By Brian Burke
Arizona Daily Wildcat
March 4, 1998

'Ooh! Ahh!' man rides again

The UA men's basketball game against the California Golden Bears Thursday was a gutsy - albeit sloppy - battle of basketball prowess. And in the end, one man rose above all the rest and provided the lift the Wildcats sorely needed to make Saturday's postgame farewell ceremonies a true net-cutting adventure.

Was it the sweet shot of Michael Dickerson, the clutch work of Miles Simon, or the fist-pumping bursts from Jason Terry? How about the intimidating rebounding of Eugene Edgerson or the flowing poise of Mike Bibby? All true, but none of these men were the best reason the Wildcats soared to their 15th straight Pacific 10 Conference triumph. Arizona won because a man who understands the essence of sport and what it means to be alive burst onto the scene. UA won because of the scintillating return of the "Ooh! Ahh!" man.

The crowd was somnolescent throughout most of the first half and the start of the second, even as Arizona pulled to within one point of the burgeoning Bears. The so-called "sixth-man" at McKale Center was nowhere to be found.

And suddenly, a raging, red-faced, middle-aged gentleman erupted onto the soon-to-be-demolished floor like a feral feline and pointed at the referee. He was adorned in his patented fire-red sweat pants and a glowing red sweatshirt, which he soon tore off to reveal another luminous red shirt with the inscription "Ooh! Ahh!" plastered across his chest like Superman's majestic "S".

He then proceeded to play the crowd like a melodious violin, conducting vivacious, harmonious chants of "U of A, U of A" as the Wildcats took a short break. Before the timeout was over, the crowd was alive once again and home court advantage was ours for the taking.

Minutes later, Arizona took over the lead for good and never looked back, needing only another, more subdued tidbit of "Ooh! Ahh!" awesemity - culminating in the oratorical spelling out of our great state's name - to seal the victory and preserve the streak.

Local legend has it that the man they call "Ooh! Ahh!" has been a UA sports fanatic for several decades, but has only appeared sporadically on campus the last few years due to physical illness. His triumphant return is a beacon to all of us, reminding us of the true purpose of all sports encounters beyond all the hype and the hoopla - the simple thrill of being there.

He showed up again holding a baby in the fading moments of Saturday's demolition of Stanford, but his work had already been done. Maybe he appeared to show the McKale faithful that, even if he falls ill again, the "Ooh! Ahh!" adventure is just beginning. He is laboring to usher in a bright, new era of "Ooh! Ahh!" men, starting with the bouncing child in his arms.

And while he may not dazzle us with his dribble or stun us with his shot, the "Ooh! Ahh!" man gives us something much more precious - a glimpse at a prelapsarian universe in which athletic events are more than just a pleasant diversion from our humdrum existence. A world in which sports unite us by the sheer beauty of teamwork, the power of togetherness, and a feeling that all it takes to be one with the stars and planets of our solar system is to stand up and cheer our hearts out.