OutKick Father's Day Memories: First Games, Stitches & Iron Maiden

Happy Father's Day to the dads who man the grill with military precision, who haul ass to help you fix a flat in a pinch, to the dads who obsess over their lawns, to the dads who know exactly what time the thunderstorms are supposed to roll on through and to the dads who have one-liners like, I spent 60 seconds in this 90-degree weather. It's been a hot minute, ready to roll off the tongue. 

This morning, OutKick staffers share stories about their own fathers – we also get a story from new dad Mark Harris on how he's building memories with his son – and how they've shaped their lives. 

Enjoy your big day, dads. 

- OutKick's Senior NFL Writer Armando Salguero shares: 

My father loved baseball and so did I growing up. But he never was able to take me to a baseball game. We were separated by Cuba's communist government for years until he was allowed to leave and join my mom and I in New York. But soon we moved to Miami and that was years before the Marlins existed. 

Then came that day in the late 1980s when we were talking baseball and I realized the Orioles and Yankees were scheduled for an evening spring game in the old Miami Stadium. I convinced my 75-year-old father to come out with me to that game. Around the fourth inning, I went to the concession stand and bought us hot dogs and soft drinks. 

When I returned to our seats, my dad, his eyes welled up with tears, thanked me for taking him to our first ballgame together. I'll never forget.

- OutKick Senior College Sports Writer Trey Wallace writes: 

I have to say, one of the coolest memories I have with my father occurred while I was working a football game. It was the 2022 Alabama-Tennessee game. My father is a massive Vols fan, and attended the game with the mother and uncle. As I made my way down to the field for the final five minutes, which was absolutely bonkers, I was prepared for the final field goal that would give Tennessee the win. 

When the kick went through the uprights, over 40,000 fans rushed the field in celebration. As I was doing my job of covering the atmosphere and goal posts coming down, along with the cigar smoke making it feel like I was at a concert in Colorado, I was tackled by somebody from behind. 

Turns out my father had somehow made it all the way down to the field, finding me in the the middle of thousands of fans. After being stunned by someone grabbing me, I turned around and realized it was my father, thinking it was some wild fan celebrating. In reality, it was a wild fan, but he was my dad. He embraced me on the field as I was trying to work, wanting to take a second to soak in the atmosphere. 

As I made my way to the media center for the postgame presser, he asked if he could just soak it in with me for a minute. So, while I was working to get details on the wildest game in college football that season, my father somehow found me in this massive crowd, and felt like he broke one of my ribs from the intense hug I received. 

College football certainly brings wonderful memories. 

- From OutKick's Matt Reigle: 

One of the things my dad and I have always bonded over is music, and specifically the music of Iron Maiden. We’ve gone to a bunch of Maiden shows over the years (we’ll be seeing them in Philly in November) but the first time we saw them together was in 2008 on the Somewhere Back In Time World Tour in East Rutherford New Jersey.

I was in sixth grade at the time and the show was on a weeknight and four hours away, so my dad picked up during the school day to go.

The funny thing was, that day, I was supposed to be part of the staged reading of the Dr. Seuss classic The Lorax that my gifted class (not a brag, it's just true; if anything that's an indictment of the school's gifted program) was putting on in front of the school.

I was so excited about Maiden that I let it slip to my teacher where I was going that day and I think he was pissed that I picked Maiden over Seuss. 

When they did that reading there was a program that got handed out to everyone that listed everyone’s name and their role, but under my name the teacher added, "(Who is not with us today because he is attending an Iron Maiden concert)." 

I know that was supposed to be a slam, but I felt like all it did was let all the other kids that my dad was way cooler than theirs, pulling me out of school to see one of the greatest bands of all time. It meant a lot to me, and I think it meant a lot to him too.

Sure, I know I would’ve killed in my role as The Onceler, but spending the day bonding with my old man over something we both love was way better and it's something I'll never forget.

- From OutKick's Mark Harris: 

They weren’t lying when they said time flies as a parent. My little guy is 19 months old now, and it's incredible to think back a year ago that he was just crawling and now he’s taking off in a sprint chasing anything he can get his hands on. 

A new core memory of mine was taking him to BBQ Fest in Memphis in May. Running around with every kid he saw - every one being older than him - and then seeing him dance with the music blaring with a barbecue sandwich in one hand is about as good as it gets.

At home, his new move is to point to the TV and scream ‘dolf’ to get me to turn on whatever golf may be on. My plan to get him addicted to the game like I am is working, because he’ll actually sit there and watch it with me for about 5-10 minutes before shouting for Elmo. Elmo wins more often than not.

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there!

- OutKick's Dan Zaksheske shares: 

My dad has always and continues to play a pivotal role in my life. We bonded early over a mutual love of sports, particularly baseball. My dad attended just about every game I ever played. 

Once I was old enough, my dad invited me to join his men’s league softball team. Those are some of the best memories I have in life, just hanging out as "one of the guys" and being part of those teams. Honestly, I might have better memories of playing rec league softball than I ever had playing competitive baseball.

(Dan Z. (right) hanging out with dad at one of their softball games)

There’s a specific memory that really stands out. One year, we played a game on Father’s Day. In that game, my dad and I hit back-to-back home runs. He hit his and then I hit mine. It was such a cool moment when we met at home plate and hugged after the second dinger. I won’t ever forget that and it's something I think about every year on Father’s Day.

- OutKick's David Hookstead writes: 

First, my dad is a huge fan of the Miracle on Ice. Massive. He can quote the movie "Miracle" word for word and has recited the speech for the family more times than I can count. In 2018, my mom and I teamed up to get him a jersey signed by the 1980 team for Christmas. For a guy who loves to talk and tell stories, I finally saw him in a state of shock and silence when he opened it and saw it framed. 

He was speechless, and if you know my dad, you know just how absurd that might be to imagine (apple doesn't fall far from the tree on my part). He now hangs it in a place where he sees it every single day along with his other memorabilia. I will never forget the absolute joy of that.

Second - and funny - is when he scoped himself while we were deer hunting. We saw a deer walk out in front of the stand, he was seated to my left with a 12 gauge shotgun with a scope, and when he fired, I was staring down range through some binoculars. 

All I heard was a loud f-bomb go off, and when I turned, he'd split his face right where the scope caught him between the eyes. He stitched up his in a mirror without any painkillers. Wasn't funny at the time as blood was absolutely everywhere. Pretty funny 20-plus years later, and badass as all hell to stich your own face up.

Third (a sports trip) is when my dad and my entire family made the trip out to Lincoln for the Wisconsin/Nebraska game in 2019. Nebraska always held a bit of a soft spot in my dad's heart due to some kind of childhood/family connection, and it was always a dream of his to visit Lincoln for a Nebraska game. 

When Wisconsin made the trip in 2019, the whole family made the trip, and he couldn't have had a more fun time. I think he rattled the steakhouse staff when he asked for a glass of milk to be chilled in a freezer for a few minutes before being served, but he certainly didn't hesitate to do it.

- OutKick's John Simmons shares: 

I credit my love of the Boston Red Sox to my dad. He's taken me to dozen's of games at Fenway Park over the years, but my favorite memory was when I got to meet Tampa pitcher Doug Waechter after a game in 2005.

My dad went through a lot of effort to make the meet-and-greet happen, and that sparked my interest in baseball and sports in general. He's a great dad for many reasons beyond this, but this was certainly one of his best moments.

- OutKick's Joe Kinsey writes: 

For over a decade, my dad and I would pick a huge college football game to attend. In 2014, we chose Alabama-Ole Miss. It was set to be a huge game. ESPN GameDay would be at The Grove. Katy Perry showed up to the set that day.

For some reason, I didn't grab tickets off StubHub before the trip. My dad left these details to me. He just went with the flow. We'll figure it out. 

Bad news: This time, we were in trouble. The scalpers were selling tickets for like $250 midway through the first quarter, and we were in trouble. There was a good chance those $250 tickets were fakes and we were about to get ripped off. 

My dad suggested we head around the other side of the stadium. Sounds good. The current plan isn't working. Let's walk. 

And then it happened. Dad overheard a few guys contemplating $20 handshakes with the girl working the gate. I remember him telling me we should watch these guys and if they are successful, we fall right in behind them. 

The locals go first. 

Success! 

The handshakes work. 

It's our time. Grab your $20s. There's no turning back. I go first. She took it. I'm in! 

Dad is right behind me. 

It works. He's in! 

It ends up being the game where Bo Wallace and Ole Miss pull off the huge upset, the students tear down the goal posts and carry them up the hill to The Grove where fans partied into the night. 

(Dad working security on the ESPN GameDay set before Alabama-Ole Miss in 2014. )