Saturdays Down South

We are almost done with the college football season. Whew. I mean I love college football, but I'm hitting that time of the season where I want my Saturday's back. It's getting interesting and some of the best games have yet to be played, yes, but I always seem to hit this slump around this time.

STILL, I love football. And most people in the SEC LOVE football. I would go to say as they love it too much. The reason I say this is because I listen to the Paul Finebaum show, mostly on my drives to and from Birmingham every week. And today's really really hurt my heart.

I'm sitting here listening to the show, actually watching it, and some guy calls in and basically goes off on the Georgia team. There was so much negativity coming from this guy, yelling, saying negative things about the players, and I wanted to cry. I don't even like Georgia that much, but I found my heart breaking for the team and I wanted to call that guy and tell him to cool down. And there are people like this for every team and it breaks my heart.

Sometimes I get a little crazy. I'd like to believe that I'm not distraught when my team loses. I have had to teach myself and often remember a few things, just to keep my sanity, and to keep football in it's place.

1. It is just a game. Saturday's come, Saturday's go. Some games are awesome, some games are just meh. But the key here is that it is just a game. I love cheering on my alma mater, but when the clock hits 00:00, game is over.

2. The players are kids. I often forget about this one. Like some of them were in HIGH SCHOOL last year. Some of them are probably TEENAGERS. Some of them CAN'T BUY ALCOHOL. I often find myself thinking of them as pawns in the game. I forget they are students. I forget they are people. I forget they have feelings. I forget that they are probably where I was in my sophomore, junior, senior year of college, wondering what the heck I was going to do with my life. Hugh Freeze said it perfectly after the Alabama victory: "I am just so proud of these kids and how hard they work."

3. Coaches are people too. This one is difficult because a college football coach's job is to win football  games. But at the end of the game, one of the two coaches is walking away with a L. Still, they have emotions, they have feelings, and now they have to look forward to next week.

4. It is often more than a game. Some of these kids find their families in the football teams. There is a limited amount of time, but the head coaches, coordinators, trainers, whatever, they invest in these young men's lives. Their character (should) be shaped in this time. Their lives off the field should be a priority, more than the game itself.


But I am not a football coach. I'm not an analyst. I'm not even a superfan. I'm just a girl, who likes football, and who wants the best for the guys who walk onto the field every Saturday.