A lot of people have been asking me about what has changed to make the Island become so emotional over the last couple of weeks. The truth of the matter is that nothing has changed. "Love Actually" (2003) and "The Notebook" (2004) are still among my favorite movies, and The Fray's "Over My Head" obviously remains in my "Top 25 Most Played" on iTunes. So when there is a moving story in the world of sports that resonates with me, you bet I'm going to write about it.
This week, however, I'm going to take the opportunity to lighten the mood a bit. I'm going to start by asking you guys a question have you ever been to rcwillenbrock.com before?
If you answered no, your life unfortunately has not lived up to its full potential. The worst part about it is that rcwillenbrock.com is no longer in existence, despite my requests to have R.C. Willenbrock '13 (friend of the Island) fire it back up.
Conversely, if you answered yes, I'm sure it was no surprise to you when you heard the news that R.C. created a kicking tee from scratch on the road against Yale University three weeks ago.
If you are unfamiliar with the story that has received national press, here's a little background. The Dartmouth football team traveled to New Haven and regrettably forgot to pack a kicking tee. After initially agreeing to let the Big Green use one of their tees, the Yale coach denied the request, leaving Dartmouth without one. That is when R.C. and his genius came into play.
Willenbrock saw a water bottle on the ground, and the idea just clicked.
"I saw the bottle, cut off the top and the tee was good to go," Willenbrock said. "The tape was only necessary to weigh the tee down and provide a wider base, so that it wouldn't blow away in the wind." And the rest is history.
Dartmouth beat Yale, 34-14, and Riley Lyons '15 averaged 60 yards per kickoff with a pair of touchbacks. USA Today was the first national publication to get a hold of the story, and at one point, R.C.'s improvisation was the No. 1 most-read topic on Yahoo.com. Even the Barstool Sports blog beloved by college students around the country got involved in the action. A national debate has sprung up regarding the Yale coach's choice to deny the Big Green the kicking tee.
On one hand, there is the argument that Yale coach Tony Reno displayed poor sportsmanship and should have given Dartmouth the tee. R.C. is definitely in this camp.
"We normally carry three tees to a game, so I know for a fact that they had plenty of extras," he said.
On the other hand, Barstool Sports' contributor Kmarko definitely would not have given the tee to Lyons, pointing to the fact that the game we're talking about here is football, and you must do anything you can to get a competitive advantage.
R.C. thinks that there definitely was a shift in advantage when Yale decided not to give Dartmouth the tee, but the advantage actually shifted to Dartmouth.
"I am a firm believer in karma," Willenbrock said. "The sly move by the Yale coach could have cost them the game."
I'm not as superstitious as R.C. If I had been coach Reno, I would have kept the tees all to myself, as well. But the difference between Reno and myself is that I have been to rcwillenbrock.com before, and because of this, I would have known that R.C. is no stranger to building contraptions.
When rcwillenbrock.com was up and running, the best part was its accomplishments section, where it stated that R.C. "had built a computer from scratch." I have to admit we used to give R.C. a really hard time about it, but after news of his improvisation at Yale, I immediately recalled the website.
Willenbrock is a little surprised that the story has received so much national ink, even though he'll take it.
"Building things on a whim has always been my forte," he said. "I don't mind if employers Google my name and see this story. It helps show my innovative and creative side."
During the middle of a presidential election, it is a little crazy that a self-described "rich white kid from Denver" was the most read story on the Internet. But since when is this country and sports, for that matter not crazy?
