Volume 2 , Number 10
October , 1997
Love and Divorce
By Dean Shutt
For the first time in my life I did not read the sports section of
today's paper. Every Monday for as long as I can remember I have
read the sports section during football season. This morning I did
not. My routine has been as unchangeable as it was pathetic. Each
Monday during football season I would open the sports section and
hope to find some silver lining in my team's latest embarrassing
defeat. Perhaps they had shown signs of a ground game, maybe the
quarterback had thrown for 300 yards, possibly they had covered the
spread. I did not do that this morning though. This morning, I went
directly to the comics and then the news; I skipped sports
altogether.
Yesterday, while my beloved Colts were being trounced 31 to 3 by the
Seahawks, I had what can only be considered a moment of clarity. I
realized for the first time in over twenty years that the Colts were
never going to be any good. For lo! these many years, I have held out
hope that, maybe next year or perhaps the year after, the Colts would
become a quality NFL team. For you Cowboy and 49er fans out there let
me clarify. I do not mean that I am hopeful my Colts will reach the
Superbowl. I am hopeful that maybe, just maybe they will win more
games than they lose. I am hopeful that maybe this year I will actually
expect my team to win on Sunday. I am hopeful that perhaps this season
I can wear my team's colors with pride. After twenty years, these
hopes still have not been realized.
The finest year that the Colts have had since I began following them
was 1995. In that year they were Fate's favorite team and everything
fell into place. They went 9 and 7, and lost in the AFC title game.
That then has been the high point of my NFL fandom, 9 and 7, a wildcard
berth, second best in the AFC. Since that time they have slipped
considerably, going 9 and 7 last year and getting beaten in the first
round. This year they are 0 and 3 and have not scored an offensive
touchdown. My friend tells me not to worry because this means they
will hire Sherm Lewis at the end of the season. It doesn't matter,
Sherm will come in and install a new offense and the Colts will still
be bad. Someone else will come in after Sherm and install a new system
and the Colts will still be bad. No matter what happens and no matter
what anyone does, the Colts will remain bad.
With that in mind I am announcing formally that I am sitting out the
1997 season and declaring my free agency as a fan. The paraphernalia
is packed away, the bookmarks have been removed from my browser. Later
this week I will sending letters to every NFL team (save the Raiders
and the Cowboys, since I am incapable of wishing them anything but ill
will) informing them of my status and asking for their offers for my
services as a fan. I am not asking for much, decent uniforms (sorry
Broncos), stable ownership and franchise location and a reasonable shot
at a Superbowl within five years. As I said I am not asking for much,
just more than my current team is able to provide. I hope if you are
reading this, you understand that I am not a fly-by-night fan. I have
loved the Red Sox and New York Rangers for as long as I have loved the
Colts with about as much return on my emotional investment. I simply
cannot take the grinding depression that the NFL season has become, I
need a little joy.
SJ Rhinoshttp://www.rhinos.com/rhinos/
Football:
This Space for Rent!
Red Soxhttp://www.redsox.com/home.html
http://www.sportscircuit.com/baseball/
NY Rangershttp://www.nhl.com/teams/nyr/sitehome.htm