In my opinion, one of the most underrated things about following sports is the snapshot memories you pick up every step of the way. The ESPN final score alert, the Twitter notification, watching the closing seconds of an amazing game. We all remember where we were when we watched our favorite team experience the play, good or bad, that defined their entire season. 

The sights and the sounds, the company, the weather, whatever else we did that day, all of it is seared into the memory of a sports fan who just saw something they’ll remember for the rest of their lives. 

I know where I was when the San Francisco 49ers lost the NFC Championship Game to the Seattle Seahawks and were met with a Richard Sherman interview that became the stuff of nightmares. At my uncle’s house in Alameda, California, that 13-year-old boy became the #1 Seahawks hater the second that Colin Kaepernick’s pass to Michael Crabtree was tipped and picked off. I remember it vividly.

I know exactly where I was when Adrian Wojnarowski’s Twitter notification came through that Kevin Durant was signing with the Golden State Warriors in summer 2016. Eating Frosted Flakes at the kitchen table that Fourth of July weekend, I couldn’t contain my excitement, because I knew I’d be cheering for the best basketball team of all time that season. I was right.

BYU-Utah, 2016. At a friend’s house for his 16th birthday party, I watched the end of the game on my phone as the Utes stopped Taysom Hill shy of a would-be game-winning two-point conversion to finish off a sixth straight Holy War victory.

George Kittle’s tackle-breaking catch and run against New Orleans late in the regular season in 2019. Steph Curry’s career-high 62 points against the Portland Trail Blazers, with no fans in attendance to watch it due to the pandemic. Pablo Sandoval catching a pop fly to finish off the 2014 World Series and celebrating over an ice cold Martinelli’s with my dad.

All these moments, and many, many more, experienced through a screen with family and friends around me. Often, it’s my dad and brothers cheering just as loud as I am at the TV during a big game. 

Those are each very special in their own way, but man, live sports are a different experience entirely. Being a fan of Bay Area sports teams thanks to my Californian-raised dad, it’s rare that I get to make it to those games in person. However, Utah Athletics have been on my sports fan menu since I was a kid, and attending here has given me a stellar program, with many successful teams, to cheer for during my college years.

There’s something about thousands of people collectively holding their breath waiting for the ball to snap. Flashing the U to fans in red outside the stadium. The caravan of Utah license plates and stickers heading south down I-15 for the Rose Bowl or Pac-12 Title. You can watch the game on whatever screen you like at home, but the in-person experience really cannot be replicated. Live sports are special, and college provides that opportunity in a way that the pros simply can’t.

I’ve been very lucky to be in attendance for some huge, snapshot moments in Utes history during my time here at the U.

Britain Covey’s 78-yard punt return against Oregon in 2021 to go up 28-0 at the half?

I was there. The press box shook.

The program’s first AND second Rose Bowl, where, despite the losses, Ute fans got to soak in the magic of the historic game in sunny Southern California?

I was there. Great trips with some great friends.

Cam Rising’s touchdown and two-point conversion to topple rival USC in an all-time comeback?

I was there. The fans stormed the field, despite stadium security trying their very hardest to slow it down.

And the Utes winning their second straight Pac-12 Title in Las Vegas, against those same Trojans, despite trailing by two touchdowns early against the Heisman Trophy winner?

Yeah, I was there. That crowd was beyond electric. 

Dozens of men’s and women’s basketball games at the Huntsman, the exciting top-25 volleyball matches, freezing in the middle of winter at outdoor soccer games during my freshman year and meeting countless athletes for interviews at the practice facility. All of that ties into and wraps up my college experience in a very special way.

Sure, I’ll always remember the games I watched on TV. The moment I saw the breaking news on Twitter. The times when I got the FINAL notification and had to double take and quickly open the box score. 

But, 30 years from now, when folks are talking about the Utes of the early ‘20s around some friends and some cold drinks, you know what I can tell them?

I was there. And that’s pretty cool.

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