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From a visiting fan... Baylor


  • I just want to first say, on behalf of all of the Big XII, welcome. I certainly had heard all of the reports, and came ready for a verbal assault. I honestly did not bring my wife and kids specifically because of the history and first hand reports, and in hindsight, I really wish I had brought them. In all sincerity, the only thing I could possibly complain about was the result on the scoreboard, because everything else was excellent.

    The blue and gold carpet rolled out by the true fans was just unbelievable. You should definitely thank your administration for whatever they did in a PR campaign, public awareness moves, etc, because I have never seen a more solidified fan base dedicated to an excellent game day experience for BOTH fans. I have been around the world, watched soccer matches, rugby matches, college football in every state, including heated and non heated rivalries, and I have never experience the welcome I experienced in Morgantown. It started with the waiters, waitresses, bartenders, hotel personnel, and all the fans staying in the hotels. It continued throughout the evening as we walked around and got our bearings. The next morning, on our way to the game, the hotel shuttle was full of good banter, and then when we arrived…

    I have never shook that many hands in my life. I have never received that many offers for a beer and a pepperoni roll in my life. I have never been stood up for by other opposing fans when the random drunk fan at 9am screams an obscenity. I have never been offered a personal view into an opposing team's game plan, and a thorough interest in what Baylor is going to do, and a healthy debate on what we think the result is going to be…. all with more pepperoni rolls, bratwursts, salads, dips, beer, and did I mention beer?

    I could rave about the experience for hours on end… but I am just going to tell you… if you continue to treat opposing fans this way for the rest of your time in the Big XII, you will absolutely be crowned the king of the road trip cities, and you can expect 3-4 times as many fans each time, as I fully expect to tell my friends to go enjoy Morgantown, stay a while.

    If any of you are working for the Morgantown economic development committee though… please take one note… start building more hotel rooms. I booked in February the day after the schedule was announced… I had a ton of friends who chose to stay in Pittsburgh because the lack of hotel rooms allowed for a normally $150 a night hotel (Hilton Garden Inn) to be $279. That was a shade under ridiculous.

    I would also like to tell you in no uncertain terms… you are welcome to Waco anytime. If you are coming, and bringing the same fans that were tailgating out there this weekend… keep my name, send me a private message and we will make sure to roll out the green and gold carpet to you.

    Thanks!

    atxtraveler

    http://www.baylorbearfoundation.com - join and list me as your referral - Mark_Carroll@baylor.edu

    atxtraveler

  • Thanks so much for the kind words. I'm glad to hear you had an excellent experience! Growing up I went to nearly every home game (late 80s-late 90s) and now I make it to a couple a year and I can say honestly that the atmosphere yesterday was one of the best I've seen. I think WVU fans are more than pleased to be in the Big XII and want everyone to know it.

    BigXIIBeast

  • Thanks for the props and glad you had a good time. We are definitely glad we are in the BIG XII and I feel like its fresh start with how we treat other fanbases. I feel like we had gotten a bad rep from our ex-rivals which was more than likely undeserving. Glad we started the conference with a good welcoming. Looking forward to great games, and great atmoshperes for some years to come.

    signature image

    captamericao9

  • Biggest issue with hotel rooms is they get filled only a few times a year. Game days, graduations, move in days, etc... It's just not enough to justify many more hotels.

    wvu15

  • Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed your experience in Morgantown.

    CivilEnginEER

  • So glad to hear you enjoyed your time in Morgantown!

    signature image

    DubVMike ●

  • Refreshing to hear you enjoyed the trip. Thanks for the message

    signature image

    WVU90_94

  • We always say it is I very small minority that give us a bad rep. A sure fire way to end that is for the MAJORITY to call those out feeling their beer muscles. There's nothing more that I hate than a tough-guy with a 100 to 1 advantage.

    DickinsonWVU ●

  • atxtraveler said...

    I just want to first say, on behalf of all of the Big XII, welcome. I certainly had heard all of the reports, and came ready for a verbal assault. I honestly did not bring my wife and kids specifically because of the history and first hand reports, and in hindsight, I really wish I had brought them. In all sincerity, the only thing I could possibly complain about was the result on the scoreboard, because everything else was excellent.

    The blue and gold carpet rolled out by the true fans was just unbelievable. You should definitely thank your administration for whatever they did in a PR campaign, public awareness moves, etc, because I have never seen a more solidified fan base dedicated to an excellent game day experience for BOTH fans. I have been around the world, watched soccer matches, rugby matches, college football in every state, including heated and non heated rivalries, and I have never experience the welcome I experienced in Morgantown. It started with the waiters, waitresses, bartenders, hotel personnel, and all the fans staying in the hotels. It continued throughout the evening as we walked around and got our bearings. The next morning, on our way to the game, the hotel shuttle was full of good banter, and then when we arrived…

    I have never shook that many hands in my life. I have never received that many offers for a beer and a pepperoni roll in my life. I have never been stood up for by other opposing fans when the random drunk fan at 9am screams an obscenity. I have never been offered a personal view into an opposing team's game plan, and a thorough interest in what Baylor is going to do, and a healthy debate on what we think the result is going to be…. all with more pepperoni rolls, bratwursts, salads, dips, beer, and did I mention beer?

    I could rave about the experience for hours on end… but I am just going to tell you… if you continue to treat opposing fans this way for the rest of your time in the Big XII, you will absolutely be crowned the king of the road trip cities, and you can expect 3-4 times as many fans each time, as I fully expect to tell my friends to go enjoy Morgantown, stay a while.

    If any of you are working for the Morgantown economic development committee though… please take one note… start building more hotel rooms. I booked in February the day after the schedule was announced… I had a ton of friends who chose to stay in Pittsburgh because the lack of hotel rooms allowed for a normally $150 a night hotel (Hilton Garden Inn) to be $279. That was a shade under ridiculous.

    I would also like to tell you in no uncertain terms… you are welcome to Waco anytime. If you are coming, and bringing the same fans that were tailgating out there this weekend… keep my name, send me a private message and we will make sure to roll out the green and gold carpet to you.

    Thanks!

    atxtraveler

    I actually had the opportunity to speak with a couple of Baylor fans, although it was prior to the game, I didn't get any feed back as how they had been treated, but I can say, Baylor fans seem alot like us here in West Virginia. atxtraveler, I'm glad you had a great experience in Morgantown.

    signature image signature image signature image

    Those who fail to prepare are preparing to fail!

    EERFAN64MIKE ●

  • Mike, you didn't happen to be the group that had two people wearing Argyle pants? If so, that was us.

    This post was edited by atxtraveler on 9/30/2012 at 1:36 PM

    attachment

    http://www.baylorbearfoundation.com - join and list me as your referral - Mark_Carroll@baylor.edu

    atxtraveler

  • atxtraveler said...

    Mike, you didn't happen to be the group that had two people wearing Argyle pants? If so, that was us.

    Those pants are awesome! Wasn't me but maybe the other Mike

    signature image

    DubVMike ●

  • atxtraveler said...

    Mike, you didn't happen to be the group that had two people wearing Argyle pants? If so, that was us.

    Ha! Were you the guy on the left in the picture? After the game I was walking out beside you and commented on your sweet pants (it didn't sound THAT weird, I promise) and your response was "thank you for executing the Big 12 defense flawlessly" and we both had a good laugh about it.

    Awesome man, glad you had a great time. You guys are going to make some serious noise this year in the conference. Williams and Reese are awesome!

    This post was edited by WVUfan24 on 9/30/2012 at 4:19 PM

    WVUfan24

  • atxtraveler said...

    I just want to first say, on behalf of all of the Big XII, welcome. I certainly had heard all of the reports, and came ready for a verbal assault. I honestly did not bring my wife and kids specifically because of the history and first hand reports, and in hindsight, I really wish I had brought them. In all sincerity, the only thing I could possibly complain about was the result on the scoreboard, because everything else was excellent.

    The blue and gold carpet rolled out by the true fans was just unbelievable. You should definitely thank your administration for whatever they did in a PR campaign, public awareness moves, etc, because I have never seen a more solidified fan base dedicated to an excellent game day experience for BOTH fans. I have been around the world, watched soccer matches, rugby matches, college football in every state, including heated and non heated rivalries, and I have never experience the welcome I experienced in Morgantown. It started with the waiters, waitresses, bartenders, hotel personnel, and all the fans staying in the hotels. It continued throughout the evening as we walked around and got our bearings. The next morning, on our way to the game, the hotel shuttle was full of good banter, and then when we arrived…

    I have never shook that many hands in my life. I have never received that many offers for a beer and a pepperoni roll in my life. I have never been stood up for by other opposing fans when the random drunk fan at 9am screams an obscenity. I have never been offered a personal view into an opposing team's game plan, and a thorough interest in what Baylor is going to do, and a healthy debate on what we think the result is going to be…. all with more pepperoni rolls, bratwursts, salads, dips, beer, and did I mention beer?

    I could rave about the experience for hours on end… but I am just going to tell you… if you continue to treat opposing fans this way for the rest of your time in the Big XII, you will absolutely be crowned the king of the road trip cities, and you can expect 3-4 times as many fans each time, as I fully expect to tell my friends to go enjoy Morgantown, stay a while.

    If any of you are working for the Morgantown economic development committee though… please take one note… start building more hotel rooms. I booked in February the day after the schedule was announced… I had a ton of friends who chose to stay in Pittsburgh because the lack of hotel rooms allowed for a normally $150 a night hotel (Hilton Garden Inn) to be $279. That was a shade under ridiculous.

    I would also like to tell you in no uncertain terms… you are welcome to Waco anytime. If you are coming, and bringing the same fans that were tailgating out there this weekend… keep my name, send me a private message and we will make sure to roll out the green and gold carpet to you.

    Thanks!

    atxtraveler

    Always great to hear words like this!

    wvruger71 ●

  • Thank you for posting this. I wasn't even at the game but am very excited to hear you were treated so well.

    Follow me on twitter: @JoshScottWV

    WickedJester

  • Atx
    Glad you had a great time. I was hoping for more Baylor fans at the tailgating, didn't see that many. LSU last year seemed to bring the most fans to a WVU, and I know they had a good time, of course the beat us, but even before the game started we spoke to a bunch of them. Like you said, once the word gets out that Morgantown is a great gameday experience, maybe we will see more visitors.
    Not sure about how the hotel rooms are in Waco, but we are going to Austin this week for the game and the $124.00 rooms at the Marriott are $259.00 for Thursday through Saturday nights. Most college towns just don't have enough rooms on gameday, so they can jack up the prices.

    Navagator ●

  • That was one helluva game! Yeah, I'm disappointed that we lost, but by hanging tough on the road against a top 10 team I'm proud of the Bears.

    Geno is the real deal - but I'm sure you guys already knew this. I watched RG3 for his entire career and Geno looks a lot like him. Keep him healthy and he wins the Heisman. I'm pulling for him.

    I know we'd both like to see our defenses improve, but the offensive explosion was crazy to watch unfold. Both teams were "in the zone" as far as offense goes. Maybe the Ravens or the Forty-Niners could have shut things down, but I doubt if anyone else could have.

    Welcome to the Big 12. I'm looking forward to getting to see your basketball, baseball and other teams play. It's going to be a blast.

    Volunteer

  • atxtraveler:
    As a member of the WVU Alumni Band, I spent some time in line to get in to the stadium with many Baylor fans who made the trip to West Virginia. Realizing that most people have heard a great deal about some of our less gracious fans I, and many of my fellow fans, made the extra effort to make Baylor fans feel welcome in Morgantown. Like you, I met some of the nicest and most gracious people. If the rest of your fan base is as warm and pleasant as the folks I met yesterday, I will plan on making that Texas trip often! Thank you all for coming, thank you for your kind words, and please come back any time!

    davewvu

  • Volunteer said...

    That was one helluva game! Yeah, I'm disappointed that we lost, but by hanging tough on the road against a top 10 team I'm proud of the Bears.

    Geno is the real deal - but I'm sure you guys already knew this. I watched RG3 for his entire career and Geno looks a lot like him. Keep him healthy and he wins the Heisman. I'm pulling for him.

    I know we'd both like to see our defenses improve, but the offensive explosion was crazy to watch unfold. Both teams were "in the zone" as far as offense goes. Maybe the Ravens or the Forty-Niners could have shut things down, but I doubt if anyone else could have.

    Welcome to the Big 12. I'm looking forward to getting to see your basketball, baseball and other teams play. It's going to be a blast.

    Good luck the rest of the season. I think Geno wins it this year and Florence should be a top 3-4 contender for it next year (maybe this year if he keeps playing like he did Saturday).

    wv123

  • Being in the Army for 26 years and still counting!! I wanna say Thanks for these kind words!!
    Every where the Army has seen fit to send me,, I always meet WVU fans,, and it makes me feel like I am back home!!

    Also,, the folks I meet always talk about great West Va is when they learn I am from there!!

    Of course we get our share of jokes and ribbing!! But that is all in fun!!

    Cant wait to see some WVU Away games and meet some more great people and make some awesome friendships along the way!!

    LET's GOOOOoooo,,,,....

    CloudPounder

  • I am glad to hear that you had a very good experience while visiting our state. Thank you for your kind words it means a lot to many of us and yes WV has faithful fans. I now live in northeast PA and I have a lot of Mountaineer stuff all over and I wear my WV shirts, earnings, bracelets and hair barrette during football and basketball season. Thank you again for your kind words. It was a good game, you guys kept us on our toes. Most people in WV are very friendly and are happy to share good food, good beer, and good times.

    luv2cook00

  • Anyone know how the WVU fan is with this guy?

    Follow me on twitter: @JoshScottWV

    WickedJester

  • atxtraveler.....I ran into you guys going into the game. I asked you guys if you just came from the Ryder Cup the day before. Glad to see you enjoyed your time here.

    istep11

  • CloudPounder said...

    Being in the Army for 26 years and still counting!! I wanna say Thanks for these kind words!! Every where the Army has seen fit to send me,, I always meet WVU fans,, and it makes me feel like I am back home!!

    Also,, the folks I meet always talk about great West Va is when they learn I am from there!!

    Of course we get our share of jokes and ribbing!! But that is all in fun!!

    Cant wait to see some WVU Away games and meet some more great people and make some awesome friendships along the way!!

    LET's GOOOOoooo,,,,....

    MOUNTAINEEERS!

    BigXIIBeast

  • WickedJester said...

    Thank you for posting this. I wasn't even at the game but am very excited to hear you were treated so well.

    This^ glad to hear that all went well.

    Goldrusher35 ●

  • Volunteer said...

    That was one helluva game! Yeah, I'm disappointed that we lost, but by hanging tough on the road against a top 10 team I'm proud of the Bears.

    Geno is the real deal - but I'm sure you guys already knew this. I watched RG3 for his entire career and Geno looks a lot like him. Keep him healthy and he wins the Heisman. I'm pulling for him.

    I know we'd both like to see our defenses improve, but the offensive explosion was crazy to watch unfold. Both teams were "in the zone" as far as offense goes. Maybe the Ravens or the Forty-Niners could have shut things down, but I doubt if anyone else could have.

    Welcome to the Big 12. I'm looking forward to getting to see your basketball, baseball and other teams play. It's going to be a blast.

    I would not be suprised at all to see Florence in NY with Geno in a few months waiting for his name to be called too, what a show both guys put on.

    Goldrusher35 ●

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