Returning from a busy and demanding week long meeting in Washington, DC, discussing heavy subjects like gender norms and agency, I was ready for a relaxing evening when I got home. My husband had greeted me by having the garage door ready and open for me to drive into, a drink freshly iced, dinner almost ready, and a welcome fire blazing in the fireplace. We settled in to enjoy a peaceful evening watching [ever-violent] football together. It was almost exactly a year ago that I was last inspired to write about football (https://www.earth01.net/CarolConsiders/?s=football) — focusing on the pink attire that most football players wore to recognize and encourage research on breast cancer. It’s October now, and therefore again Breast Cancer Month, so again we see the incongruous color combos. This time I was struck by my own reaction to the different teams.
My brother, David Pierce, an actor who has lived his life on the West Coast and whose single-minded devotion to the San Francisco 49ers has never wavered, scolded me recently for even considering supporting other teams. Yet I have seen myself pulled in numerous directions—a fact that in itself is rather odd to acknowledge. [I remember the shocked look of horror I received from European colleagues when I mentioned as an aside a few years ago that I enjoyed watching American football. Women aren’t supposed to like football.] Analyzing my own divided (peculiar) loyalties, a lot has to do with residence. I now live in upstate New York, and have been incessantly bombarded with the feats of the NY Giants, the NY Jets, and the Boston Patriots. I’ve developed a liking for the Patriots quarterback, Tom Brady (who, incidentally, is also very good looking); I also admire his rather remarkable skill. I’ve heard over and over again about the Manning brother (Ely, quarterback for the NY Giants, who is doing badly, and receives my sympathy; and Peyton of the Denver Broncos who was considered too old but is doing brilliantly). I learned recently that Peyton is very religious and rightwing, facts that lessened my enthusiasm for him considerably. Ely has a receiver, Victor Cruz, who combines amazing speed, catching ability, and an appealing personality. He has an attractive ‘touchdown dance’ that’s full of joie de vivre.
But I find myself having internal conflict, when these NY teams are playing against the Philadelphia Eagles, whom my son in law supports as avidly as my brother supports the 49ers. I can’t help but wish them well, as I imagine his reaction to these games. He follows them far more seriously [dare I say ‘religiously’?] than I. Then there is the case of the Seattle Seahawks playing the San Francisco 49ers—again, which male relative do I support? I like the uniforms of both these teams (not supposed to be a consideration, of course). My loyalty for the 49ers comes from my father and brother and from a time when the 49ers were one of fewer professional teams on the West Coast (my ‘homeland’)—maybe the only one!? But I lived for decades in the Pacific Northwest, so I feel I should have some feeling for the Seattle Seahawks as well. More internal conflict.
College football is of course another realm. My brother approves of my interest in the University of Oregon Ducks (a school he attended for a couple of years). They’ve been doing very well lately, and introduced a much speedier version of the game by doing without the ‘huddle’ between plays. This speeds everything up and makes it more fun to watch. Additionally, the sports company Nike supports their efforts, providing multiple elegant uniforms of great variety. They have a number of colors, with what I consider rather incongruous, even amusing, wings on their shoulders and helmets. Surely ducks are an odd animal to choose as a mascot for such a machismo sport (but perhaps that is part of their charm). Last night I was eager to watch them play, because I’d seen the amazing pink helmets Nike had provided in support of the fight against breast cancer. I was disappointed that they did not wear them in that game. However, the green of their uniforms reminded me of Oregon’s widespread environmentalism, which I value highly. The support for breast cancer and for the environment endear Oregon and their teams to me.
In contrast, another of my longstanding favorite teams, OU (the University of Oklahoma), brought to mind some less sanguine political thoughts: Oklahoma has gone politically off the rails, apparently wholeheartedly supporting the ultra conservative Tea Party. They have passed a variety of laws contrary to decisions by the US Supreme Court, and have proposed withdrawing from the United States.
But I grew up singing the OU ‘fight song’, Boomer Sooner:
Boomer Sooner, Boomer Sooner, Boomer Sooner, Okla U;
I’m a Sooner born and a Sooner bred;
And as soon as I die, I’ll be a Sooner dead;
Yea Oklahoma, Yea Oklahoma, Yea Oklahoma, Okla U.
I hadn’t remembered the etymology of Boomers and Sooners—small scale land grabbers, par excellence (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sooners). Now, being personally deeply immersed intellectually in studies of land grabbing around the world, I am dismayed at my own unthinking (and lifelong) attachment to these words. Yet, I still enjoy watching OU play football—it also brings to mind many happy hours with my father throughout my life. He was an academic workaholic, and watching football was one of his few joyous releases. He would totally immerse himself in the game, playing — on the couch — every play with his chosen team, sharing their triumphs and their dashed hopes.
To return to the lighthearted mood in which I began this blog…the University of Georgia is another team that inspires my enthusiasm. I watch my husband (who used to work there) follow their successes and (this year at least, more consistent) failures. He has told me about the changes in the stadium over the years, a radio broadcaster who could bring the game to life for listeners even without the images, how he and his previous wife used to watch the games from a bridge that looked onto the field (no longer possible). He remembered the faculty members coming in to work every Monday morning and saying “How bout them Dawgs!?”. These ‘Bulldogs’ have bone decals on their helmets that represent….Is it every touchdown each player has made? Something like that. I’ve never been to Georgia (except the airport), but I’ve grown to love the Bulldogs, in solidarity with my husband.
So….although in many ways I disapprove of football—it’s far too dangerous for the players, and I see its function reinforcing ‘masculine hegemony’—for me it has too many pleasant links to my past, to my place of residence, to the men in my life, even indirectly to my politics, for me to abandon it. It is another indicator of the interconnectedness of cultural systems. So far, the positive connections have outweighed the negative and I continue to watch it with pleasure.