B
Bogtrotter07
Guest
Getting back to the roots game: Drawing a line and refusing to let anyone step over it.
After this Michigan game, I have heard many loyal Domers doubt their fan-hood, the direction of the team, and in some cases even BK's decision-making or coaching ability. As always, with this schools tradition, I have heard all kinds of frustration-laden conversation about how long this has been this way, and what happened back in the day . . .
One proposition I would like to put forth is the thing that has changed the most, that single most elusive variable, is that the game has become about the personality and the swagger instead of the job at hand, which translates to more about a choreographed display, rather than about drawing a line and refusing to let anyone step over it. More conversation goes into who gets taunting penalties, or who has more stars, or how fast so and so is. Fantasy football is king; statistics are rewarded; walking the walk, and backing it up, isn't always, anymore.
Back in the day, as they say; the only ones that talked, backed it up. Players simply took ownership for themselves and their teams, refused to let others enter their territory. And if it didn’t work that day, there was always next week, but it would cost your opponent! Words were secondary to action.
The following represents the extreme, but it represents the way the game was played. And that is the principle difference with the game today. Players (and fans) talk first. Instead, do first! It has become about the show, not delivering the business. With our most recent signings, I thought this might be an extremely apropos clarification by example of the seemingly lost art of walking the walk and defending that line:
Atkinson & Tatum
YouTube - Atkinson & Tatum
George Atkinson - Oakland Raiders
YouTube - George Atkinson - Oakland Raiders
George Gipp, Notre Dame’s first All American, and the second consensus All American still holds the Notre Dame, records for “average yards per rush (8.1)”; “average yards per play for total offense (9.37)”; and “average yards per game for total offense (128.4)”. Do you know how he did it? He suffered a broken leg, dislocated shoulder, and a broken collarbone.
There is realness and truth to the combat of football past; that just doesn’t seem to be there now. It used to be purely about bending your opponent to your will; now it seems ratings, polls and premature celebration have encroached. Tough used to mean coming out on every play and exerting your will, trying to destroy the opponents. Now it seems that there needs to be immediate gratification, before the job is even done. What do you think?
After this Michigan game, I have heard many loyal Domers doubt their fan-hood, the direction of the team, and in some cases even BK's decision-making or coaching ability. As always, with this schools tradition, I have heard all kinds of frustration-laden conversation about how long this has been this way, and what happened back in the day . . .
One proposition I would like to put forth is the thing that has changed the most, that single most elusive variable, is that the game has become about the personality and the swagger instead of the job at hand, which translates to more about a choreographed display, rather than about drawing a line and refusing to let anyone step over it. More conversation goes into who gets taunting penalties, or who has more stars, or how fast so and so is. Fantasy football is king; statistics are rewarded; walking the walk, and backing it up, isn't always, anymore.
Back in the day, as they say; the only ones that talked, backed it up. Players simply took ownership for themselves and their teams, refused to let others enter their territory. And if it didn’t work that day, there was always next week, but it would cost your opponent! Words were secondary to action.
The following represents the extreme, but it represents the way the game was played. And that is the principle difference with the game today. Players (and fans) talk first. Instead, do first! It has become about the show, not delivering the business. With our most recent signings, I thought this might be an extremely apropos clarification by example of the seemingly lost art of walking the walk and defending that line:
Atkinson & Tatum
YouTube - Atkinson & Tatum
George Atkinson - Oakland Raiders
YouTube - George Atkinson - Oakland Raiders
George Gipp, Notre Dame’s first All American, and the second consensus All American still holds the Notre Dame, records for “average yards per rush (8.1)”; “average yards per play for total offense (9.37)”; and “average yards per game for total offense (128.4)”. Do you know how he did it? He suffered a broken leg, dislocated shoulder, and a broken collarbone.
There is realness and truth to the combat of football past; that just doesn’t seem to be there now. It used to be purely about bending your opponent to your will; now it seems ratings, polls and premature celebration have encroached. Tough used to mean coming out on every play and exerting your will, trying to destroy the opponents. Now it seems that there needs to be immediate gratification, before the job is even done. What do you think?
