With One Billboard Inside Tuscaloosa, Ala., UCF Fans Drum Up A Little Drama
Perched on McFarland Boulevard in Tuscaloosa, home of the Alabama Crimson Tide, a new billboard bought by UCF fans lays down the gauntlet — which, it must be noted, is all but assured of not being picked up.
Travis Reier
As you may have heard, the Alabama Crimson Tide just won the national college football championship. Again. In a feat of near-Groundhog Day repetition, the program has now taken home a whopping five of the past nine titles.
As you may not have heard, the University of Central Florida Knights also won the national championship … according to UCF fans, at least.
The team finished its season with a perfect record, unlike Alabama, but because its opponents were deemed too weak, the school missed the playoff to decide the official national champion. So instead, UCF went to the Peach Bowl and beat Auburn, the one team that beat Alabama all year.
By the little-known transitive property of college football, that means UCF won the title. Or something.
Anyway, that was enough for Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who declared them national champions by official proclamation. It was enough for UCF’s athletic director, too: Danny White confirmed that the school was paying the team’s assistant coaches bonuses for winning the title. (Head coach Scott Frost had already gotten all the bonuses he was contractually allowed, apparently.)
Some UCF fans, however, want more: They want to see their squad actually play the Crimson Tide. And they laid down cash in order to lay down their gauntlet.
Here’s the billboard now perched in Tuscaloosa, Ala., proud home of the Crimson Tide:
“Congratulations!” it reads. “How about a home & home series with UCF?”
Now, it should be noted: The chances this will happen — this year or any year — teeter somewhere between slim and none. But that didn’t stop 37 UCF fans from pooling $1,665 on GoFundMe for the billboard, according to ESPN.
“We felt like this year’s team could run with anyone in the country, and the Peach Bowl win [over Auburn] proved that,” said Sean Barakett, who says he contributed $100, told the network. “All we needed was a chance to play harder opponents.”
They may be waiting a while before they get their response.
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