Written By Chaleese Saucier
Being a part of the Conway community means being a faithful Bears fan. Last year, Eat My Catfish showed their support by attending, catering, and sponsoring the University of Central Arkansas annual Alumni and Friends Tailgate.
On September 30th, 2017 Alumni and Friends gathered at the Crafton Alumni Pavilion from 2PM to 5PM to enjoy an unforgettable tailgating experience. Bruce D. Bear was there, leading the band through the tents in celebration of the fight against Sam Houston State University. With kickoff set for 6PM, Eat My Catfish fulfilled the responsibility of feeding attending Alumni and Friends, stuffing those Big Bear bellies with the famous catfish they all so well deserved and needed for the upcoming rivalry.
It might have been the beautiful seventy-degree, scattered fluffy white cloud weather or, most probably, the Big Bears’ favorite catfish dinner that led the 2017 University of Central Arkansans to a victory against Sam Houston State University that Saturday evening. Either way, the Bears were victorious shortly after sinking those grizzly paws into some Eat My Catfish!
By holding a significant lead advantage throughout all four quarters, the UCA Bears really showed their purple pride by shredding SHSU across the field. Prior to 2017, Sam Houston State University held a competitive edge over the University of Central Arkansas in the Southern Conference for two years running, but the perseverance and hard work of our undergraduate Bears paid off, and that edge died. ESPN3 filmed the game, and over eleven thousand fans attended. UCA pushed through, (we’d like to attribute it to the energy from the catfish meals), to run a total of 467 yards, and have the majority of possession for over half an hour of the duration of the game!
(http://www.itemonline.com/sports/sam_houston_state_university_bearkats/bearkats-perfect-no-more-after—loss-to-central/article_339d44ba-3ebf-57db-9c04-c3cf2da354bf.html)
Eat My Catfish might have just been that bear-friendly charm that the University of Central Arkansas needed to make a greater stance in the Southern Conference of 2017. This 41-30 win in favor of the Bears over the Bearkats might have just been because of the good grubbing! Stay tuned for Eat My Catfish at UCA’s Alumni and Friends of 2018.