Sports After the Imminent Apocalypse

I actually hadn’t even heard of The Hunger Games until I saw a trailer for the film on a movie blog.  Turns out, the critically acclaimed book trilogy has just about as big of a following as Twilight.  After talking to a few classmates and hearing their reviews of the books, I went to the library and checked the first book of the series out.  It actually took me a while to get into it, but after about the first 60 pages or so, I found myself hardly able to do anything but read.  Suzanne Collin’s well-constructed story kept me eager to know what happened next in the storyline.  I thought for a while about what I wanted to write about for this blog post, and as I was reading the third and final book of the series, Mockingjay, I thought it would be nice to take a look back at depictions of sports in post-apocalyptic worlds.

Everyone at some point and time has thought about how cool it would be to play Tlatchtli with the Mayans, it seemed fun enough on “The Road to El Dorado.”  After watching “Gladiator,” I honestly wanted to enter the ring myself (even though I know I wouldn’t last too long).  Dating back to thousands of years ago, sports have always been an important part of culture.  They continue to be so today.  But what if the unthinkable happened?  A couple of natural disasters, nuclear war, maybe even that Rapture finally happens and all of humanity is lost.  All of a sudden, we are blasted into a post-apocalyptic world.  How would the surviving humans entertain themselves?  Well, according to movies and books it would be through sports.  Here’s a look at a few examples:

According to Hollywood, the world's end will provide neat opportunities to learn all sorts of fun, new sports.

“Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome”

Hopefully the world never comes to this.  Honestly, not Mel Gibson’s best movie.  The idea was good enough, though; who wouldn’t want to watch a movie starring Mel Gibson about fighting to the death in an enclosed trap of doom in a crazy place in Australia run by Tina Turner?  It sounds awesome.  Just bad execution is all…

“Zombieland”

Interestingly enough this was one of the first movies I saw after getting home from the mission.  I laughed so hard at basically every scene featuring Woody Harrelson.  Now, this movie obviously depicts a post-apocalyptic world.  It’s sport?  In one scene, we learn that our old friend Woody has turned protecting himself into his own sport, zombie killing.  Who hasn’t dreamt about that?  Or played it?  Maybe it’s just because I watched this movie having no preconceived opinions about it (I literally had heard nothing about it) but it turned out to be my new favorite zombie movie.

“Blood of Heroes”

Don’t feel out of the loop if you never saw this movie, a Rutger Hauer “gem” released in 1989.  It’s pretty bad.  In this one there aren’t any crazy monsters or anything, just a crazy idea of a sport.  Apparently, the idea wasn’t too crazy for large groups of people in Germany, Ireland and Australia who decided to form their own leagues to play jugger, the sport popularized by the movie.  What is it with all of these post-apocalyptic movies and fighting to the death?  Wouldn’t they try to be re-populating the world?  Oh well…

“Waterworld”

In this one, Kevin Costner is a web-footed freak who makes Michael Phelps look like an old grandma.  Though it isn’t actually about swimming, Costner does a lot of it.  It also has a lot of harpooning and paper hunting, other popular sports that apparently will catch on post-doomsday.

Anyway, I have just been thinking a lot about this kind of stuff lately.  Apparently I’m not the only one who has become completely consumed by the “Hunger Games” series.  All over facebook my online friends had ‘liked’ the books and even some of them had recently posted comments about it.  It’ll be interesting to watch the movie adaptation that comes out next spring.  

OK, this post has nothing to do with sports.  But it’s still media related, so I am writing it anyway. 

I was talking about TV the other day with one of my classmates, and she was naming off her favorite shows and characters, etc.  I couldn’t help but notice that all of her favorites were so different than mine.  I didn’t disagree with them or argue about her ridiculous interests because, in the end, they were her interests and I had no right to tell her she was wrong.  I just listened to what she had to say and just nodded my head as if I were agreeing with her.  I wanted to write this post in response to that conversation and, in effect, recommend some TV shows to all of you.  These are my Top 5 TV characters currently on air:

5.) Tracy Jordan, “30 Rock”

I would say that Alec Baldwin is the best actor on that show, but Tracy Morgan doesn’t even need to act a whole lot to be the best and funniest character.  He is what made that show funny, right from the pilot episode where he was pantless running alongside the interstate and screaming “I am a Jedi!”  Other characters you gotta love on “30 Rock” are played by Tina Fey, Jack McBrayer, and Jane Krakowski. 

4.) Troy Barnes, “Community”

You really could group him in with the entire cast because everybody is funny on that show (maybe with the exception of Chevy Chase, which is odd to say).  That being said, Abed and Troy are the lifeblood of the show, and the funnier of the two I would say is Troy, played by Donald Glover.   It’ll be interesting to see what they do with the show after the recent dissing they received from NBC…

3.) Cam Tucker, “Modern Family”

In my opinion, people who like the show “Will and Grace” are either really, really gay or just don’t have a very advanced sense of humor.  I hated that show and was reluctant to hear, after coming back two years of being in South America, that one of the most popular TV shows around dealt predominantly with a gay couple.  I thought, “Great…another ‘Will and Grace.’”  My first “Modern Family” experience was the episode where they celebrated Lily’s birthday.  Cam, wanting to provide his adopted daughter with a great party, donned a clown outfit and a British accent.  TV hadn’t made me laugh so hard in a long time (and not just because I hadn’t watched it for two years).  I quickly grew to love Cam’s character and tune in primarily because of him.

2.)  Dwight Schrute, “The Office”

Before, when Steve Carell character Michael Scott dominated all the attention on the show, Dwight Schrute was sort of an afterthought.  Played by Rainn Wilson, the character served as the number two of the show, literally seeing as how the title he held for so long in the make-believe office was “Assistant to the Regional Manager.”  Dwight was such a great bonus for so long though that, after Michael left the show, his devoted fans continued to tune in, allowing the show to relinquish its spot on NBC’s prestigious 9 o’clock spot on Thursday nights.  He still doesn’t necessarily dominate the spotlight from the rest of the cast, though the majority of the big laughs derive from the nerdy, butt-cut wearing salesman.

1.)Tom Haverford, “Parks and Recreation”

My brother would say that Tom isn’t even the funniest character on that show; he loves Ron Swanson, the ultra-man that heads the Parks and Recreation office in the fictional town set in Indiana.  Tom, played by Aziz Anzari is, for lack of better descriptive words, different.  There has never been a character like him.  And to find something original like that nowadays is refreshing.  Honestly, I thought he was a little annoying at first, and it took a while to get used to him.  But after going back and watching the first few seasons and understanding more of the background of the show, I get him now.  That being said I really do think that the whole ensemble of characters on this show would qualify: Leslie Knope, Ron Swanson, Tom Haverford, April Ludgate, Andy Dwyer, and Chris Traeger are all reasons why I watch this show every week.

Basically, there is a wealth of good shows out there.  I really feel like after "Friends" there was a definite down period in broadcasting, that there wasn't ever anything good to watch.  Even "SNL" was bumming me out with so many of its cast members leaving only to be replaced by talentless actors.  Things have changed in recent years, though.  DVR queues haven't been this full in a long time! 

3 Things Not Happening in 2011-2012

Sacramento Kings guard Jimmer Fredette will not participate in the 3-point shootout the day before the 2012 NBA All-Star game.  Let’s face it: everybody loves Jimmer.  We especially love him when he sinks three pointers.  Now we won’t get to see him make it rain, stepping even further behind the regulation ark to shoot his signature shot.  Sorry 32, but you won’t get to teach anybody how to Jimmer this year.

There won’t be any breakout teams in 2011-2012.  The 2010-2011 season was a great year for breakouts in the NBA.  While some teams started the season expecting to excel, there were a few teams, like the Portland Trailblazers, that surprised us.  Others, such as the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Memphis Grizzlies, went on to excel in the playoffs.  All that talk of Utah, Sacramento, Minnesota, Charlotte and Indiana taking large steps of improvement officially has gone out the window.

LeBron won’t start his Jordan-esque run of NBA titles.  Sorry Bron Bron, but we won’t be seeing that poster of you flashing numerous championship rings anytime soon.  I really will miss the pre-game ritual of James tossing that chalky cloud of smoke up into the air.  But hey, look on the bright side: now nobody can claim that the Heat completely and utterly collapsed in the 2012 Finals.  Perhaps in the meantime you can take your talents to Panathinaikos and help them win.

 

Honestly, the real tragedy isn’t that these guys aren’t going to be able to improve their stardom or wow us with their athletic play.  It’s not terribly upsetting that they might have to actually worry financially like the rest of humanity.  The worst thing about the NBA lockout is that thousands of employees, from those people you try to avoid as you sneak down into the lower section of the arena to grab a seat you “could have sworn was ‘G15’” to the guys selling overpriced sodas, are now out of work.  As I look around Energy Solutions Arena, I think about all the merchants that are losing out big time because there aren’t going to be 20,000 plus fans 80 times this year walking through downtown SLC.  The economy in this country is a bust right now, and things like this are not helping at all.  Put this down as another reason why baseball is so much better than basketball.  Maybe the 2012-2013 season will make up for it, but with the litigation clock now ticking, let’s not get our hopes up. 

"CONSIDER ME DISAPPOINTED."

          -Colin McGrath

PENN Without the Teller

THE PENN STATE TRAGEDY 

With only one loss and more than half of the season already over, the Penn State football team had every reason to celebrate.   Though they were faced with three consecutive upcoming games against conference rivals, all ranked at the time, they looked ahead with the kind of confidence that only the third-best defense in the country could exude.  ‘Happy’ Valley was just that.  But a 40 count indictment released on Nov. 4 alluding to sexual abuse and child molestation claims against one of Penn State’s own has devastated this proud and beautiful community.

Without a doubt, it will be nearly impossible for the defendants of former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky to find jurors that haven’t already presumed his guilt.  Everyone is aware of what he is being accused of because of the extreme amount of national coverage this scandal has generated as well as the impact it is having in the community.  You would seriously have to be living under a rock…better make that under a mountain to not have heard this story. He hasn’t exactly helped his case, either, failing miserably to sound innocent in an interview with NBC news correspondent Bob Costas.

It’s crazy to think how similar this situation is with that of Michael Jackson.  Both guys admitted to doing things they shouldn’t have; one slept in beds with boys while the other showered with boys.  You could also say that this situation is similar to what happened to the Catholic Church.  Both the church and Penn State apparently kept their respective situations hush-hush, when an immediate phone call to the police to quell what was happening was the obvious thing to do.  You could even say that they didn’t do anything just to salvage their brand name.  A whole load of good that did them…

The purpose of this post is to basically just mirror what Jon Stewart and all the other reporters and analysts have said the past week or so, which is that it is not OK to just stand by and watch as lives are ruined.  I think of how all the children who have been raped, molested, etc. in places other than a university locker room must feel when hearing this.  They were attacked in places where hope of someone helping was non-existent.  Those kids literally had nobody to defend them from their attackers.  How awful must the Penn State victims feel to know that there was somebody that could have easily stopped this?  To know that there were people that could have possibly saved them.  How hard would it have been to pick up a phone and call the cops?  I’ve never met Jerry Sandusky, but I can tell you right now that it would not have been that hard to stop him from hurting those kids. 

            

Obviously nobody knows EVERYTHING that went on.  The whole story is marred by denial now, and will probably only get worse as the trial proceeds.  All I can say is that hindsight is 20/20.  And that at least if this kind of thing were to happen again, maybe those who would have stayed silent and done nothing now know that that is not an option.  Silence will not help those kids.  

"THE SANDLOT" WINS OUT

After voting ended on a two week-long poll that asked all of you what your favorite baseball movie was of all time, the results showed that "The Sandlot" was the favorite among 'fullcourtpressing' readers.  I'd like to spend a few moments taking a look at what makes this movie great.

What is it that makes a movie memorable?  Obviously when a movie has easy-to-memorize quotes and scenes it becomes something that we keep in our minds for a long period of time.  "The Sandlot" is one of those movies that is so good that, after watching it, we keep it in our minds forever.  If all baseball movies were Beatles songs, this one would be "Hey Jude."  Though it isn't my personal favorite baseball movie, I recognize its awesomeness and can easily understand when other people say that it is the best ever.

There are three scenes in particular that EVERYONE who has seen this movie can remember (proof that it is a memorable classic).

1.  "Wendy the Lifeguard" Scene



Every little kid who has ever gone to a public pool KNOWS that reason number one for going was not just to swim and it definitely was not to get exercise.  A major reason for going was for the lifeguards.  I know, I know, all you girls will say that because of that all boys are pervs.  But you know what, girls?  Tell me you don't go to the pool or beach dreaming about the hunky lifeguards.  There is a reason you go tanning on the beach, even when your backyard gets hit with the same amount of sun.  Anyway, I love the realism in this movie.  There are even some scenes that play on childhood situations that have been done a million times before and since that for some reason are just more entertaining in this film.  Even my brother, a movie lover and self-acclaimed film expert) says that this movie blows "Stand By Me" out of the water.

2.  FOR-EVER



One of the funniest things about this scene is that later on in the movie you realize just how far from the truth the kid's story really was.  Also, "For-ever..." is probably the most quotable line from this movie.  Honestly, it is hard not to stretch that word out every time I use it.

3.  Babe Ruth's nicknames



Baseball players have the best nicknames in all of sports.  It's a fact.  Look it up.  Babe Ruth, because he is arguably the most well-known baseball player of all time, happens to have a ton of nicknames.  I love this scene because it shows how a simple nickname, or like twenty of them for that matter, can help a man's popularity endure for lifetimes.

So there you have it.  The best baseball movie ever, "The Sandlot."

Be sure to follow fullcourtpressing and keep checking it out!  Next topic will be the crushing effect that one man, Jerry Sandusky, can give an entire community.

THE WARRING SPIRIT: hip hop's effect on sports, both positive and negative

If you are from anywhere outside of here or here, you’ve probably had the same thing happen to you once or twice.  You are sitting in a dimly lit Wendy’s dining room, merely trying to enjoy your junior bacon cheeseburger, when a group of teenagers walk in.  Their styles, not only what they are wearing but how they carry themselves, would make your grandparents shudder.  As you are finishing your cheeseburger, they flirt with the underage girl behind the counter while they place their order.  You realize that you are the only other person in the dining room and, though there are plenty of empty tables, naturally they sit at the table right next to yours.  You wonder to yourself, “I wonder what kind of advice Bill Cosby would give these kids.”  You finish your burger, stand up and leave, all the while avoiding eye contact so as not to get jumped.  Leaving the restaurant, you tell yourself that you would have handled them if they made a move.  You get in your car and drive off…crisis averted. 

Those teenagers represented hip hop culture just like a group of skateboarding kids represent the punk or grunge scenes.  That situation has played out in front of me dozens of times (though not always at Wendy’s) and the thing that I remember vividly is the apparel, the clothes that these teenagers seem to always wear.  From head (Yankee hats) to toe (Jordan shoes) hip hop culture has blended with sports teams, adopted them as part of its own culture and changed the attitude of sports in general. 

Its history is not well documented, and its origin has been heatedly debated many times.  Like most other pop culture sensations, hip-hop seemed to come out of nowhere overnight.  Its sound, criticized by the majority of the public eye, provided a certain voice that blended perfectly with the funky beats that were popular at the time.  Soon, hip-hop would even help to tear down the confinements set by disco music and become a driving force in American culture.  In addition to becoming one of the most provocative, controversial and moving styles of art, it also became of the most influential genres of modern music.  Today, how we dress, talk, dance and even the way we play sports is affected by hip-hop music.  Like just about everything else in life, I believe that there are good and bad effects from this.  How do professional sports benefit from hip hop influences?  Also, what is the negative effect that rap causes sports?  Let’s take a look…

THE GOOD

When hip hop artists started rapping about sports in their songs way back in the ‘80s, sports would never be the same.  For example, in the documentary “Straight Outta L.A.”, produced by ESPN, rapper/director Ice Cube talks about the good that the clashing cultures brought.  The Los Angeles Raiders at the time needed a home, a loyal fan base that would love them and allow them to stay in that area.  The racially diverse area of Los Angeles likewise needed the Raiders.   The football team not only gave them an identity, it gave them something to rally for, and it allowed them to come together. 

In an article written for ESPN.com’s Page 2, Vincent Thomas claims that he actually misses hip hop sports teams.  What great memories they provided over the years!  It’s easy to root for teams like the ‘80s Raiders and the Fab Five and for players such as Lawrence Taylor and Allen Iverson.  Maybe the fact that they had been so heavily embraced by hip hop culture helped their popularity.

You could also say that another good effect brought by the unifying of hip hop culture and sports was that it helped the growing genre gain spotlight.  Nowadays, nearly every time an athlete is interviewed after a game, you can hear music from artists such as Nelly or 50 Cent being played by teammates in surrounding lockers.  At almost every type of sporting event, rap music (edited of course) can be heard before, during, and after games.  At baseball games the PA operators who play walk-up music for individual players, intended to “pump the athletes up,” tend to use rap and hip hop’s Latin twin, reggaeton.  Rap’s exposure in sports not only gives players a certain swagger or identity, but also allows athletes everywhere to get their adrenaline flowing.  Evidence of this was never more apparent than when rapper and Green Bay Packer fan Lil’ Wayne, in response to the inspiring Pittsburg Steelers anthem “Black and Yellow,” released a different version of the song to inspire the Packers just before the two teams met to play Super Bowl XLV in 2011.  Rap music has inspired countless teams, and it appears that it will continue to do so as long as the bass-heavy beats exist. 

Perhaps the greatest success story of the hip hop/sports merger is rapper Jay Z, the current principle owner of the New Jersey Nets.  He has proven that the two worlds can collide for their mutual benefit, especially for how he provided hip hop with a model of financial efficiency and business attitude.

THE BAD

By late 2007, there had already been a number of incidents in the world of sports that had given the decadent lifestyle of hip hop sports stars a bad image.  Many athletes throughout all sports had been arrested for various crimes; some had even lost their careers due to time spent in jail.  In November of that year, Sean Taylor, star safety for the Washington Redskins, was shot at his home in South Florida by an armed robber.  Taylor died later that night due to massive blood loss from his femoral artery.  In the weeks, months, and even years that followed, public outcry from fans has called for an end to the stupidity displayed by many prominent American athletes.  The edge that hip hop culture had given the world of sports was now just rough and dangerous.  Many sports figures, once role models, were now the model for violence and reckless behavior.  They had become a punch line, the object of ridicule for morning talk show banter.  When a new star began to excel, the question had become, “How long will this guy last before we find out how he really is?”

One cause of this may be the endless streaming of videos, music, and other media brought about by the advances of technology.  Before such advances, music was not only harder to come by but harder to play inside clubhouses and locker rooms.  Also, it is impossible to think that all athletes before the youtube era were angels.  They may have acted poorly as well, though the media’s inability to cover them compared to today’s standards makes it hard to know for sure exactly how athletes back then behaved.  That being said, it is impossible to disagree that the hip hop and sports infusion has produced certain negative effects, resulting in numerous lives being endangered.  Some people just take it too far. 

In the end, you can decide.  Is hip hop good for sports?  There isn’t a poll question that goes along with this post, just something to ponder.  If you want my opinion, I love sports and I love hip hop.  I think that rap music is a useful tool that can help pump our adrenaline.  But I also would say that sports figures should be role models as long as they are in the public spotlight.  There are many good role models out there, but for every one good person there seem to be ten bad examples.  Sex scandals, drug charges, you can go on and on with the stuff that they do.  It’s obvious that there are far too many athletes that have lost their grip of reality, and it’s this bloggers opinion that the root of that problem can be the thug mentality drilled into their brains by the music they grew up listening to.

Baseball Movies

I could have made the title "The Greatest Baseball Movies of All Time," but I figured that there are probably too many of those lists out there, so I just wanted to show a few clips of some classic baseball movies and recommend some to all of you.  I haven't seen every baseball movie there is, so if I forget one, let me know.  I've put these movies in order of how important I would say it is to watch them.

1. ENTERTAINING- MOVIES THAT ARE RELATIVELY FUN TO WATCH

MAJOR LEAGUE

Major League is sort of a phenomenon. I’ve come to understand a few things about this movie just recently.  By watching the film, you are almost forced to like Charlie Sheen.  Plus, you have to love that horribly racist, stereotype-driven representation of a Latino baseball player (Pedro Cerrano.)  All in all, it’s a great movie. 

THE ROOKIE

Dennis Quaid as Jimmy Morris.  It's probably the least realistic true story ever adapted to a movie.  I think they would have done a better job casting Randy Quaid.  I mean, honestly, if they were going to make a movie about my life, they wouldn’t cast Antonio Banderas.  Or would they?

FEVER PITCH

Let’s not kid ourselves, here.  ‘Fever Pitch’ was a pretty good movie that talked about baseball, but it was not really a baseball movie.  But what it didn’t have in the typical, dramatic baseball sequences, it definitely hit the nail on the head with its depiction of how a baseball fan thinks and acts.  The social aspect of baseball fandom is the general theme here.  Just look at the scene where Ben and Lindsey (Drew Barrymore) get in a fight after he accuses her of jinxing the Red Sox because she made him go to her work party instead of attending a pivotal game.  Come on, who hasn’t seen that scenario played out at least once in their own lives?

ANGELS IN THE OUTFIELD

One of my favorite Disney movies ever, it had everything thing that a young kid like me could want.  Baseball, Doc Brown, angels, the homeless Turtle Dove lady from ‘Home Alone,’ Tony Danza, orphans…the list goes on and on.

2. MEANINGFUL- IF YOU DEEM YOURSELF MOVIE LITERATE, YOU KNOW THESE

A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN

Tom Hanks is one of the best actors ever.  Just ask Bill Simmons, there aren’t too many in his league.  For me, probably the best moment in any baseball movie is the “No Crying in Baseball” speech.  Consider this movie meaningful for its portrayal of the role of women in America during World War II.

THE SANDLOT

What was it that made ‘The Sandlot’ so good?  I don’t just think of the unforgettable lines or the timeless stories that it tells, I also think of the similarity between my love for baseball and for how much these children love the game as well.  It's meaningful for how it portrays adolescent life in America in the '60s and '70s.

3. THE KEVIN COSTNERS-THE GREATEST BASEBALL ACTOR AT HIS BEST

BULL DURHAM

I am actually not the biggest ‘Bull Durham’ fan, mostly because I hate Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins.  However, I like to think that this movie is pretty socially significant.  I remember watching and thinking, “Man, those minor league ballplayers sure don’t get much.”  But after seeing the inside of a few minor league stadiums such as Triple-A Zephyr Field in New Orleans and even “lowly” Single-A Brent Brown Ballpark, I've come to wonder how much conditions have changed over the years…

FIELD OF DREAMS

Obviously you have to think about the famous speech by James Earl Jones, the whispering voice, and the awkward fight with the annoying, red-headed brother-in-law.  I love this movie mostly for the end scene; no movie catches me more off guard with a tear-jerking moment quite like ‘Field of Dreams.’

FOR LOVE OF THE GAME

I really do love this movie.  Sometimes when I have to do things that I don’t particularly want to do, such as taking a test or reading a textbook, I find myself “clearing the mechanism.”  You gotta love how much this movie portrays Yankee fans for what they really are: rude scumbags that can't differentiate between winning and pride.  Some people might call this strictly a romance movie, maybe even a chick flick.  I call those people idiots. 

4. VERY IMPORTANT-I DON’T CARE IF YOU HAVE TO ILLEGALLY DOWNLOAD IT, WATCH IT RIGHT NOW.

THE NATURAL

It’s my opinion that ‘The Natural’ isn’t just the best baseball movie, it might be the best sports movie ever made.  There are a few reasons why:  

Easy to reenact pivotal scenes: Even grown-up, professional players dream of hitting the ball so hard that they don’t just break a few lights, they bust the entire electrical system of a stadium.
Romance: Who knew Glenn Close could be so attractive?
Tear-jerking moment: When Roy Hobbs is reunited with his son.
Music: Say what you want about Randy Newman, but the guy aced this one.
Realistic: So the New York Knights aren’t a real team, who cares?  I love how almost all the actors sort of represented players that were playing in the actual era.
Good enemy: Many other baseball movies seem to have borrowed the theme of ‘The Natural,’ where the evil owner is out to sink the team.  See: ‘Major League’
Foxy Ladies: Barbara Hershey, Glenn Close, and Kim Basinger…
Cool Superstition: The “Wonderboy” symbol has been etched onto more wooden bats than people realize.

I could go on and on, but all I need to say is that ‘The Natural’ is the perfect baseball movie.   

HONARABLE MENTION:

Bang the Drum Slowly, Eight Men Out, Rookie of the Year, Little Big League, Summer Catch, The Bad News Bears

TO BE DETERMINED:

Moneyball

Needed Closure

It all kind of happened really fast. 

By the time the school bus dropped us off at the front doors of the gymnasium at Boyet Junior High, it was probably 10:20 in New York, about an hour and a half would have already transpired since the first attacks.  But far away in Slidell, Louisiana, few people knew.

I had heard other kids talking about planes in New York crashing into buildings, but it seemed more like the plot of a horror movie than reality.  Walking into the classroom, my classmates and I saw our teacher in the middle of the room sitting on her black swivel chair looking up at the TV with a box of tissues in her lap.  We all sat down, afraid to say anything, and watched the reports of the attacks.  By then, four planes in all had crashed, two World Trade Center buildings had collapsed, and thousands of innocent people were dead.  I can still remember what my teacher, Mrs. Polk, said to us that day: “Pay attention, guys.  This is history in the making, you’ll never forget this.”

And I haven’t.  And probably not a single person in America who was alive then has forgotten, either.  The terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001 changed American life.  For a brief period of time, people forgot about political persuasions and petty differences.  In a way, America became a much more unified country and there was a certain sense of appreciation for freedom that everybody felt.

But there was also heartbreak, pain, grief and stress that clouded America.  Despite a seemingly unanimous support (at the time) for President Bush’s decision to fight against terror, many people were a little worried about a war.  Not everybody had the Toby Keith, you-can’t-mess-with-us-mentality.  There was an absence of normal behavior as the terrorist attacks and the impending war weighed heavily on our minds.  It was then that America needed a few more heroes. 

After a brief spell of inactivity (because of both respect for what had happened and inability to travel) sports resumed play in the aftermath of the 9/11 tragedies.  There were many storylines that captured the hearts of fans that year.  Maybe it was that there actually were heroes right before our eyes, maybe it was just the media perception trying to uplift the country similar to how "Rosie the Riveter" strengthened national morale in the 1940s.  All I know is that sports helped people in the aftermath of the tragedies of September 11.  In this blog post, I wanted to talk about the influence of sports in the media in cultivating patriotism in America in a time that it was desperately needed, particularly through four events.

A RETURN TO ACTION

In the days following the attacks, all planes were federally mandated to stay grounded. That meant that teams who needed to travel to play games were not able to do so.  And soon people started to realize that there would be no games at all.  As soon as the airports reopened, the debate of when to start playing began.  Many analysts believed that teams should start immediately, while others countered saying that sports needed to take a backseat to more important issues happening at the time. 

Was there any relevance to the idea that sports would help the country recover?  Nobody wanted to necessarily “get over” what had happened.  It was tattooed to our minds; there to stay forever.  But what everyone really wanted was a distraction.  For me, baseball was the only thing that could make sense.  I had grown sad of watching the endless cycle of pictures of burning wreckage being shown on the news.  I needed an outlet to plug my adolescent mind into so that I could regain a little bit of normalcy.

I can easily remember famous St. Louis Cardinals announcer Jack Buck giving a televised speech just before the Cardinals resumed play on Sept. 17, saying, “I don't know about you, but as for me, the question has already been answered: Should we be here? Yes!"  That was the answer for everyone watching and everyone was OK with it.  By just continuing on, sports helped us.

THE HOME RUN CHASE

Barry Bonds, all 6-foot 2-inches and 240 pounds of him, was hitting home runs like it was running out of style.  As a matter of fact, everybody was hitting home runs like crazy that year.  In 2001, 41 players hit at least 30 home runs.  That’s almost twice as many players with 30 homers than in 2011.  12 of those players in ’01 had 40 home runs, while in 2011 there are just two players with 40.  Considering the emotional impact that home runs have on fans, and the way that a home run chase can grab attention from people who don’t even care about baseball, it was significant that this particular home run chase happened in 2001.  Home runs and the depiction of them got us excited, never mind how the hitters were accomplishing it.

By the time games were postponed, Bonds had already hit a staggering 65 home runs.  Though he was distantly followed by Sammy Sosa (54) and Luis Gonzalez (51), Bonds was the obvious threat to break Mark McGwire’s previously-set record of 70 home runs hit in a single season.  I collected newspaper clippings, I watched Baseball Tonight on ESPN, I kept track online, I did everything to follow the chase.  On October 5, less than a month after the attacks, Bonds hit two home runs in Los Angeles, bumping his total to 72, breaking the record and helping America in a time of need.

THE GREATEST WORLD SERIES EVER PLAYED

During the 2001 baseball season, I would tell people that I didn't have a favorite baseball team.  That was because the team that my brother and I rooted for, the Red Sox, were terrible that year.  What I would tell people, though, was that the Yankees represented everything evil and wrong about America.  After the events of 9/11, though, the “Evil Empire” became a symbol of hope not just for New Yorkers, but for most of America.  It didn’t matter if you were from Long Island of Little Rock, you sort of cheered for them.  Remember what the Yankees would do in place of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” during the seventh-inning stretch?

Then there was the Arizona Diamondbacks, a small-market team that resembled the opposite of the business-style Yankees.  Who can remember the D-Backs for being a big story up until they made it to the World Series?  We remember them for Craig Counsell’s ridiculous batting stance and for Mark Grace’s wacky shenanigans.   Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling, polar opposites of one another, were the aces at the front of the D-Backs’ starting-pitching rotation and were the model of pitching dominance in baseball at the time.

FOX, during its span of utter dominance in providing coverage of playoff baseball, gave us Joe Buck (aforementioned Jack’s son) and Tim McCarver.  Who could have announced games better?  Well, lots of people probably.  But nobody can forget the dramatic voice of Joe Buck as the games were played out.  The tide was turned so many times in that short, seven-game series.  The play-by-play of the final at-bat of game seven still gives me chills.  I don’t even need to be watching the video; Joe Buck’s voice paints the picture in my mind of Luis Gonzalez hitting a bloop single just over Derek Jeter’s head to end the ballgame and win the World Series.  It was the greatest World Series played in my lifetime, the country was thoroughly entertained and it just so happened a little over a month after the attacks of 9/11.

SNOWMEN ON ASTROTURF
As the NFL season came to a close, the New England Patriots were the surprise team of the AFC.  Though they had won their division, it was widely believed that they would not last very long in the playoffs.  Tom Brady, who was only playing because of an injury to quarterback Drew Bledsoe, was the quintessential underdog.  They won their playoff games (despite controversy) and advanced to Super Bowl XXXVI in New Orleans. 

By the time the Super Bowl was to be played, nearly five months had passed since the events of 9/11.  But it was still the number one topic discussed on the news.  The NFL even paid their respects with a nifty, patriotic logo for the Super Bowl.  The Kurt Warner-led St. Louis Rams and their “Greatest Show on Turf” were the favored team matched up to play the New England Patriots in the big game. 

As the game wore on, the hundreds of millions of people that had tuned in began to realize that these teams were a lot more even-matched than anyone could have thought.  Tied up at 17 with ten seconds left in the game, kicker Adam Vinatieri kicked a 48-yard field goal to win the game for the Patriots.  I always thought that it was incredible that soon after one of the greatest terrorist attacks in the country’s history a football team named the Patriots won the nation’s largest, most popular, and most attended sports event.  At first I thought it seemed an awful lot like a fix, but then I realized that it was only fitting that they won. 

Bottom line, we may not have forgotten 9/11, and hopefully nobody ever does forget what happened, but we were able to put our minds at ease.  Sports helped us recover.  Sports helped us return to normalcy.  All we wanted was a taste of normalcy post-9/11, and sports delivered in a way we couldn’t have expected.  We gained closure; all thanks to sports broadcasting stations such as ESPN, game announcers like Jack and Joe Buck, and media-glorified sporting events like the Super Bowl.

Sports: A Microcosm of Society

My name is Colin McGrath and I love sports.  I usually cannot fall asleep without checking the headlines on ESPN so that I am caught up on what is happening in the world of sports.  I wouldn’t say that it’s an obsession, but it’s close.  

To me, sports personify something greater in this world.  If you are like me at all, you display passion as you root for your favorite sports team.  Many sports fans, watching their favorite games on television or other media, display a wide variety of emotions.  We may feel hope, love, hatred, fear, outrage, and sometimes disappointment or heartbreak as we watch our favorite team or player.  Once, angered by a bad performance by one of my favorite baseball pitchers, I remember feeling deceived.  Deceived!  As if that player had it in for me.  Another instance, while the San Francisco 49ers were performing an unlikely come-back against the New York Giants in a football playoff game in 2002, my love for sports led me to behave abnormally once again.  I remember losing my temper many times as I watched the game with my brother that morning.  Rooting for the 49ers, who at one point were losing the game by 24 points late in the third quarter, superstition gave way.  We started to say the words "I love you" before every play.  It seemed as if every time we said that phrase before the ball was snapped, the 49ers responded with a game changing play.  After San Francisco completed the extraordinary come-back and won the game, my brother and I felt that we had significantly contributed to the win.  My point is that sometimes we are sucked in to a different world.  As if sports were some sort of virtual reality.  And who is it that brings us there?  As technology grows in variety and sophistication, sports media becomes ever more critical in shaping and reshaping our society. 

We become so absorbed in the games we love, whether it’s by playing fantasy football on the internet or watching 24-hour sports broadcasting on ESPN.  Sports have become a critical part to our society, and it is thanks in part to the way the vast forms of media bring these games to us.  If you are addicted to sports like I am, you probably imitate your favorite athletes on a regular basis.  We wouldn't have all that without youtube.com, ESPN, or any of the other media outlets that deliver sports to us.   

Former ladies tennis player Billie Jean King once said "sports are a microcosm of society."  Could there be a better way to refer to the relationship between sports and modern society?    Every time there is an overhaul in American culture, right alongside the musicians and artists that set the standards in style and sophistication, there are athletes.  Consider King, who won the 1973 “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match against male chauvinist Bobby Riggs.   What she accomplished meant more than a personal victory; it was a pivotal moment in the growing American feminist movement.

There are multiple purposes for this blog.  The first is to explore the relationship with sports and the media juggernauts that cover them.   How does this media coverage affect the rest of us?  I’d also like to find the answers to a few of my own questions.  For example, why is it that sports are so important to Americans?  How are sports such a critical factor on how society is shaped?  Why do we care so much?