The Day the Music Died

 Are you ready for some football?

I can hear back in the day…Bocephus sing it now, “Are you ready for some football?”

The answer is an enthusiastic—and possibly unhealthy--YES!

Sports are a big part of American life. But when the midsummer blues set in and thunderstorms send us indoors, I find only mild satisfaction in televised baseball, tennis tournaments and promotions for the upcoming fall season.

My life is empty. No football. Woe is me.

Why do so many of us love sports? Why do some take it to levels of pure obsession?

We pour our passion into the game, the team and all the hoopla around the season. Sometimes sports provide the excitement and drama missing from our otherwise ordinary, routine lives.

Unfortunately, that passion can also jeopardize our most intimate relationships, causing the man (in most cases but not always) to leave the marriage bed for another mistress -- the team.

He eats, sleeps and drinks everything sports. He ignores his Honey Do lists, his Honey, and the kids all for a few hours of intense game pleasure. This adulterous affair has ended many a marriage.

This extreme sports addiction can be violent. Never get between a sports fan and the television!

We nearly lost one of the twins many years ago!

His crime. As a toddler who barely could walk, he pranced right up to the television screen and popped the off button right in the middle of a great offensive play by the Saints!

The roar of the crowd could be heard that day in the living room of my parents’ house as the shock and awe of the darkened screen created panic! My poor child might have never touched a TV again.

Is this mass hysteria healthy?

Shouldn’t other parts of our lives inspire the same enthusiasm—our spouses, our children and our faith?

What if we channeled the same wild enthusiasm into our marriage?

Imagine the big anniversary as the Super Bowl of romance. The husband arrives bare-chested with his wife’s name painted across his chest. He carries an air horn, blowing it during every lull in the conversation while shouting to the world:

“I love this woman!” 

The celebration lasts three uninterrupted hours, during which he gives his wife his complete attention. 

Unless he fumbles, there is a strong possibility he will score.

Take the same fanatical team spirit to the pew as well.

Next Sunday, try starting “the wave” after the offertory to spur the preacher on. It is about time God got a little more excitement from his fans.

Someone can hold up the John 3:16 sign for good measure too.

When the preacher makes a particularly good point, jump to your feet and high-five the person sitting beside you.

I’m not suggesting you dump Gatorade over the preacher’s head following the benediction—but a little excitement wouldn’t hurt.

Some of you may think all of this zealous team passion is bad, useless, and unproductive to mankind. Some of you have never experienced the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. You live quiet lives, probably dedicating your extra time to worthy causes or reading meaningful books.

But before you become too lofty, you should know that sports fanaticism has its benefits.

Consider the billions of dollars spent on team merchandise, tickets, concessions and enormous televisions. Sports create a thriving industry that employs countless Americans. They also turn talented young athletes into millionaires with padded contracts and endorsement deals.

Sports fans can release pent-up stress through their recreational passion—unless they happen to be Saints fans. Even while winning a game, I am stressed….just waiting for doom and gloom.

Football may have even saved a few marriages by keeping husbands occupied and leaving wives free to do as they please. After all, shopping centers are filled with unleashed women on Sunday afternoons while the boys of fall battle on the field.

The economy is grateful.

Sports can also give children a dream. A young athlete may understand that education and discipline are necessary steps toward reaching that dream, giving them another reason to stay in school and work hard.

But the greatest example of what sports can accomplish may be what the New Orleans Saints did for their city after Hurricane Katrina. 

When times were at their worst and hearts were heavy with worry and sorrow, the Saints’ 2006 season brought smiles and laughter into FEMA trailers where joy had been scarce.

When people desperately needed something to lift their spirits, Drew Brees and the Saints gave them hope.

And believe me, they are working extra hard to sour that dough. 

Sports give us stories about people who overcame adversity. They introduce us to great characters—some admirable and some simply interesting. They offer hero worship, escapism and a temporary break from responsibility. 

They are about ordinary people accomplishing extraordinary things.

Most importantly, sports bring people together.

Whenever I watch a Saints game, I am transported back to my childhood. Every fall Sunday, our family crowded around the television. Through many painful seasons—and I do mean painful—we shared a common bond. 

When I think about the Saints, I think about my family.

Living so far away from my Who Dat Nation sometimes makes me homesick. One of my greatest regrets is that I didn’t watch the Saints win the Super Bowl with my dad. He died not long afterwards.

Now on Sunday Football games, I like to imagine him watching from Heaven, where he and Buddy D can discuss the coaching, criticize the play-calling and nitpick every decision made on the field.

Because football was never just about football.

It was about Sunday afternoons in my parents’ living room. It was about laughter, arguments, hope and heartache. It was about being together.

It was about home. 

So, yes—I am ready for some football. 

Who Dat!