Champions

What is it about sports that compels so many people to root for it? What is it about games with a ball that causes such deep emotions of joy, happiness, anger, and even hatred? How is it that an 18 year old kid that we have never even seen in person can cause us to either have one of the happiest or saddest moments in our lives? It's crazy, it's insane, and in my case-- it's football.

Last night I saw something on TV that I've never seen before--Alabama win a national championship. It wasn't what I was expecting. I was envisioning being glued to my seat in captivation, watching every single play with excited anticipation, but it didn't happen that way. Alabama has a way of winning and not looking awesome half the time while they're doing it. The final score was 37-21, Alabama defeating Texas. Although there were quite a few moments of utter glee on our little gang of faithful Bama watchers part, it wasn't the intense, or thrilling game I was hoping for. Although I jumped and high-fived C in jubilation when the clock hit zero, the thrill stopped soon afterwards. This was it? This is what I had been dreaming of ever since I saw Bama snap the ball for my first time--and it didn't feel complete. That's when I realized the real reason why we watch sports. It's not the championship win that we want to see; it's the hope of a championship that we want to feel. We live and breathe the promise of seeing our favorite team win the ultimate game....only to live and breathe it again the next season, and the next. Because in sports, the best is never good enough, there's always more you can do, always more you can achieve. And so, day in and day out, as we take our alloted time as sports fans to dwell on our favorite conglomeration of young men and women that play with balls, we live and we hope and we imagine what the "consummation" of the season, or the career will be. We put so much faith and love and trust into our athletes, it makes you wonder how passionate we could be about the things that really matter.