5:04 P.M. We were just informed by the announcer in the press box that kickoff will be precisely at 6:12 PM. That means we have just over an hour left before kickoff and there are probably no more than 2,000 people in the stadium. Good start.

5:07 P.M. The TV’s in the press box change from the Duke-Pittsburgh basketball game to the NFL Network and a game that no one in this press box wants to watch. The good news? Qualcomm Stadium gets NFL Network and my apartment still does not.

5:08 P.M. The guy about 15 seats over is hosting a radio show from the press box. He is quite audible from halfway across the press box, making him a media favorite. Right now he appears to be trying to give away some sort of prize based off a trivia questions. The callers are o-for.

5:12 P.M. We are officially one hour away from kickoff and still there are not many fans here. Apparently one person in the press box does care about tonights Steelers-Rams game, Sonny has Steven Jackson in one of his fantasy leagues and has a vested interest in the game.

5:14 P.M. Here come the Navy Midshipmen, making the blue and gold uniforms look much better than Notre Dame did, probably because their team isn’t a disgrace to their school.

5:17 P.M. Utah comes out of the tunnel looking like they don’t even want to be here. The few hundred Navy fans already in the stadium give the Utes a not so warm welcome.

5:19 P.M. The Utah coach has a whistle that can be heard throughout the stadium, this may be due to the fact that we’re still approaching the 1,500 fans mark, but he might als just be an expert whistle blower. Perhaps we have a post game question in the works here.

5:22 P.M. The Navy cheer squad warms up with a highly original “lets go Navy” cheer. They too can be heard from the press box.

5:23 P.M. Apparently there were still more Navy players waiting in the locker room. They come out to a rousing cheer. It’s now a toss up as to whether there are more people on the field or in the stands.

5:24 P.M. The Utah band not to be outdone by Navy cheerleaders begin their own version of a “lets go Utah” cheer. They however, have the advantage of being able to use drums instead of just clapping to accompany the yelling. They win this round, but rest assured the Navy cheerleaders aren’t going to go down without a fight.

5:28 P.M. The guy washing his hands in front of me in the restroom manages to break the handle to the paper towel dispenser. We spend a minute trying to figure out how to fix it before walking away like nothing had happened.

5:33 P.M. The pre-game warmups haven’t had any excitement to them, however I have spent the last 5 minutes trying to figure out why the Navy mascot is a bighorn sheep. This doesn’t make any sense.

5:37 P.M. I just realized that the helmet logo that is normally at midfield for Chargers games is sticking out from behind the Poinsettia Bowl mid-field logo. This looks real crisp and clean. Good job grounds crew.

5:38 P.M. Both teams leave the field and the real pre-game show will finally begin. But before that happens a cannon goes off, no one is sure if it was on accident or on purpose. Regardless, it scares the shit out of everyone.

5:41 P.M. The Navy band is leading in a brigade of Navy sailors. I think Utah will have a hard time outdoing them on this one.

5:45 P.M. The Navy brigade does a quick salute to the Utes, being sportsmanlike and cheering “go Utes” towards the Utah bench and sideline. They immediately turn around and do an even louder “Go Navy” chant. Now they prepare to welcome the football team onto the field.

5:46 P.M. The crowd size just about doubled as the Navy brigade made their way into the stands.

5:49 P.M. “The pride of Utah” comes onto the field in the form of their marching band, color guard and cheerleaders. While this is a pretty impressive group, they can’t hold a candle to the Navy pre-game entertainment. Although the “U” they spelled out is flawlessly done.

5:51 P.M. The “U” has morphed into a Christmas tree. One of the more impressive marching ban arrangements I’ve seen in a long time.

5:53 P.M. Apparently the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has finished making it way across the country and now the balloons from the parade are making their way into the stadium. The balloons are a nice addition to the Christmas music now being played by the Utah band.

5:55 P.M. Midway through what has actually been a highly entertaining game, the TV’s in the press box change back to the Duke-Pittsburgh game, which has the potential to end in a very exciting fashion. And as a I finish that sentence the ESPN coverage of the Poinsettia Bowl turns onto the TV’s.

5:58 P.M. The national anthem singer is going to be a girl who won a contest held by a local country radio station. As good as she might be, I’m upset the Poinsettia Bowl couldn’t pull Brian McKnight like the Saint Louis Rams could.

6:03 P.M. The girl nails the national anthem which is immediately followed by a fly-by from two FA-18 Hornets from a local Marine air station. Quite the opening for the game.