It's like Manila all over again.
Much llike when Manny Pacquiao has a boxing fight, every Filipino is glued on their tv screen watching the fight. It is the same here in Minnesota when the Viking is playing. Football is like a blockbuster movie here where the purple team plays the hero while all the other football team is the villain.
You can just feel the excitement and pride of Minnesotans when their team won the other day because when Ken and I went out to have dinner after the game, sixty percent of the people in the restaurant are donning their Viking shirt. It's like a symbol of greatness for the city it represent. But of course when the team were losing, I bet, they are just as fast to bury their shirt in their closet!
And long after the game is over, people are still talking about it like its a national debate - should Brett Favre retire this year? Should the team owner fire the head coach even when they won their last game? What did Randy Moss do or did not do to be axed from the team?
I really don't understand the game. For me, it's kind of barbaric the way the players hit each other. This game lack politeness as both team fiercely defend their territory and violently tackle those who would encroach. Back and forth they struggle towards a goal. The scoring team pushes forward while the other team keep ground. Maybe it's just me, but I don't get a thrill watching big bruisers with over flowing testosterone repeatedly bashing into each other, all in the deceivingly simple pursuit of moving the oblong brown ball from one side of the field to the other.
Yet, in the end, I enjoy watching football for the simple reason that I enjoy it! Maybe it's just an opportunity to take an interest in something lighthearted, inconsequential, and just plain fun.
3 comments:
Hi odette,
I've gotta say...Go Chargers!
Football is fun because it's a great time to get together with friends and spend time together watching the game and maybe throwing a party-big or small. I don't think it really matters if you understand it or not.
Just get in the spirit and cheer for your team and enjoy being with your family and friends.
As an added bonus, most of the players are pretty good-looking guys!
Hugs, Mimi
I've never seen American football - would be fun to go for the atmosphere.
Football is one of the BEST sports on earth to watch. Some would say hockey is but I'm not Canadian so I'll never get it. The only thing I respect about hockey is the smach mouth violence that sometimes turns into an instant boxing match. Pretty cool but, the constant back 'n' forth play puts me to sleep as fast as basketball does. A word of advice Judy...NEVER, EVER call the lame, boring game of soccer "football" while you're living in America...you might have your head handed to you. lol
There's nothing quite like watching your favorite team's defensive or offensive linemen smash into the opposing team's with the loud CRASH of helmets and shoulder pads and bodies while grunting like cavemen on crack and steroids. All the while, the defensive line is trying to create a hole for at least one man so he can rush up and smash, crush and break the QB into a million pieces before he even hits the ground.
Judy, durring the next game, try watching the ball durring a fake running play and watch how the QB pretends to hand the ball off to a decoy who then pretends to be holding the ball while running head first into the defensive line. Watch while the QB then slips the ball into the hands of the defense's real target who then tries to sneak though or around the linemen and zip accross the line of scrimmage to gain as many yards as humanly possible. The QB will sometimes do the same thing with a pass play but he keeps the ball to set up for a pass instead.
The QB only has till the count of 10 to get rid of that ball before at least one defensive lineman will come rushing up to tackle him from the front, back or either side trying to snap him like a twig. The pass plays alone can be nerve wracking enough to get your heart pounding and have you yelling or biting your nails hoping he won't over throw or under throw the wide reciever. All that is only possible if his linemen can give him enough protection to keep him from recieving a painful quarter back sack.
Unlike college football, if you want to know who's who on the offensive team while they're on the field it's actually pretty easy.
The Quarter Back - The QBs are always easy to spot. They wear single to double digit numbers from about 5 to 18.
The Running Backs - They usually wear numbers in the 20s. They're usually shorter and thinner than the rest of the team cause they have to squeeze into small holes or rush around the wall of men on the line of scrimmage.
I think it's the tight end (don't quote me on this) who wears numbers in the 40s and will run the ball too. But, they're usually much taller and beefier than running backs.
The Wide Recievers - They usually wear numbers in the 80s and are always the thinest players next to the kickers because they have to be fleet of foot and out maneuver and out run the man or men covering them.
The Kicker - Last but not always least, the lowly kickers usually wear numbers between 1 and 12. When they win the game, everybody on the team wants to kiss him and hug him and buy him a new Corvett or a mansion. If he misses and loses the game, the rest of the team will be waiting for him in the locker room ready to hand him the wrath of God a few times over.
No matter what team you like, the enjoyment of the whole season depends on the owners. If they're cheep skates, they won't pay half as much as they need to buy a decent defensive AND offensive team. If that's the case, your team won't even get into the play offs let alone make it to the Super Bowl. That's why I gave up on the Browns over a decade ago. They're a hopeless case every single year.
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