USU Football

As most of my blog followers know, I work for the Utah State football team. I am on what they call an "athletic" scholarship....which is funny because all I am is a cameraman. Well, recently I tried my hand at a little thing called video editing. With help from my boss, I made a little highlight video. I hope all of you enjoy this BYU, Utah, and Utah State fans alike....oh and UVU if you consider that a university (I don't)

Pressy's Coming Home

It has been 3 and a half years since my little brother Preston Francis and I have seen each other. In two weeks the man will be home from his LDS mission in Sweden. I'm proud of the boy. The craziest part of the whole situation is that he hasn't even met my fiance Candace yet. This post will be a montage of this glorious man's life. Enjoy. 

What woman wouldn't want this man?

Billy Goat's Gruff

There was this one time that Candace and I were driving in Pleasant Grove. I noticed out of the corner of my eye something queer. I stopped my car in the middle of the road, immediately put it in reverse, and backed up until I saw something similar to this.

Yes, your eyes are not deceiving you. We saw a large, male, billy goat standing on a barn. We laughed for at least thirty seconds and drove away. The goat escaped my memory until just now. This really happened.

My Moment of Football Glory

There I was, standing on the sideline of Utah State University's spring football practice. My assignment for the day was to film some highlights. I was having a wonderful time when things turned ugly in an instant. 

Most people tend to run away when they sense that something is about to collide with them. Not me. I stood my ground as the cornerback, safety, and wide receiver came at me at full speed. The truth of the story is because I was so concentrated on my camera, I had no idea what was going on. If you notice in the film everyone around me backs up. I don't move a muscle as they come flying into my unsuspecting body. The amazing part of this was that I protected the camera as I came tumbling to the ground. I'll let the video do the talking however. Enjoy me hitting the turf from three different angles!  

James and the Giant Wasabi

James and Preston

I must tell this story second hand, for I was not there to experience the gloriousness of this moment where time stood still . I will forever regret not being there to witness this event of extreme eating. I have a friend named James. He is larger than the average human. I have heard legends of what Jamesy has been able to eat. At eight years old he was able to consume a Big Judd's one pound burger.... At eight! His picture still hangs on the wall as the youngest challenger ever to eat this burger. When sensuous sandwich challenged him with 24 inches of sandwich he ate it in four minutes, decided it was weak, and ate 48 inches of sandwich! The man has competed in the Nathan's hotdog eating contest in Vegas. He is truly one of my heroes. One challenge was just too much for James though.


Never has an amount of food defeated my good buddy. I'm sure you could feed him an entire fatted pig and he would enjoy every bite. No, what defeated James this day was a little bite of sushi. The story goes that a gaggle of my friends were out eating some delicious Asian gourmet, and things got a little bit interesting. James was dared to eat probably a tablespoon size ball of wasabi on a piece of sushi. When that green ball of burning hell hit James' mouth he was brought to tears. That wasn't all that happened to my good friend. He got a nose bleed! James will sweat peeling an orange, so you can imagine the beads of sweat that had coagulated on his brow. I can only imagine what a painful experience this must have been for him. On this day wasabi was David of old, and James was the giant. No one expected him to get a bleeding nose. I can only say that I wish I could have been there. On a side note I really don't enjoy sushi, it is really overpriced. 

The Dentist

I HATE the dentist with every fiber of my being. Actually I must rephrase that last comment. I hate dental assistants. They seem to have every right to belittle me as a person. I'm treated like a little child every time I lay on that bed with that spotlight in my face. Honestly on average I'm told to floss my teeth at least 7 times during my dental examination. Up until now these petty attempts to scare me into flossing have not worked....until my last trip to the dentist. 

I was enduring this terrible experience with finesse.  Blood covered the paper bib that they strap on patients from my unhealthy gums, and I didn't care. This same thing happens every six months, and it's nothing new to me. 

As this lady was "showing" me how to floss (I know how, I just choose not to) she came across something shockingly disgusting. What she came across was a popcorn kernel.  Now, you may not seem to think that this was very gross, but there is a piece of information that you don't realize. I couldn't remember the last time that I ate popcorn!

Now I floss everyday. End of story.

If I would have continued with my dental patterns I would have turned out looking like this.

Our Story

It was one of those nostalgic type of days. I felt as if I were sitting in the middle of a Cheers episode. Applebees in Orem, Utah was a poppin place that night. It was a Thursday as I recall, which meant Karaoke night. This day would forever change my life though.....because I began to text Candace McClure. It started out with playful flirting, which usually happens when two people of opposite gender begin to text one another. We explained our lives...every description she gave me was exactly what I wanted in a perfect wife. She was 5' 2", loved Justin Bieber,was a big sports fan, and she was a dancer. How could I not be attracted to her?

So I asked her out on a date a couple of days later. We had a bit of a problem, however. She lived almost 4 hours away from me. Luckily, I was going to Logan for a beginning of the year orientation, and she was going to drive down just to go on a date with me. I know what you're thinking, this brad must be one charming fellow to convince a woman to drive two hours to go on a first date with him after never even meeting him. Well, if you are thinking that then, yes you are correct I am charming. I remember the incredulous look on my mother's face when I informed her of this development. The words that came out of my mouth were these, "Look Mom, this girl is going to be my wife someday." It was a joke, but how was I to know how right I was? 

First Date: I have never been on a first date that compared to this one. I'm usually comfortable in the first date setting, but this woman through me for a loop. I was nervous! Constantly afraid of saying the wrong thing. Bowling was hilarious, she was awful, but I was too afraid to make fun of her. She hugged me after getting a strike, and even then I knew this girl was something special. Yes, I kissed Candace on the first date, but not until after she rejected me once. I was just afraid that I was never going to see her again,and I wanted to know what kissing her was like....at least once.

Luckily she saw me again, and again, and again. I don't know how many times either one of us made the trip from Idaho Falls to Logan. We had to see each other. I was lucky enough that her family found my scooter stories hilarious instead of just pathetic. They seemed to like me, and my family seemed to love her. It just worked. Sure there were bumps along the way, and challenges to overcome, but it worked. 

I knew that I wanted to marry Candace Pauline McClure a long time ago. In all honesty I just knew that no woman would ever compare. She was perfect for me. She didn't know as fast as I did, which is understandable. I don't know why any woman would consciously sentence herself to life with Brad Francis. 

One week in particular Candace was extremely sick. So I went out to buy her some medicine and orange juice. It seemed like a little thing to me, but I filled her car up with gas. When she got in the car she cried. It's funny how little things like that can change lives. After that things just clicked for her, and she knew she wanted to marry me. 

I can honestly say that today I'm the luckiest man on earth. Most of my posts have been comical, and not very serious. I wrote this one because I want the world to know how it all happened. Things like this happen every single day. People fall in love. Our story isn't extraordinary in any way, but it's ours. I wouldn't change a thing. I'm getting married to the most wonderful person I know, and I am as happy as a person could be.