By Lindsey Boyd (@lindsboyd3)
I made the mistake of asking Krazy George where he sits during San Jose State football games.
“I don’t sit,” George said.
I should have known..
2:30 p.m. (2 hours till game time)
Krazy George is not hard to find –– just listen for a drum banging or look for a “Krazy Georg” jersey with an “E” missing and you’ve found your guy.
When I spotted George, he was introducing himself to the Utah State crowd at the alumni tailgate.
“I’m Krazy George and I started San Jose State cheer in 1968,” George said. “Yes, I invented the wave. I don’t claim it. I invented it. 1981 October 15 at the Oakland A’s.”
George was a social butterfly with everyone –– no matter what side they were cheering for. Many would share stories of watching him cheer at NFL, MLB and NHL games and of course SJSU games for the past 35 years. He was even on Hall of Fame quarterback for the Oakland Raiders, Kenny Stabler’s TV show.
I quickly learned I was walking with a celebrity.
“I love this job,” George said. “Think about this. I work three hours a week for the last forty-two years. I work one game a week. What a schedule!”
George packs light. All he needs is a water bottle in his pocket, a drum and a drumstick in his hand along with the loudest instrument of all –– his voice.
3:30 p.m. (1 hour till game time)
George mingled with baseball head coach Jason Hawkins and the baseball team at the tailgate. Still no signs of energy lost. If anything he was just getting started.
4 p.m. (30 minutes till game time):
It was time for George to enter CEFCU Stadium. He took out his all-access pass with the name “Krazy George” printed on it.
“I didn’t come up with [my nickname,” George said. “The judo team that I was on did. I was on the national champion judo team for five years.”
As we walked through the entrance, he asked if I had my press pass. I lied and said I did. As luck have it, all I had to tell security was “I’m with George” and that was enough to get me anywhere in the stadium.
I mean everywhere –– alumni seats, VIP boxes and even Athletic Director Mary Tuite’s suite.
First we started in the alumni stands. George was like a kid in a candy store.
High and low George crawled up stairs, down the bleachers and over railings to meet everyone and take pictures. No wonder he says he’s a self-proclaimed male model.
“I work two hours but I’m running up and down the stands,” George said. “I just act like a sports fan wants to react.”
He took a brief break to sit, take a few sips of water and refresh his vocal cords from the cheering he had been doing. The football players may have still been warming up, but George already was.
As we sat, he scoped out the small size of the crowd. He talked about how he wished more students came to the game.
“The best place to start a wave is in the corner,” George said pointing to the student section.
Starting the wave in the corner catches everyone’s eye he said. In fact, the corner was where he started the wave in the Oakland A’s Coliseum for the first time. It caught on so fast that the cameramen had a hard time catching it on TV.
4:20 p.m. (10 minutes till game time)
George stands front and center in the alumni bleachers banging his drum as the cheerleaders and band run on the field.
“San Jose,” George yells into the crowd, “What was that?”
He yells “San Jose” into the crowd again and gets an echoing chant going. With a mostly-empty stadium, he had a tough job.
“When George was in his hay day, a lot of people thought he was a little too much,” said alum Jerry Hukee
Now, it seemed everyone got a kick out of SJSU’s biggest fan.
4:30 (Kickoff)
George takes a seat in the front row right behind the SJSU football players on the sideline.
When the Spartans fumble or turnover the ball, the bleachers becomes George’s new drum and he hammers his drumstick down with a raging fist of frustration.
“Son of a gun!” George yells. (That’s George’s favorite line.)
He lives for the moment the PA announces “Kraaazzzy Geooorge.” As soon as his name is called, George springs from his seat, raises his drum above his head and bangs the hell out of it like Ringo Starr on steroids.
“What an introduction,” George said with a wide cartoon-like smile.
For the next hour, he seat hops from one group to another. At first, I was afraid to lose him, but then again, he’s never hard to find.
6:00 p.m. (Halftime)
The game was 38-0, Utah State winning. Krazy George’s cheering was progressively decreasing.
“It effects my cheering because the other team cheats a lot,” George said jokingly. “No, I hate this. This is really one of the toughest games I’ve ever watched.”
As we stood outside the line for hot dogs and popcorn, a man by the name of Tim DuClos tapped my shoulder and offered me a signed Krazy George football program. DuClos is one of George’s best friends.
With the title of George’s best friend comes the responsibility of attending sports games, photographing George with fans, and going to Hennigan’s for a beer after the game.
“We went to the Earthquakes game and he wouldn’t leave until 10 o’clock because there were kids that wanted to meet him and get his picture taken,” DuClos said.
DuClos’ goal is to get Krazy George into the San Jose State Hall of Fame. He’s even started a fan club for George.
But, to DuClos, Krazy George is just George. When he’s not cheering at games, he’s a “true gentleman.”
6:15 p.m. (3rd quarter)
“I am going to go up into the VIP booths and say hi to all the people,” George said. “They always offer me a beer. “
Together, George, DuClos and I got past security and invited ourselves into the VIP boxes. George waltzed right in like he owned the place, immediately plopping down into an empty seat and getting to know everyone.
Somewhat embarrassed to be crashing people’s boxes, I stayed close to the door and explained that I was just here to follow George around. Meanwhile, DuClos helped himself to a handful of popcorn in every box.
After five or 10 minutes in a booth, we’d switch to the next one. Overall, everyone seemed to welcome in Krazy George.
6:45 p.m. (3rd quarter)
George’s last stop was the president’s box. To get there, we had to walk through the long hallway where the media sits. Without my credential, I really didn’t belong there. Luckily, we snuck our way down the hallway to what we thought was the president’s box.
Turns out it was Athletic Director Mary Tuite’s suite.
It didn’t matter, George still said hi to everyone.
While we were there, SJSU even scored a touchdown to bring the game 55-13. George leaned over the edge of the balcony and banged his drum out the window in celebration.
With that, George and DuClos felt it was a good time to leave. Next on their agenda was to go to Hennigans Bar.
“When we get to Hennigans everybody will say ‘George we missed you! Where have you been?” DuClos said.
Even as he walked out of the stadium, George was still stopped by fans.
“San Jose State is my team,” George said. “It’s the only team they couldn’t pay me enough to cheer against.”
