Classless

     Like every football fan I have players and coaches that I like and a few that I dislike. Unlike a lot of sports fans I have different criteria. I like talented players and I like players that are fun to watch. Unlike a lot of fans, I also like players and coaches who know how to win and lose graciously and who have a little class.
  I know that I'm about to be branded with the grumpy, middle aged woman tag and I don't care. I would like to know what is wrong with being gracious and showing a little class. It's becoming more fashionable to be rude, dismissive and blame the officials for bad calls. A player who gives an interview that belittles an opponent gets a lot more attention than a player who talks about how the other team simply outplayed them/ made less mistakes or were able to capitalize on opportunities. Everyone watches what happens at the end of the game to see if the star player leaves the field before the game is over. Maybe one coach will refuse to shake the hand of the other coach. Who is going to "dis" who?
  While I'm at it I'd also like to take issue with the trash talk. Why do players do this? Is it really necessary? To me it just seems silly. If you are a good player your actions should show it. If you need to play mind games with you opponent in order to defat them, then maybe you aren't as good as you think you are.
  I've been reading, actually rereading, the book "Quiet Strength" by Tony Dungy. I've always been a Dungy fan. I cheered for the Colts when they won the 2006 Super Bowl. I have always thought he was a class act. In the book he talks about his days playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He wrote that when new guys came to the team, one of the things they were told is that they now represented the team and the community and needed to act accordingly. I have heard things like this from C as well. As a high school football player in South Carolina, he was a member of the FCA, Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Not only did he represent his school and the city that he lived in, he also represented his faith. He told me that his coach was strict about rules. You didn't smoke or drink and you had to keep your grades up. The coach was as good as his word and would remove players from the team that didn't follow the rules.
  Does anyone remember those days? The days when an athlete was judged by his or her performance and not by their off field antics or their endorsements? When bad behavior was a bad thing and something that was not rewarded with extra attention?
   I really wish that we would return to the days where both winners and losers were gracious. It's not enough to do your best anymore. Winning seems to be the only things that matters. Doing anything to give yourself or your team an advantage is the way it's done now. Just don't get caught.
   At least I have the comfort of knowing that, in the football world at least, there are still a few good guys left. Andy Reid, Mike McCarthy, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Eli Manning and Peyton Manning to name a few. Set a good example guys, maybe more will follow.



   Go Broncos!