So THAT'S who keeps sending me hate mail

I have always found it sad that many who went to a Service Academy seem to almost feel regret about it - regret that they did not go to a big land-grant university football powerhouse. You know the type - the sports nut that lives a fair bit of their lives vicariously through the success or failure of their sports team. They feel they must have a college team that lets them put a big flag on their front lawn like that d@mn Georgia fan across the street.

We all know marriages that have been destroyed by it. We all know student-athletes who were used by a system that looked at them more as athlete-students. If you went to a major land-grant university, like I did, you saw it in spades. The all-American in your sports history class who was a functional illiterate - when he made it to class. The second and third order effect from the sports nut alumni and the pressure they put on universities.

Well, that mindset is the reason so much pressure is put on the USNA to sell its intellectual and honor soul in order to play D1 football. Playing Brown, Harvard, or Yale just isn't enough for the sports nut. No, it isn't - how do I put it - "compensatory" enough.

Here is a classic example of what it will do to very smart, very professional, and very immature adults. In this case - and adult of some stature.

I have modified the email in order to protect the innocent and guilty.

Here is what started it all.

The Atlantic Coast Conference and the University of Maryland announced the 2010 football schedule Thursday, a slate highlighted by seven home games, including a season-opening tilt vs. Navy on Labor Day in Baltimore.

The Terps will open the season on Monday, Sept. 6 against the Midshipmen at M&T Bank Stadium. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN (4 p.m. ET).

OK. Navy at war. Nation at war. Football is just a game. This is a Service Academy. OK - just wanted to make sure I have my priorities straight.

..... and now the email from Sporto;

Last night I learned (from a Maryland sports press release) that the Navy-Maryland game was shifted to the Monday of Labor Day weekend and will be part of a double header on ESPN (the other game is VA Tech-Boise State).

I blew my top due to the late notification and the fact that Navy didn't announce the change. I dialed Marriott to change my Baltimore hotel reservations and found out that it would cost me $50 a night more for my same room (including Military discount!). My second round of blowing my top scared my old, hard of hearing dogs out of the room.

Now that I've calmed down, I called the NAAA and spoke to my Classmate, [...].

FYI, here's the straight skinny: the game is a Maryland home game and, as such, Maryland had control of the site negotiations and the press releases. There's a conflict with the original Saturday game date of Sept 4th with the Baltimore Orioles. The Orioles are playing at Camden Yard on that same date and shifting the times of either and/or both the Navy-MD and Orioles games was insufficient to meet a Baltimore City regulation of having a minimum of 3 1/2 hours between events due to parking. It was close, but again, Maryland had the lead with the negotiations and couldn't come to an agreement. [...] said that Navy wanted the Saturday date as we have a home game the following Saturday (GA Southern). Now we have a short week due to the shift.

[...] also said that Navy could not release the game date change until Maryland announced it. The web site was changed, but we were prohibited form an official announcement. I believe that an announcement will be made shortly.

Wanted to get all of this to you ASAP. I felt that those of you who have made plans to attend the game and now need to change those plans would like to know the what has happened.

Goodness knows, with all that is going on - we shouldn't let $50 distract us from important Navy business.