sends the same email out to all their alumni in the region where the game is being played. In the future, Karyl is looking to create new channels to disseminate news and alerts, including a Facebook page, mobile app and text message alerts.

The OSU Cowboys are certainly headed to a bowl game this season. At the time of this diary being finished, a BCS game and potential National Championship are flirting with the cowpokes. There will be more parties to plan, more Road Rallies to coordinate. And with more time leading up to a bowl game, more “funtivities” for Karyl to create. “For bowl games, we’ll do a hospitality room two days before and the day before the game at the team hotel,” she says. “In [the hospitality room] we’ll have raffle prizes, a kid activity area, food and drink specials and other giveaways. People can also pick up their game tickets.”

Wherever the team ends up, the nation will be there to cheer. “There are several people that I see every week,” observes Karyl. “Our fans travel pretty well, especially this year with such high expectations.”

After my weekend in Austin, I can understand why Cowboy fans travel so well. They are well taken care of. As was I. Thanks to Karyl and to Pam and to everyone else in the Oklahoma State Athletic Department for allowing me such amazing access to your fine program. It was a tremendous experience.

And thanks for reminding me of the yin and yang of sport – that even in weary, destructive circumstances, sport is also inherently good-natured. It’s time for me to escape again…maybe all the way to Stillwater for a Cowboy National Championship. 

Go Pokes!