Back in April, a frantic, yet vivacious acquaintance burst into a honeymoon suite in Ogden,Utah. In a pre-meditated scheme, the groom kicked the father of the bride in the groin, shoveled him out the window, latched onto the unwelcome intruder, and then the two dashed back to the hills ofNorthwest Arkansas. All this happening before the marriage was even consummated. And at that particular moment, Jerry Bovee (the bewildered father of the bride) didn’t realize the blessing which had been bestowed upon him and his Weber State athletic family.
The original marriage contract was made in good faith between the two parties. Both would have benefited from the arrangement. However, the union was arranged before the groom learned that tragedy had struck the one for whom he had lusted for from afar. The pleasing damsel had been scorned by her former lover. Distraught and disparaged, the fair maiden heard a low whisper from the lips of the deceiver – soothing words of comfort. A promise to embrace and nurture a broken heart, if only, he were freed from his obligation in Ogden. The cunning groom enticed the beautiful vixen to thrust a dagger deep into the heart of his waiting bride. Then he would be free to run away with the interloper, nurse the nasty wound which had been inflicted by another, and take her to her promised glory. So with deceit and forethought, John L turned his back on a simple, yet reliable future. He forsook the ones that had taken him in from the cold and decreed that he wanted no part of their ordinary existence. A life of matrimony to a “plain Jane”, living in a quaint little cottage, centered in a tiny village, and nestled away in an obscure and forgotten setting was no longer his cup of tea. This man sold his soul and dying career for one more chance at fame, fortune, and a legacy of greatness – a chance to sit in the seat of honor in the “banquet hall of college football supremacy”.
Running off with the harlot while abandoning his vow to love and to hold – til death, do we part; John L seized the opportunity. He would not pass up the opportunity. A gateway which he knew that he must step through – or regret for the remainder of his life. Commitment would not stand in his way. Integrity was a badge of honor worn by fools and losers. Distracters would disappear once the world realized the shrewdness of his actions. No man would dare slap his face again – not even himself.
But had the guardians of either party given a closer examination of the baggage carried by J L Smith, the sentinels of the university family crest would have found stashed away in his dingy carpetbag – the comical costume of a clown, a deranged diary of ridiculous quotes, and tattered carton of empty promises and flawed decisions. In his final swansong, Smith proved to be neither a faithful groom nor competent caregiver. Rather an opportunist who ditched his bride, swooped up his mistress, and then stepped out into the path of an oncoming bus.
God has some quirky ways for extracting his vengeance – especially against those who prey on the less fortunate. Though bruised and tattered, the Weber State family must be relieved, in hindsight, that they avoided the embarrassing antics of this bumbling court jester. And while a limping Hog in lipstick is still a Hog; the Razorback legacy will survive the loss of a former love, an ill advised fling with a coaching clown, and the unpleasant talk associated with sleeping around to steal someone else’s groom.
However; J L Smith won’t be as fortunate. He’s a coach on life support, waiting for the plug to be mercifully pulled: The result of a fatal misstep at the corner of N. Razorback Road and W Maple Street- while on his way to a brighter future. RIP: Coach Smith.