This year's slogan: Awe and shock

By Mike Gibson
Occasionally, a brilliant idea will come upon me at a place I least expect.
Usually, just before I nod off in the middle of the night or while I'm driving my car.
Tough places to reach for the notepad and jot the fleeting idea down so the idea flies by and I sometimes don't catch it again.
I was thinking about that while reflecting on last year's Temple football team slogan.
You know, it's the thing that appears on the cover of the media guide and in the ads for Temple football.
Last year's slogan was "Flip the Switch."
Good, but not great.
I want everything about Temple to be the best in the Mid-American Conference.
I want us to have the most wins, the most fans, the best quarterback, the best offense, the best defense.
I want us to have the best slogan, too.
Flip the Switch, while good, was lacking something.
I could not put my finger on it, but it wasn't inspiring.
All winter, I brainstormed looking for another slogan.
I could come up with nothing.
I thought of "Just Win, Baby" but I'm sure Al Davis has a copyright on that one.
Unfinished business was another.
Then something occurred to me a couple of weeks ago while watching television.
Semaj Inge was being interviewed after winning the A-10 tournament.
"Sky's The Limit," Inge said, referring to the Owls' chances in the NCAAs.
Hmm, I thought.
"Sky's The Limit" might be a damn good slogan for this year's Temple football team.
With three excellent recruiting classes in place and for the first time a sizeable group of redshirts to help the 2009 team, the sky is really the limit for this football team.
If Flip the Switch was good, then Sky's The Limit is great.
Then, while turning into the parking lot of the gym last night, I thought of an even better one.
"Awe and Shock."
Temple having a winning or championship season won't shock us or anybody associated with the program, but it would everyone on the outside.
The "awe" part comes into play with the terrific skill set our players have both on offense and defense.
Awe leads to shock.
That's why I would pick "Awe and Shock" over "Shock and Awe."
Think of James Nixon, Vaughn Carraway and Jason Harper catching long touchdown bombs from Vaughn Charlton, Chester Stewart or Chris Coyer.
Awe.
Or Kee-ayre Griffin showing the kind of running form in the open field that made him a consensus first-team all-state tailback in New Jersey for St. Peter's Prep.
Awe.
Or Daryl Robinson intercepting a pass in the flat and returning it for six.
More than once.
Awe.
So the potential for awe is there.
If realized, the Owls can shock the world.
Awe and shock is my first choice. Sky's The Limit is No. 2.
Those are my top two choices for this year's slogan.
Either way, I've got "Flip the Switch" beat.
What's yours?