I'm the rare hardcore sports fan that doesn't really care about football unless we're talking about the fantasy variety. Don't get me wrong, I follow it, but I don't obsess about football like I do basketball. The fact that I don't "have a team" only further adds to this nonchalance. Sure, I jump on and off the Redskins bandwagon when convenient, but that's about it.
I don't really have a favorite in this Sunday's game. The Steelers are favored (by AB.com's Poll Position and Vegas), and since they're geographically closer, more folks around here seem to want them to win. But you can't overlook the underdog status of the Cardinals, who have ascended from Clipper-esque mediocrity to the precipice of the greatest title in all sports. I got used to listening to Larry Fitzgerald's Dad on the radio every morning in Minneapolis, so I'm pulling for him. Kurt Warner's odd looking wife will be there. Edge is finally out of the scrip clubs, and on the biggest stage. The whole "team of destiny" thing has a nice ring to it.
But ultimately I'm going to pull for the Steelers, and the tiebreaker is obvious: Coach Mike Tomlin. I don't even need to lie to ya'll, I'm cheering for the Steelers because they have a black coach and I want to see history (Dungy, 2006) repeat itself this year. I have no greater explanation, and part of me wonders if there's anything wrong with this.
Racial pride is something that's generally frowned upon by the mainstream media, especially when the subject of said pride is black or brown. Tomes were written about whether or not blacks were voting for Obama "just cause he' black" last year, which was the dumbest of angles to me. So freakin' what? White folks vote white all the time. Women vote for women. Jews support Jews. Asians have their own self-sustaining economies. It's human nature on some level to support and be proud of your own, but that don't necessarily make it wrong.
So, I'll be pulling for Coach
Question: Is it wrong to root for someone to succeed "just cause they black"? If not, why is it sometimes considered racist to support someone just "cause they are white"? Could our new President take some "Cool Pointers" from Coach Tomlin?
[1] The operative phrase is indeed "COULDN'T care less", as Chris N. infamously corrected me here awhile back. I just didn't know better, but I can't go a single day without hearing "COULD care less" about a dozen times. Let's fix this, people. Good job, Chris N.
[2] This guy irks me for some odd reason. Can't pinpoint why, but he does.
