Saturdays Sounded Different Back Then
Long before I ever walked onto a college campus, Saturdays had their own rhythm.
Fall mornings usually began with chores. Cattle still needed attention. Equipment didn’t fix itself, and wheat farming didn’t stop because there happened to be a football game later that afternoon. Dad believed the work came first, and that was simply the way things were on our ranch outside Edwall.
Once the work was done, though, I had only one thing on my mind.
Washington State football.
Television wasn’t part of our routine the way it is today. Most weekends, I followed the Cougars through a little transistor radio. I’d find a quiet place, turn the dial until the signal cleared, and wait for the familiar voice to come through the speaker.
To me, that voice meant football had arrived.
Every Game Came Alive in My Mind
The funny thing about radio is that it asks you to imagine everything.
You don’t see the players running onto the field.
You don’t see the uniforms or the crowd.
You build the whole picture yourself.
As Bob Robertson described every play, I could almost see it happening. I imagined the stadium packed with fans, the band playing between possessions, the cheerleaders leading the crowd, and the Cougars lining up for another snap.
The farm around me slowly disappeared.
For three hours, I wasn’t standing in eastern Washington anymore.
I was in Pullman.
Years later, when I finally became part of college athletics, I often thought back to those afternoons. Before I ever walked through a stadium tunnel, I’d already visited hundreds of them in my imagination.
More Than Just a Football Broadcast
I didn’t realize it then, but those broadcasts were doing more than entertaining a farm kid.
They gave me something to look forward to.
They made the world feel bigger than the few miles surrounding our ranch.
Every week brought another opponent, another stadium, another story.
Without leaving home, I was learning about traditions, rivalries, and schools I had never seen.
Looking back now, I think that’s one reason football captured my attention so early.
It wasn’t only the game.
It was everything that came with it.
Dreams Have Quiet Beginnings
People often ask when I decided I wanted to spend my life in college athletics.
There wasn’t one dramatic moment.
There were many small ones.
Listening to Cougar games on the radio was one of them.
Then came my first trip to Pullman.
Later came high school football.
College.
Coaching.
Administration.
One step quietly followed another.
Dreams don’t always begin with certainty.
Sometimes they begin with curiosity.
Looking Back
Technology has changed almost everything.
Today’s fans can stream games from anywhere in the world. Every play appears on a phone within seconds.
I wouldn’t trade those old Saturdays for anything.
There was something special about sitting with a transistor radio, adjusting the antenna, hoping the signal stayed strong enough to carry me through another Washington State game.
When I think about where my journey began, my mind usually goes back to the ranch.
Sometimes it also goes back to that little radio.
The memories in Crab Creek Chronicles aren’t only about the big milestones. They’re also about the ordinary afternoons that quietly shaped the direction of my life. At the time, they didn’t seem important.
Now I know they were.
FAQs
Is this story included in Crab Creek Chronicles?
Yes. Bill recalls listening to Washington State football broadcasts as a boy and explains how those afternoons became part of his lifelong connection to college athletics.
Who was Bob Robertson?
Bob Robertson was the longtime voice of Washington State football. His broadcasts became part of Bill’s childhood and remained meaningful throughout his career.
Why does Bill remember these radio broadcasts so clearly?
They connected a young boy growing up on a ranch near Edwall with a world he dreamed of joining one day.
What is Crab Creek Chronicles about?
Crab Creek Chronicles is Bill Moos’ memoir, sharing stories from his childhood, family, ranch life, and decades in college athletics, along with the people and experiences that shaped him.