For The Love Of The Game

Turn on ESPN these days and the talk is unevenly split between the NFL’s labor negotiations and NBA happenings.

Between the Cavaliers’ losing streak, Jerry Sloan stepping down as head coach of the Utah Jazz, and the Carmelo Anthony trade talk, you would think that the sport of football no longer exists, and it’s professional basketball that’s putting on the $9 billion show.

Hey I’m not complaining – I realize that it’s the off season. However, I’m imagining life like this in September and it makes me wants to vomit to put it lightly.

As the weather cools down in most parts of the country and leaves begin to change, football is the past time that comes to mind. Whether you’re a Broncos fan, Cowboys fan, or Browns fan, we huddle around our television sets or throw on a light jacket to attend games, and focus our eyes on the team that most appeals to us. Wings are gnawed on, chili brews on the stove, beers are opened, and team colors are worn in a ritual that becomes missed during the off season.

Many non-football lovers ask me why I love the sport so much as a woman. That’s the hardest-easiest question I get. It’s like asking you to describe why you love someone. You love someone because of all the cherished times you have spent together, because of all the ways they accept you, the subtle acts of affection and beauty they offer you, and the way their existence is your insurance that you will never be numb. Because you are at peace in their company and because they lead you to your actual self. Because you can’t imagine not.

If football were a person, that would be my love letter.

For the love of the sport, here’s to CBA talks moving forward briskly and efficiently.

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