Over 100,000 fans, electrified by the occasion, milled around the quad waiting for kickoff. Not just any kickoff, but Bama vs. Tennessee. In 2009 it would prove to be Alabama’s toughest test. But for me that game was special for another reason.
Those same 100,000 fans were about to see an airplane toting a banner that had a very simple message. It was a website URL. It was my website. It was lightening in a bottle, and this was one for all Bama fans to enjoy. The banner said simply “www.ingramforheisman.com” and it was flying behind a single-engine plane. You have seen dozens of them. But this one was different. You felt good about it. That banner did not sell a product—it sold an agenda.
Mark Ingram had already shredded defenses up to this point, and his game versus South Carolina established him as a legitimate Heisman contender. My boss at the Jerry Damson Automotive Group agreed. “Ben, stop what you are doing and get a web site up and running about Mark.”
Those words that Bruce Park said to me started my most meaningful Alabama football memory. We thought #22 had a chance. We also thought that the powers that be at the University might not mount a formal campaign for Ingram early enough. We cheered, we screamed, we did what every fan does to root for their favorite player. But we actually bought the domain and built the site. Tens of thousands of Bama fans pointed their browsers to the site, which was an aggregator of content related to Ingram. The site, only eight weeks old when Ingram won the trophy, had early roots.
