Why I Watch - just trying to express my excitement for the new season

[billy thompson]

This might not be what you’re looking for, but since you’re here, did you see Usain Bolt run last week in the Olympics? Despite the way he broke Michael Johnson’s record in the 200, a record many track people thought would never go down, his record-breaking run in the 100 was most astonishing to me. And regardless of whether you thought it was poor sportsmanship or a shame he didn’t run through the tape to see just how low the record could be, it was that he jogged to the finish that made that race stand out for me. I mean, how in a 9-second race do you have time slow up, look around and make a show of pounding your chest? It was one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen in sports – not the theatrics, of course, but the way he separated himself from the pack and made the best sprinters in the world look slow. My jaw literally dropped. It was a physical reaction I don’t think I’ve had since I watched and rewatched, again and again, Afleet Alex’s incredible race at the Preakness in 2005, when he stumbled to where his nose just about hit the ground before he burst out of the fall and into the lead. It was something I had never seen before and something I was pretty sure I wouldn’t see again – the same way I felt watching Usain Bolt run. I keep watching, though, just in case. Because seeing things like that, amazing accomplishments resulting from the confluence of immense talent and years of hard work that give a glimpse of what’s possible, is why I watch sports.
What’s this have to do with college football? Well, the college football season gets under way this week, and we’ll all be in front of our televisions a lot more than usual. Few everyday things beat the excitement of the dawn of a new football season. We have our favorite teams and our fantasy teams, and we have the chance, week after week, to see something amazing. But mostly, we have our fantasy teams. In an era where ‘student-athlete’ seems almost, unfortunately, an oxymoronic term, where head coaches make more money than school presidents and where the NCAA itself and its championship system dictated more by big money corporate sponsorship than by the play on the field appears to be about everything but the kids who play the games, it’s easy to see how fantasy football has gained the popularity it has. Although there’s no denying too the thrill of playing general manager and constructing the perfect team, and the joy of trash-talking your best buddies, and a reason to leave, I don’t know, the Nevada-Utah State game on. But, in fantasy league terms, the game becomes all about the numbers. We commodify the efforts of kids, who maybe happen to be wide receivers, who can maybe get me ten points a weekend. Speaking of which, who among us hasn’t had at least the fleeting thought of what Usain Bolt, at 6’5” with what would probably be a sub 4.2 40, could do at wideout for somebody? Personally, I think he’d have trouble going over the middle – he should protect those golden legs by staying in those golden shoes and just make all the money he can in endorsements as the fastest man on earth. After all, it is all about the money, right, and the numbers?
Well, in a lot of ways, yes, but it’s also about campuses come alive with enthusiastic students and alumni, and it’s about the tailgating and College GameDay on ESPN and the matchups and the rivalries, and it’s about the way football ushers in autumn; more than anything, it’s about the play on the field. Because between the lines, none of the other stuff, the politics and the money grab, matters. It’s all about these guys who got onto to campus in August for camp and battled for playing time and who hopefully will come together as a well-drilled unit. On the field, these guys are going at it, trying to be better on every play. And when a team comes together for a game, or especially for a season, it’s a beautiful thing to see.
I’m a Penn State fan, and every year I hope for a season like the 2005 campaign, when fifth-year senior Michael Robinson got his first and only nod as the starting quarterback and ended up winning the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year Award while leading the Nittany Lions to an 11-1 season. I was at the Ohio State game in Happy Valley when the Nits won the battle of unbeatens after Tamba Hali’s game-clinching sack. It was a night game and the stadium was rocking; still my most lasting memory from that season was actually from the one game they lost, on a controversial last-second touchdown at Michigan. But, not for the reason you might think.
I remember the touchdown that broke our hearts, of course, but more embedded in my brain is the drive that made that touchdown necessary for Michigan. Robinson orchestrated a near flawless 2-minute drill drive with at least one fourth down conversion before scampering in from three yards with under a minute left. It was such a pressure-filled drive, yet Robinson couldn’t have been cooler. He made every big play, and though they lost at the buzzer, it was unbelievable to feel the confidence Robinson had in himself and his teammates. Robinson didn’t have great numbers (I just looked; he threw zero TD passes, plus had an interception and a fumble that day) and so wouldn’t have been a fantasy stud, but watching the game, you knew he was the man nonetheless.
Maybe it wasn’t Bolt-like, that game or even that season on the whole, but it was inspiring, a look at what is capable when guys come together as a team. It was a fun ride that year. The Michigan game didn’t feel good. I could have read about it afterwards and spared myself the pain of watching the go-ahead touchdown get cancelled out by the Wolverines at the last second. But, I would have missed that last Penn State drive, and I would have missed out on the panic and the thrill of each play, especially that one on fourth down. I wouldn’t have rooted as hard for them, for THEM because they deserved a top ranking and a season for the ages, as I did going forward. That game would have been a low point instead of a ringing endorsement for why, even when our fantasy teams are all about the numbers and the players simply become their stats, we still watch.
Sports is the one unscripted arena where jaws might actually drop. Greatness is possible every single time out, on every play. Sure, we hope it’s from the guy we drafted in our fantasy league, but even if it’s not, we’re better for seeing it. Hell, it might not even be a sport that has fantasy teams, like track and field, but did you see Usain Bolt run?? I know Bolt is going to win his next race and probably the one after that, but I still hope they are on TV so I can watch them. I want to watch because I want to be amazed. And, plus, it’s only a couple seconds and then I can switch back to football. Where I sure hope Stephfon Green is the stud sleeper pick I read he’d be on this site…

[Vince Mullins]

Never apologize for writing like that - well done.

I remember the last "that is why we watch moment" for me was when West Virginia's RB Quincy Wilson runs, jumps and blows through Miami on a Thursday NCAA game. (first highlight).


I got chills just thinking about it again...

[Lou Papa]

Ladies and Gentlemen, we had a Stephon Green sighting in Happy Valley this weekend and you all better take notice. This guy is going to be better than LeSean "Shady" McCoy. 89 yards on 10 carries and 2 td's against lowly Coastal Carolina but relative to what McCoy mustered against equally dreadful Bowling Green may tell you what you need to know.

[Joe Foster]

My “that is why we watch moment” was the 2007 Fiesta Bowl, when Boise State upset Oklahoma in the final minutes. Not only was Boise State able to pull off the hook-and-ladder and wide receiver touchdown pass, but then they somehow call the Statue of Liberty play on a two point conversion – when an extra point would have tied it – to earn the win in overtime. Going into that game, I didn’t really care who won or lost, I just wanted to see a good game. But after the Broncos pulled off that victory, I knew it was a moment I’d never forget.