Fast Eddie Gives His Take on Tulane-Memphis
In this story:
You might have a friend like Fast Eddie. I think we all do. He'll waylay me at the most inopportune times and regale me with stories I may not want to hear, but he is who he is.
I've never known his real name. He told me years ago just to call him Fast Eddie, in honorarium to a former Louisiana governor I'm guessing.
Today, it's my weekly visit to Costco. I don't know if I'm the only one, but it feels like I can never walk out of there with something I didn't expect to buy, and I never get out without spending on the plus side of 100-dollars. This time, it's sample time. Before I can get a small helping of that new hummus into my mouth, Fast Eddie wheels around the corner with his buggy already filled to the rim with these non-alcoholic butterscotch beers.
"Whatcha say, Dougie!" my long-time acquaintance says as he almost runs into my own buggy. That many cases of "beer" can get some inertia going. "I like that new hummus stuff they have, but MAN it's expensive." I nod in agreement as I enjoy my sample (and realize I'm not buying it either).
"Why so much of this non-alcoholic butterscotch beer?" I ask as I count the cases in his basket, reaching seven. "You giving up imbibing before Thanksgiving?"
"Nah," Fast Eddie says. "They're for my daughter. She loves these things, so I get 'em when they're on sale. I just store them in my shed until she runs out, then I surprise her with a new case. She doesn't know I have a secret stash in the back," he says grinning almost to himself.
As he grabs a second (or was it his third...) sample of the expensive hummus, he says, "I felt good about last week's pick," and he was right. Fast Eddie had said to take the 6.5-points and UTSA.
"I'm feeling Tulane has to prove itself," he continued with an unholy amount of hummus and the chips that accompanied it in his mouth. "I haven't seen enough from the Greenies to believe they can go on the road and win at Memphis. Truth is, I'm worried about the point spread, too. I say take Memphis and give up the six-and-a-half points."
And with that, Eddie grabs yet another sample and wheels his cart toward a separate set-up of sampling. I guess this is one way to fill yourself up so you don't have to buy dinner.
- Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
- If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.
Doug has covered a gamut of sporting events in his fifty-plus years in the field. He started doing sideline reporting for Louisiana Tech football games for the student radio station. Doug was Sports Director for KNOE-AM/FM in Monroe in the mid-80s, winning numerous awards from the Louisiana Sports Writers Association for Best Sportscast and Best Play-by-Play. High school play-by-play for teams in Monroe, Natchitoches, New Orleans, and Thibodaux, LA dot his resume. He did college play-by-play for Northwestern State University in Natchitoches for nine years. Then, moving to the Crescent City, Doug did television PBP of Tulane games and even filled in for legendary Tulane broadcaster, Ken Berthelot in the only game Kenny ever missed while doing the Green Wave games. His father was an alumnus of Tulane in the 1940s, so Doug has attended Tulane football games in old Tulane Stadium, the Superdome, and Yulman. He was one of the 86,000 plus on December 1, 1973, sitting in the North End Zone to seeTulane shutout the LSU Tigers, 14-0. He was there when the Posse ruled Fogelman and in Turchin when the Wave made it to the World Series. He currently is the public address voice of the Tulane baseball team.