Guest blogging, Tiffany @Figuring out the plot

I've talked about today's guest blogger a time or two or five hundred...but that's just because Miss Football is one of my in real life bffs and she is super awesome. She is the reason I started this whole blogging thing in the first place...anyway, y'all will love her. In fact, after you read this post you will know so much about football...if you hadn't already. She is the reason why I know that there really isn't a yellow line on the field.

Take it away, Tiff.

Hey y'all! I'm Tiffany from Figuring Out The Plot, better known on this blog as Miss Football. I'm super excited to guest blog for Lyndse today! She's one of my real life bffs, and we are currently laying on a beach somewhere in Costa Rica drinking out of glasses with little umbrellas. Be jealous.

 Anyway, when Lyndse asked me to guest blog, I decided to do something that goes right along with my Miss Football blog name......College Football 101. That's right ladies, today I'm going to give y'all a few pointers about the game in case you're not a huge fan. Not only am I an Oklahoma State alum who bleeds orange, I'm also college football obsessed. So, here we go. Don't worry, I won't make it too complicated. Just good enough to where you can impress people at a tailgate or watching from home on Saturday afternoon.

OSU Homecoming 2011

Offense, Defense and Special Teams. This is one probably everyone knows, but there are basically three parts to a team. Offense (when your team has the ball and is trying to score), Defense (when your team does not have the ball and wants to stop them from scoring) and Special Teams (when either team is kicking off or punting the ball). It's important to know which is on the field for your team so that you can use the discussion points below.

Positions. So there are 11 players on the field for each team on any given play. Here are the key positions for you to know in my book.

For offense:

1. Quarterback (Most everyone knows this. He is the guy who gets the ball on 99% of the plays and either throws it to a receiver or hands off to a running back. Think Tom Brady, Tim Tebow, Brandon Weeden ladies.).

Me with OSU's new starting QB, Wes Lundt

2. Running back (This is the guy who lines up usually behind the quarterback--alled in the back field--and is handed the ball to run it up the field. Think Emmitt Smith, Barry Sanders, Adrian Peterson.).

3. Wide Receiver (this is the usually tall, fast guy who lines up on the ends of the line and runs downfield to catch the ball. We're talking Justin Blackmon, Dez Bryant, Randy Moss.).

For Defense:

1. Linebackers (This is my favorite position in football. These are the guys--usually three of them--that line up just behind the line on defense. They are big, strong and fast. This would be like Brian Urlacher or Shawn Lewis).

2. Safeties (These are the really fast, usually smaller guys who play against your receivers when they run downfield. They quite often are the guys that get the interceptions in a game.)

3. Defensive Line (These are the big ol' huge guys who line up against the offensive line for every snap. Check out the size of one of OSU's below.)

Yes, it's a wig. :)

First downs. If you are going to understand anything about football, this should probably be it. See, every team has four downs to move the ball 10 yards. Once the ball moves 10 yards, then you get four more downs. So, let's say that it's first and ten from the twenty (this means that it is first down with ten yards to go and the ball is on the 20 yard line) and the team gets five yards. The next time, it is second down and five (meaning five yards to go) from the 25. This means that first downs are always a good thing! Most schools have some sort of cheer or hand motion or something when their team gets a first down. At OSU, the announcer says, "Gain good for a Cowboy first down and ten!" and we all wave our arms and point in the direction of the end zone.

Sacks and interceptions. These are the two most exciting defensive terms. A sack is where the defense tackles the quarterback in the backfield befor he gets rid of the ball. The crowd will go nuts when this happens. An interception will get the crowd going even more nuts---because that means that the other team's quarterback threw the ball, but your team caught it. And just like that, you go from defense to offense.

The Heisman. Every year, the Heisman trophy is awarded to the best college football player in the nation. It is a trophy that is pretty recognizable, here is me doing the Heisman pose.

Anyway, last year, it went to Robert Griffin, III, the quarterback from Baylor. Right decision if you ask me. A bit of trivia--only one guy has ever won the Heisman twice, Archie Griffin from Ohio State. The first sophomore to win the Heisman was Tim Tebow who played at Florida. Oklahoma State's only Heisman was back in 1988 when Barry Sanders won the award.

Cheering. There are a few things that you can always yell at a game and fit right in. If your team is on offense: "Let's move the ball" or "Let's move the chains (means get a first down)" or "Take care of the ball" or "Smart passes." If your team is on defense: "Get tough, defense" or "Let's get a stop" or "Break his legs" (not that I advocate for violence, but it is football here).

Announcers. Two important things to know here. First off, Jesse Palmer--halftime anchor on ESPN--smokin' hot. Girls, trust me, you don't want to miss halftime. Second, everyone hates Kirk Herbstreit on College Game Day. Unless you are from Ohio State. But it's a safe bet anywhere else in the country that you can say, "I hate that damn Kirk Herbstreit" and everyone else will nod in agreement.

Must-see Experiences.  I thought I'd share my top three football experiences with you guys today.  (1) Rushing the field.  (2)  Watching your team win a BCS bowl in OT.  (3)  Game day at Notre Dame.  If you ever get a chance to do any of these three...do it.  You won't regret it!

On the field after the Bedlam victory!

Hopefully this will be a good start and you can be ready for football season in the fall.  Hope you all have a great week!  Oh, and Go Pokes!