During a family Thanksgiving at my father's parents' house in Yazoo City when I was in elementary school, my grandmother wanted everyone around the table to say what they were thankful for.
My grandfather was the first one up. Deaf and going blind, the man who was probably wearing a maroon shirt looked up and said, "I'm thankful it's no longer football season."
Everyone nodded in agreement, and we came to a consensus to be thankful for the same thing. I don't remember the year, but evidently it had been a bad season for the Dawgs.
I was born a Mississippi State fan. I didn't really have a choice.
Growing up, my family used to take the Natchez Trace when we traveled to Starkville from Madison. During football season in the fall, we would watch the trees, which were turning yellow and eventually shedding their leaves as the season progressed, zip ping by through the minivan's windows. We would take a potty break in Kosciusko, which was mandatory for everyone in car. Then we continued to make our way to God's Country—Starkville, which I thought was "Starville" until I was about 8.
We would see the leaves grow back during the basketball and baseball seasons.
Once we veered off the Trace to get on Highway 12 near Ackerman, I always knew we were close. We would pass through Sturgis and eventually cross under the Highway 25 bridge into the promised land.
My family would tailgate for football games in the Cotton Mills parking lot. Nothing extravagant but just a few sandwiches and treats, and when we would walk to Davis Wade Stadium from the Cotton Mills, I thought I was going on a hike. It seemed like such a large distance full of maroon and white.
But in all my years, I never wore a Mississippi State cheerleader outfit. I opted for a football jersey—specifically a No. 16 Kevin Fant jersey. My parents say it was because I didn't like the feel of the cheer outfit.
Growing up a Mississippi State fan was great until I realized just how hard it was. Even though we won the SEC West title in 1998 (when I was 4) and went to the Cotton Bowl, we were not always victorious from my perspective as a young, idealistic MSU fan. And some of the Ole Miss kids at school were mean about it.
But no matter what, I constantly wore MSU clothing. My parents probably helped support a lot of stores in Starkville and around Jackson with my clothing style of choice.
Now, as a senior at MSU, not much has changed. I still walk through the sea of maroon and white in the Junction, and I tailgate with my family, but at a different location. I still wear my grandfather's sweatshirt from the 1998 "Duel at the Dome," the SEC title game against Tennessee. I have a "vintage" MSU baseball sweatshirt from the 1980s, and I wear a sweatshirt (you see a pattern here?) from MSU's 1990 trip to Syracuse, N.Y., for basketball so much that my friends deemed it my "dirty sweatshirt."
I was raised to bleed maroon and white. I take personal offense, even when I shouldn't, when someone rips on MSU. McGowans are MSU fans; it's as simple as that.
Because of my Bulldog lineage, I am overwhelmed with the surge of positivity and coverage from programs like "SEC Nation" and ESPN's "College GameDay." I never thought, but often hoped, that Mississippi State would be one of the best college football teams in the nation. But it looks like we have a chance this season.
Every Bulldog victory increases the pride I have in my school and in my blood. I cannot help but yell and yelp during the games. I have been to games where we were demolished, but I was also raised on stories of great Bulldog victories. But I had never been to one of those legendary games.
Now, it seems like I have a chance.
This Saturday's game means something to me. To me, it's my chance to further experience MSU athletic greatness and support the school my family raised me to love. The game is also another way to show the country that no one should count Mississippi out of anything. Yes, we have loads of problems. But we are still here, and we are still able to contribute positive things into our society.
So here's to Saturday. May "College GameDay" bring good times and good memories, but only to MSU fans. And here's to hoping that we are no longer thankful that a MSU football season is over again.
Hail State!
Mary Kate McGowan is a senior communication and English major at Mississippi State University. She was raised in Madison before its platinum-SUV era. She writes and edits for the Starkville Free Press.
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