Football
*Football. It was announced last week that the Steelers will report to training camp in Latrobe on July 30 and the first practice will be July 31. Training camp will be very short this year, but that doesn’t matter. It is a rite of passage in these parts, so the limited time is insignificant.
While it is something I cannot describe, football has a calming influence (power) over me. It began while I was a child in school. The Steelers won their first four Super Bowls while I was in elementary and middle school. Those were pretty good years in my scholastic career, for the most part. Football meant autumn. The seasons began their transition. The weather started to get cooler. There was a crispness in the air. That meant football weather and I got excited.
Saturdays and Sundays in the fall were my release days, especially in high school, but also during my earlier years. Those were the days I could get away from all of the adversity in my life from school and just be myself. Football was my entertainment. It gave me something to get, and be, excited about. It was my escape. I learned the game fast and got to know the players and not just from the Steelers, but from around the league. So, I sort of became an expert in football because of how much time I spent watching it.
The sport has supplanted baseball as the national pastime. There are only 12 regular season games in college and 16 in professional. Every game means something. Baseball plays 162 games; hockey 82, basketball 82. While hockey awards points for wins and overtime shootouts, there are still a lot of games in which a team can make up ground. Football teams only play once a week. The result of the game is huge, good or bad.
The sport came through for me during my darkest hour. The morning my father passed on was a Sunday. A group of us were going to tear our back porch off and start putting a new one on. Those plans fell apart. Instead of it being a work day (a work morning), it turned into a day of mourning. To this very day that moment, that day, is still a blur, and perhaps it should be. You don’t like remembering moments like those.
While people were coming to the house and I was dealing with my own emotions and feelings, it was a football game that sort of calmed my nerves. The Steelers played the Cincinnati Bengals at home that day and we decided to put the game on since that is something we would have been doing anyway. It took my focus away from what I was dealing with for a few hours and it was a welcome respite. Only a football game could do that.
Sure, football only lasts four months (five including the playoffs, six including the preseason). But America’s love affair with the game transcends just about anything else regarding sports, including hockey, with all due respect to our Penguins. One game, for three hours, we put everything aside and focus on our favorite team, or just a game in general that doesn’t involve our favorite team.
More than anything else football and autumn go together. We always talk about football weather. Autumn is football weather. Time for hats, jackets, cool breezes, and two teams doing battle on the gridiron. There was a time, back in the 70s, when the Steelers were playing and nothing was taking place in the neighborhood. Nobody was outside. Cars didn’t move. You heard nothing for those three hours during a game. That’s how powerful a hold football has on our senses.
*I have said how the recent developments around the Steelers have affected the way I feel about our football team. That is human nature. I have stated that I often don’t care whether the team wins or loses. That statement needs a revision. I want the team to win, but a loss doesn’t affect me like it affects most people. I can deal with a loss if the team better than most. You just know that it isn’t going to be their particular day. When they make terrible mistakes is when I start to get a little upset. All I do is shake my head. Mental errors are not tolerated. But the Steelers are still our team and always will be. The black cloud hanging overhead needs to move and that may take some time.
Going into more specifics, as of this writing, only the Steelers top draft picks remain unsigned. The first round pick, Maurkice Pouncey, will be slotted. That is how first round picks work. The player ahead of him and the player behind him in the draft will indirectly determine how much Pouncey signs for. It is highly likely that Pouncey will be in camp on time ready to get to work.
*Per the column that was written last week, Utah has since been extended, and accepted, an invitation to join the Pac 10. So, the Big 10 is now the Big 12 (with the addition of Nebraska) and the Big 12 is now the Big 10 (with Nebraska and Colorado leaving). The Pac 10 is now the Pac 12 with Colorado and Utah in the fold. I had predicted that Pitt might receive overtures from the Big 10 and the ACC to join their conferences. While that hasn’t yet happened, the Big East might be looking to expand, and that might be a good or a bad thing. Anything is possible at this juncture.
*It was learned last week that Pirates General Manager Neal Huntington and Field Manager John Russell had their options picked up for the 2011 season back in the October, but it just came to light. Say what you will, and you are entitled, but Russell inherited this mess and Huntington is the one getting the players for Russell to put on the field. Recent call ups Neil Walker, Jose Tabata, Brad Lincoln, and Pedro Alvarez are the cornerstones, along with Andrew McCutchen, of what is supposed to be the team of the future.
We are looking at, without a doubt, 18 consecutive losing seasons and many have thrown in the towel and said enough. They are getting ready for Steeler camp. That cannot be held against those who are hoping against hope that this will end. An entire generation has now gone without seeing winning baseball in this region. You can’t blame anyone for not wanting to support this organization, although they are trying to support the players.
I am a huge believe that this is a “top down” issue. The Steelers are run by the Rooneys and have been since their inception. The Penguins are run by Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle. A successful businessman and a successful hockey player and they have made the Penguins a very popular brand. Bob Nutting bought out Kevin McClatchy and this is his team. It’s pretty obvious that all Bob Nutting is looking for is to make money. That has been demonstrated by the profit the organization has turned and nothing has changed on the field.
That is the story of our three major professional sports teams in this region. Two out of three ain’t bad, as Meat Loaf sang all those years ago. As mentioned at the beginning of this column, at least we have Steeler camp to look forward to in a month.
While it is something I cannot describe, football has a calming influence (power) over me. It began while I was a child in school. The Steelers won their first four Super Bowls while I was in elementary and middle school. Those were pretty good years in my scholastic career, for the most part. Football meant autumn. The seasons began their transition. The weather started to get cooler. There was a crispness in the air. That meant football weather and I got excited.
Saturdays and Sundays in the fall were my release days, especially in high school, but also during my earlier years. Those were the days I could get away from all of the adversity in my life from school and just be myself. Football was my entertainment. It gave me something to get, and be, excited about. It was my escape. I learned the game fast and got to know the players and not just from the Steelers, but from around the league. So, I sort of became an expert in football because of how much time I spent watching it.
The sport has supplanted baseball as the national pastime. There are only 12 regular season games in college and 16 in professional. Every game means something. Baseball plays 162 games; hockey 82, basketball 82. While hockey awards points for wins and overtime shootouts, there are still a lot of games in which a team can make up ground. Football teams only play once a week. The result of the game is huge, good or bad.
The sport came through for me during my darkest hour. The morning my father passed on was a Sunday. A group of us were going to tear our back porch off and start putting a new one on. Those plans fell apart. Instead of it being a work day (a work morning), it turned into a day of mourning. To this very day that moment, that day, is still a blur, and perhaps it should be. You don’t like remembering moments like those.
While people were coming to the house and I was dealing with my own emotions and feelings, it was a football game that sort of calmed my nerves. The Steelers played the Cincinnati Bengals at home that day and we decided to put the game on since that is something we would have been doing anyway. It took my focus away from what I was dealing with for a few hours and it was a welcome respite. Only a football game could do that.
Sure, football only lasts four months (five including the playoffs, six including the preseason). But America’s love affair with the game transcends just about anything else regarding sports, including hockey, with all due respect to our Penguins. One game, for three hours, we put everything aside and focus on our favorite team, or just a game in general that doesn’t involve our favorite team.
More than anything else football and autumn go together. We always talk about football weather. Autumn is football weather. Time for hats, jackets, cool breezes, and two teams doing battle on the gridiron. There was a time, back in the 70s, when the Steelers were playing and nothing was taking place in the neighborhood. Nobody was outside. Cars didn’t move. You heard nothing for those three hours during a game. That’s how powerful a hold football has on our senses.
*I have said how the recent developments around the Steelers have affected the way I feel about our football team. That is human nature. I have stated that I often don’t care whether the team wins or loses. That statement needs a revision. I want the team to win, but a loss doesn’t affect me like it affects most people. I can deal with a loss if the team better than most. You just know that it isn’t going to be their particular day. When they make terrible mistakes is when I start to get a little upset. All I do is shake my head. Mental errors are not tolerated. But the Steelers are still our team and always will be. The black cloud hanging overhead needs to move and that may take some time.
Going into more specifics, as of this writing, only the Steelers top draft picks remain unsigned. The first round pick, Maurkice Pouncey, will be slotted. That is how first round picks work. The player ahead of him and the player behind him in the draft will indirectly determine how much Pouncey signs for. It is highly likely that Pouncey will be in camp on time ready to get to work.
*Per the column that was written last week, Utah has since been extended, and accepted, an invitation to join the Pac 10. So, the Big 10 is now the Big 12 (with the addition of Nebraska) and the Big 12 is now the Big 10 (with Nebraska and Colorado leaving). The Pac 10 is now the Pac 12 with Colorado and Utah in the fold. I had predicted that Pitt might receive overtures from the Big 10 and the ACC to join their conferences. While that hasn’t yet happened, the Big East might be looking to expand, and that might be a good or a bad thing. Anything is possible at this juncture.
*It was learned last week that Pirates General Manager Neal Huntington and Field Manager John Russell had their options picked up for the 2011 season back in the October, but it just came to light. Say what you will, and you are entitled, but Russell inherited this mess and Huntington is the one getting the players for Russell to put on the field. Recent call ups Neil Walker, Jose Tabata, Brad Lincoln, and Pedro Alvarez are the cornerstones, along with Andrew McCutchen, of what is supposed to be the team of the future.
We are looking at, without a doubt, 18 consecutive losing seasons and many have thrown in the towel and said enough. They are getting ready for Steeler camp. That cannot be held against those who are hoping against hope that this will end. An entire generation has now gone without seeing winning baseball in this region. You can’t blame anyone for not wanting to support this organization, although they are trying to support the players.
I am a huge believe that this is a “top down” issue. The Steelers are run by the Rooneys and have been since their inception. The Penguins are run by Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle. A successful businessman and a successful hockey player and they have made the Penguins a very popular brand. Bob Nutting bought out Kevin McClatchy and this is his team. It’s pretty obvious that all Bob Nutting is looking for is to make money. That has been demonstrated by the profit the organization has turned and nothing has changed on the field.
That is the story of our three major professional sports teams in this region. Two out of three ain’t bad, as Meat Loaf sang all those years ago. As mentioned at the beginning of this column, at least we have Steeler camp to look forward to in a month.
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