I love the boys of fall... and no, I do not mean the tress that change colors or the Veteran's we celebrate the second Monday in November (although I really love them, too). I love the boys, of all ages, all across the country, who take the field every fall and play that tough, passionate, and hard-nosed game called Football.
I never played football... but I LOVE football.
I was in a minority of students at my high school (and an even smaller minority of females) who went to the high school football games TO WATCH THE GAME! Growing up, our next-door neighbors happened to be three boys who were the starting varsity quarterbacks for our high school for seven consecutive seasons (if my math is correct)... and I would talk to them at family summer picnics and Christmas gatherings about why our coach was making certain decisions or running certain offensive and defensive strategies.
The amount of physicality, aggression passion, masculinity, and yet DISCIPLINE required to play football at any level demands a tremendous amount of my respect. I love the game, and I love the boys and men who apply themselves to the discipline and devotion this game requires.
The men get the thrill of gameday... but they get that thrill because they've put in the hours, and hours, and days, and weeks of extremely difficult practices leading up to gameday. Even the kids warming the bench who rarely see action during an actual game have earned their spots on that bench by running the same drills, practicing the same plays, and putting forth the same hard work as the stars of the team.
I know that the hype and glory of professional football players, college players, and maybe, in some places, even high school players gets out of hand. And I know that sometimes the pressure to win can lead to wrong decisions, cheating, and more... and those are the men that I admire. But those players didn't start off as big stars with poor morals -- they began as little boys playing backyard football. They devoted summer after summer after summer, and autumn after autumn after autumn to learning the game, loving the game, and running the drills. Those are the boys of fall I admire. Most of the boys of fall are never recognized for their football talent, they never receive a college scholarship, and they are not drafted to the NFL. These men learn the lessons of football, hopefully have the time of their life... and then take those lessons and that work ethic that they learned and apply it to a different career path. These young football boys who become hard working men are the boys of fall I admire.
I take joy in supporting my favorite football teams because those are young men that are still learning the value of hard work. In a world where kids play video games instead of raking the yard, and are overweight because they've never been encouraged to shut off the tv and play outside, I am proud of the young men who are devoting their time and energy to a TOUGH, demanding, painful, physical, team sport.
I know my children will be their own people, and I have no idea if Hubby and my little, unborn bundle of joy will be a boy or a girl or like football or soccer or science or movies or history or hunting... but I would consider it a tremendous honor to, someday, eventually have a son play on a football team.
This post is for The Boys of Fall...
I never played football... but I LOVE football.
I was in a minority of students at my high school (and an even smaller minority of females) who went to the high school football games TO WATCH THE GAME! Growing up, our next-door neighbors happened to be three boys who were the starting varsity quarterbacks for our high school for seven consecutive seasons (if my math is correct)... and I would talk to them at family summer picnics and Christmas gatherings about why our coach was making certain decisions or running certain offensive and defensive strategies.
The amount of physicality, aggression passion, masculinity, and yet DISCIPLINE required to play football at any level demands a tremendous amount of my respect. I love the game, and I love the boys and men who apply themselves to the discipline and devotion this game requires.
The men get the thrill of gameday... but they get that thrill because they've put in the hours, and hours, and days, and weeks of extremely difficult practices leading up to gameday. Even the kids warming the bench who rarely see action during an actual game have earned their spots on that bench by running the same drills, practicing the same plays, and putting forth the same hard work as the stars of the team.
I know that the hype and glory of professional football players, college players, and maybe, in some places, even high school players gets out of hand. And I know that sometimes the pressure to win can lead to wrong decisions, cheating, and more... and those are the men that I admire. But those players didn't start off as big stars with poor morals -- they began as little boys playing backyard football. They devoted summer after summer after summer, and autumn after autumn after autumn to learning the game, loving the game, and running the drills. Those are the boys of fall I admire. Most of the boys of fall are never recognized for their football talent, they never receive a college scholarship, and they are not drafted to the NFL. These men learn the lessons of football, hopefully have the time of their life... and then take those lessons and that work ethic that they learned and apply it to a different career path. These young football boys who become hard working men are the boys of fall I admire.
I take joy in supporting my favorite football teams because those are young men that are still learning the value of hard work. In a world where kids play video games instead of raking the yard, and are overweight because they've never been encouraged to shut off the tv and play outside, I am proud of the young men who are devoting their time and energy to a TOUGH, demanding, painful, physical, team sport.
I know my children will be their own people, and I have no idea if Hubby and my little, unborn bundle of joy will be a boy or a girl or like football or soccer or science or movies or history or hunting... but I would consider it a tremendous honor to, someday, eventually have a son play on a football team.
This post is for The Boys of Fall...
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