The Class of 2020

I was watching the Baylor game last weekend and noticed the "20" on the back of the Baylor Line jerseys.  (For those who are unfamiliar with it, The Baylor Line is the freshman spirit group that rushes the field before Baylor home football games and welcomes the Bears to the field.  Every member of the Line receives a Baylor Line Jersey that has a nickname and their prospective graduation year on the back.  For this year's Line, that 20 represents that this year's freshmen will graduate in 2020.)  If these college freshmen are the Class of 2020, that means that they were born in (gasp) 1998!  To put that into perspective, here are some facts about the Class of 2020 (or facts about 1998, if you will.)

• Google was invented in 1998, which means that these freshmen have never known a world without the world's most popular search engine.  Put another way, they've never known a world in which people didn't routinely use the world "Google" as a verb.
• Viagra was also invented in 1998, which means they've never known a world without TV commercials telling them to call a doctor if they have an erection lasting more than 4 hours!
• They were either newborns or in utero when Bill Clinton wagged his finger and denied "having sexual relations with that woman."
• They were either newborns or in utero when Seinfeld ended it's acclaimed, award winning run, which means they've only known Seinfeld as one of the old shows they show on re-runs at night.
• MP3 players were invented in 1998, so they've never known a world without digital music.  They've probably never even bought a CD.
• in 1998, Ken Starr was known for his role as the prosecutor investigating Bill Clinton's sexual dalliances rather than his failings handling sexual assault offenses committed by students when he was President of Baylor.
• Apple has always been a hot technology company that makes cool gadgets and never a bad joke of a company that no one thought twice about.
• Panasonic introduced the first portable DVD player in 1998, which means these young people likely have never known the horrors of a long road trip without the ability to watch movies in the car to help pass the time.
• They've always known Billy Ray Cyrus as Miley's/Hannah Montana's dad and never as that guy with the bitchin' mullet who sang "Achy Breaky Heart."
• Leonardo DiCaprio has always been a huge movie star (and heartthrob) and never the young guy cutting his teeth in art house films like "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?" and "The Basketball Diaries."
• Robert DeNiro has always been a comic actor and never bad ass mobster or criminal.
• George Clooney was always a big time movie star and never just a member of a large ensemble on a TV show.
• They can never remember a time when Survivor (debuted in 1997) and American Idol (2002) weren't on TV.
• The Big 12 Conference has always existed.  The Big 8 and Southwest Conference mean nothing to them.
• Houston's football team has always been the Texans and Nashville has always been a two sport city.
• The Hartford Whalers and Quebec Nordiques never existed; the Grizzlies have always been in Memphis and the Rams being in Los Angeles is a new thing rather than the return to an old thing.
• Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan have always been veteran NBA stars, while Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Patrick Ewing have always been retired.
• 62 is a meaningless number where baseball is concerned, because they can't remember 70 or 73.
• They never saw Brett Hull wearing the blue note or The Great One on the ice at all.
• Britney Spears has always been a pop star and never on The Mickey Mouse Club.
• They can only remember Justin Timberlake and Beyoncé as solo pop stars and never as members of a singing group.
• They can likely never remember a time when there were more than two living Beatles.
• The likely only know Darius Rucker as "that black country singer" rather than as "Hootie" (even though, contrary to common belief, he is NOT Hootie)
• Plymouth is a place in Massachusetts and Eagle is a bird, not brands of automobiles

Personally, 1998 wound up being a great year from me.  I moved into my own apartment for the first time (without roommates), re-connected with my best friend from college, and - most importantly - I met the beautiful woman who would become my wife.

I hope you enjoyed this glimpse into the world of the Class of 2020.

Thanks for reading!