Sports Loyalties

The New York Yankees

Life is not about sports, but they sure are fun to play and watch.  God can be glorified in our observance and participation in sports, and I thought I’d just post a few thoughts regarding my favorite sports franchises.

1.) The New York Yankees – Since I was a young lad, I was aware of the rich history of Yankees “fanism” in my family.  My Father and his father both were avid fans before I was even born.  They had the privilege of following and even seeing the likes of  Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, and Reggie Jackson.  While I would have claimed allegiance to the Yankees at a young age, it wasn’t until I followed most of the 1999 season and watched all of that World Series when the Yankees won their second championship in a row, defeating the Atlanta Braves, that I became an “avid” fan.  Since then, I’ve never turned back.  Since watching them win 3 Championships in a row at the turn of the century, securing their position as the most successful sports franchise in the 20th century, I’ve seen heartbreak after heartbreak for the past decade.  Number 27 is bound to be on the way soon. (To those of you who are Yankee “haters” – I’m not one of those “we’re better than you and I think you’re stupid” snobby fans – Just to be clear.)

The Philadelphia Phillies

2.) The Philadelphia Phillies – This is usually the part where a lot of people say, “What?! You can’t have 2 favorite baseball teams!” or “You just like them now because they just won the World Series!” Rest assured that the Phillies have had my loyalty, albeit a secondary one, since my family moved to Pennsylvania.  Shortly after moving from New England when I was 9, I began to follow the Phillies, which was made easier by having their AAA affiliate literally 10 minutes from my house growing up, the Scranton/Wilkes Barre Red Barons.  I’ve watched Phillies greats Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, and now former Phillies Bat Burrell, and Scott Rolen play in the minors and make it to the majors.  Consequently, I couldn’t help but to be interested in how the players whom I saw in person in the minors were doing at the major league level.

The Penn State Nittany Lions

3.) The Penn State Nittany Lions – This commitment goes back even further than my adamant fanaticism regarding the New York Yankees.  I confess I have not always known every player statistic or season record as I would have the Yankees, but the truth is I have always rooted for Penn State.  As a result I have also always equally disliked and rooted against the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Michigan Wolverines.  Consequently, I have always been and will always be a admirer and fan of Joe Paterno.  The man is a legend, and will always be regarded as one of the best if not the best coach in college football history.  As of the 2008 season, Joe Paterno signed an extension to be the head coach for the next 3 seasons, which will make him 85 when his contract is up.  The man is 82 years old and still coaching – and doing a phenomenal job at that.  We Are – Penn State!

The Philadelphia Eagles

4.) The Philadelphia Eagles – This commitment has only been a strong one for the last 5 years or so.  As a kid, I claimed to be a 49ers fan, simply because my older cousin, whom in many ways I idolized, was a 49ers fan.  Then, when we moved to PA, I couldn’t really decide between the Eagles and the Steelers.  At some point, I just decided I would like the Eagles, and I haven’t turned back since.  The Eagles have been the kind of team that can have a short streak of tremendous games and give you the sense that they’re championship material, and then all of a sudden get pounded.  Or they could randomly tie a bad team, thus weakening their record significantly.  But, somehow, they always seem to have a very talented team and be competitive throughout the season, and even sneak into the playoffs.  Donovan McNabb has done a tremendous job, regardless of how much longer he will remain an Eagle.  And despite cries from fans, Eagles fans or otherwise, I believe that Andy Reid has done a great job in one of the most difficult if not the most difficult sports cities to play/coach in.