The third year of UYFL action in Plant City ended pretty well for the local fans, with three teams going deep in the brackets and two coming out with some shiny new rings and jackets. But, the Plant City teams winning hardware wasn’t the only cool thing spectators saw over the past week.
Here are some things that I noticed during the tournament:
• The tournament gave me a great feel for the size of the Otis M. Andrews complex. Even with seven or eight teams simultaneously playing football games, and a lot of their fans watching them, it was still easy to move around and breathe.
• We could not have asked for better football weather all week, especially when it cooled down Dec. 13. A lot of us say, “I can’t wait until it gets cold again,” but then it gets cold and that tune changes pretty quickly. Friday’s temperature hit the perfect balance, without a storm cloud in the sky. If only the Durant basketball games could have been held outdoors!
• It was neat to see teams from all over the country come to play, and a lot of them had crazy uniforms. If I had to guess, I’d say that at least a few of those teams are dressed like that just to distract their opponents — and it seemed to work at times. On another note, there was a team called the Chiefs that wore Miami Hurricanes-style duds, but their fans celebrated big plays with the Florida State Seminoles’ war chant. There’s no way these guys are from Florida.
• I’m hoping that the Brooklyn Renegade who was injured during the 14U Dolphins’ championship game is OK. You never want to see a kid on the ground for 15 minutes, only to be taken away in an ambulance. According to the players on Plant City’s bench, the boy’s knee was torn up, and he was knocked unconscious at the same time. That happened in the middle of a big pileup, and that’s just how the game is at times. Even if you’re careful, it’s still a physical sport.
• There were at least a few rivalry games this week, played by teams who aren’t even from the same state. I was surprised to learn that the Dolphins consider the Naperville Patriots a true rival, even though the Pats are from a suburb of Chicago. These rivalry games only happen at this tournament, so it’s cool to know that teams like Naperville have this game against Plant City circled on their calendar months in advance.
• The 14U Dolphins’ championship game was the only one that I got to watch in full, and the fans really got into it. Especially early on, when the officials made some questionable calls (Note: They got the first call right, although that was the one you all were the most vocal about. They did blow the next one, though …) While I was snapping photos, I overheard some fans of another team saying, “These Plant City fans are crazy!” I considered it a solid home-field advantage.
• In last week’s issue, I brought up the story of the bracket mishap that had the Plant City Colts in the wrong division. The Colts made it to the runner-up game, but there was just one problem: Their opponents weren’t at the field. According to head coach Curt Brooks, a death in the family of the Northeast Rattlers’ head coach changed the team’s plans for the day — they re-scheduled for a 6 p.m. start so that the coach could attend the wake. The Colts arrived on time and geared up, but the Rattlers were late — very late. Brooks said the original plan was that the Rattlers would forfeit if they didn’t make it on time, and the Colts would have accepted it, but that changed when the team arrived. The Colts and Rattlers ended up playing and, despite the blowout loss, Brooks was pleased that his players were willing to give the Rattlers a reason to suit up. As he put it, “It was a good lesson for them — to do the right thing.”
Though I didn’t get to go down to the park as often as I would have liked, I was pleased with what action I did see. I don’t know about you, but I’m definitely hoping that the tournament will be back in Plant City next year.