Throughout my life, I have attended many sports events and have sat down in just about every place you could imagine, from the 50-yard line four rows up in football, to behind home plate in baseball, to behind a huge pole during a basketball game. It’s safe to say that I have moved around the stands in just about every sport. Last Thursday night at the UNA vs. Central Oklahoma football game was the first time I’ve ever sat in an official press box during a game.

It all started with the walk up to the elevator, which took me up to where the media were supposed to sit. When the elevator opened, there were about 30 different newspapers and TV news crews lined up at tables with their laptops open ready to cover the football game. When I arrived at my assigned seat, I got all that I needed out of my bag that would help me cover the game.

I then started observing everybody else to see what they were doing and noticed that everybody was eating Bojangle’s chicken and biscuits. So that was my next move: get a big plate of food and a drink, and I was set for the game to begin.

The game finally started, and after every single play everybody in the room would jot down some kind of stat, ranging from what yard line the team was on to how many yards the runner got-it was a mad house. It got a little funny at times because you would hear people start screaming if someone didn’t get a certain stat written down, and the Internet also kept going out.

For me, it wasn’t easy because I had to focus on what was going on during the game and not be a fan also. Being a student with my university playing, it was hard not to jump up and scream when they scored. I did, however, let one scream slide and everyone just gave me that look as if something terrible just happened.

Once the final quarter reached zero on the clock and it was time for me to head to the field, I started to look back on the night and realized that it is pretty intense sitting in the press box. It is the best way to watch a game, and I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything.

Tommy Bolton can be reached at 256-765-4364 or [email protected].