The Author Speaks (a.ka. - the mystery game)...

I've been busy defending myself on the web. It was an honest mistake. Here's the story.

As many of you know...Valdosta is in the running for Titletown, USA at ESPN. On the voting page they just happen to choose my essay as the featured essay (truthfully though, it's only about 1/3 of it, as they cut off all of the good meat, leaving only my introduction).

I felt kind of honored (I guess) that my essay was the one chosen. But there is a slight problem with this...there is an error in my introduction. The two teams never actually played each other (I'll get onto why I said they did in a little bit). Although I didn't know this at the time (I mean, c'mon, I wasn't even alive in 1971) but the High School National Championship game is just voted upon, never actually played.

OK, so what made me think that they did play? Did I just make that up? Well, no. You see, before typing an essay like that I want to make sure I have all my facts straight so I don't make a fool of myself (uh...too late for that???). I stumbled across a webpage that featured a downloadable boxscore (scroll down on the page) for Valdosta High School Wildcats vs. T.C. Williams High School in 1971.

Long story short, I leave town for a week, come back, check the voting, and I'm getting all kinds of interesting replies (mostly individuals from Virginia upset that their team lost a game that wasn't really played, but you can throw in a few upset Valdostans because I "made a fool of the Valdosta Titletown page").

Turns out...I should have read the website more carefully. If I would have read the other matchups more closely, I would have noticed some of the 2004 Team X verses 1995 Team Z box scores.

Anyways, I'm kind of embarassed to say the least. But I guess I want you to know that I wasn't tipsy, or as one comment read, "a red-neck football fan in the south with just 4 teeth".

I was actually using a source (though - not a very good one). That's what I get for being in a hurry I guess.

Sorry to the Valdosta fans for "ruining the Titletown page" and sorry to my friends in Virginia (but they probably won't call me a friend) for claiming that your team lost a game it really didn't.

I hope I have explained that the mistake I made was an honest one. I did not look at the other matchups with boxscores until it was too late.

I have sent an email to ESPN asking them to select another essay as featured article and kindly take mine down, but being that there are two days left in the voting, it's probably too late.

It's a weird sequence of events - Friends ask me to write essay, I write essay, friends get upset at my essay. Oh well.

I do want to thank those of you who have kindly understood and accepted my apology. As I have noted, I didn't pull anything out of the air, I mistakingly thought I had a reliable source.

To the few of you in Virginia who haven't accepted my apology and insist on continuously insulting me in the comments section, on your own blogs, or wherever else...all I can say is...well...the ball is in your court. I've apologized, so what you do with that apology is up to you.

Sorry peeps!

I'm probably the last one you want to hear this from, but Vote for Valdosta - Titletown. Rumor is we are doing well.