Boys' Club Infiltrated. Introducing Ranchbabe

Hello everyone! Most of you know me already, but Jon asked me to write an introduction and tell you a little more about myself.

Being the only girl in the room is nothing new for me. In my own house I am outnumbered 4:1 by hubby and our 3 sons. I spend most of my time feeding them, at least when I am not working at my paying job.

How I became a football fan: This is the part where you all might kick me out. I became a football fan in the early 80's as a young kid. No one in my house watched football, so I have no idea why it appealed to me. I quickly became mesmerized with a team in orange and their Houdini-like quarterback.  Just when you thought the defense had him, John Elway would duck, scramble, or just plain break tackles and make something happen. I became a Broncos fan for life.

I moved to Nebraska in 1996 (who knew the good old days were coming to an end?) and joined my hubby-to-be at Husker games (he was a season ticket holder). Resistance was futile. I was quickly assimilated and found room for another team in my football fandom. The best part: having a common team with everyone around me. I did not have many Bronco allies here, but totally fit in wearing red. It became apparent to this newbie that the Huskers were more than a team, they were an identity.

My favorite Husker memory: Hmmm, that is a hard one. Near the top has to be the 1997 Huskers walloping Peyton Manning's Volunteers to send Dr. Tom out with a share of the national championship. (The irony is not lost on this Bronco fan).  But, my favorite? It has got to be Ndamukong Suh's dominant performance in the 2009 Big 12 championship game. Watching him toss Colt McCoy around was simply amazing. I have never seen a defensive player put a team on his back like Suh did that night. I probably will never see anything like that again. The runner up: Mike Stuntz to Eric Crouch in Black 41 Flash Reverse. Poetry in motion.

My favorite Husker player: This is really tough. I am a sucker for the running backs--all the way from Ahman Green to Ameer Abdullah. However, I have to go with Taylor Martinez. Years of watching Scott Frost throw a football thankfully desensitized me to the concept of mechanics, so I could just enjoy the anomaly and athlete that is Martinez. I can still remember the 2012 B1G championship game yelling at the TV...."Throw the ball away! No, don't do that! Just throw it away!....Oh! Oh!....There's an opening! Oh my....holy crap!....Run! Run!...Touchdown!!!!"

Yes, I remember the final score of that game. Martinez was so ill-suited to do something so well and handled all of the pressure and expectations in an admirable way--he worked his a** off to get better. He always represented the University well and probably wanted what we wanted more than we wanted it (if that makes sense). I have to admire him for that.

Alright, this is getting long. There you have it. Ranchbabe in a nutshell. I look forward to adding a few thoughts to this crack writing team Jon has assembled. Hopefully, we have more than a few laughs along the way.

Rather than make this all about me, I would love to see you all share a little about yourselves in the comments below. PIck one (or 2 or 3, your choice) and tell us how you became a football fan, your favorite Husker memory or your favorite Husker player. Don't worry about your prose, we won't remember it anyway (except for Red, she remembers everything).

Thanks for listening and Go Big Red!