Listen, I am not your typical southern girl. I am a full fledged sports fanatic. My favorite channel on TV is ESPN seriously that isn't a joke. You can ask me just about any sports question and I am pretty sure I can answer it. I have my favorite teams of course (Duke Basketball, Carolina Panthers, Miami Heat, Boston Red Sox) but just because I have favorites doesn't mean I don't like all sports. I love being able to hear men having "water cooler talk" about the games they watched the night before and then I come in adding my insight. I know they look at me like I am cray cray but I know what the F I am talking about. Once they realize that they definitely look at me differently. I have some of them even asking me my opinions on who I think will win, score the most, etc. If you need more proof just ask any of the guys I play fantasy football with. They don't enjoy losing to the ONLY girl in their league.
A great example of my love affair with sports is every Thanksgiving my family gathers at my parents house for a big turkey lunch and we don't have a room big enough for the whole family to sit in so the women in my family sit in the formal dining room and the men all sit in front of my dads prized possession (his 50 LCD) and watch football. Well of course I sit with the men and spit out random facts about receivers and quarterback duos and how many batted balls vs. interceptions the DB's have. It's priceless to me but confusing to others.
I always knew growing up that I would have this desire to play and watch sports. I played 3 sports in high school and played volleyball in college. I do believe that if my high school would have had a girls football team I would have been captain all 4 years. I know I had an opportunity to play with the boys but our team was so terrible I didn't want to. (sorry guys but you were) I mean its pretty bad when our school is advertising our volleyball matches over our football games. (I was 32-0 my junior and senior seasons so that should tell you our volleyball team was pretty damn good) I won 2 conference championships and banners hanging up in my old high schools gym for bragging rights. I am also a proud member of the Undefeated Club at Morehead High School. The closest I ever got to playing football was playing Powder Puff but that wasn't enough to fuel my need for all things football.
The best day of my life was when my father told me he was getting season tickets for the Carolina Panthers. I almost died in pure jubilation. I can honestly say I have been to at least one game every season that the panthers have been in existence and I patiently wait for every season with the same amount of joy I have had since 1995 (I was 9 then...I am now 25). I was there when Steve Burline and Tim Biakabutuka took us to the playoffs in 96 when we beat America's Team. I watched in nervousness when we went to our first Super Bowl vs. the Patriots in 03' (we lost of course) I was also there through the awful years, (Rae Carruth, Jake Delhomme, etc) Through all the good and bad I am still to this day a HUGE fan.
The second greatest day of my life was when the Panthers drafted Cameron Jerrell Newton number 1 overall last season. I normally know who the Panthers are going to draft weeks before. So with us having the number one pick I just couldn't understand why we wouldn't draft him. I mean lets be honest Jimmy Clausen was a complete bust. I knew it as soon as we drafted him (hello just look at how successful Notre Dame QB's have been...Brady Quinn 'nuff said) Yea so what he didn't have a good team around him, neither did Cam! He had a terrible defense last year and still managed to win 6 games (he would have won more if it weren't for the defense) I remember on Christmas day my father told me he had bought something special for me, each year he tries to surprise me with gifts that could make me, and only me happy (one year he got me Rain-X wiper blades and I was elated...not kidding either). So he saved this present for last. I opened it and what I saw gave me so much joy that I am surprised I didn't die and go to heaven. It was a picture of Cam running out of the Panthers tunnel with smoke all around him and all I could see was the back of his jersey with his finger pointed down displaying the # 1. I had to force back the tears that were about to start steadily flowing from my eyes. Dad if you read this you hit a home run seriously. BEST. CHRISTMAS. PRESENT. EVER. (its currently hanging up in my home office right beside the front door, I stare at it every morning before I go to work)
My other huge passion would have to be my Duke Blue Devils. I will tell you though I did not start out as a Duke fan. I was a Carolina fan from day one, my best friend Becca was as well and we decided that we were going to go to a basketball camp that some of our favorite Carolina players were going to be at. Our most favorite and current team hottie at the time was Dante Calabria. We got so pumped up to meet him and quickly found out which day he was going to be at the camp and of course it was the last day. We waited all week for Friday, we met some other non-important players (well non-important to us) and finally Friday arrived. That morning before we got started the camp director announced that Dante wouldn't be able to make it but Ademola Okulaja would. He was a good player at the time and I totally wanted his autograph but he was no Dante. I was filled with rage and I wanted to do something basically to get back at Carolina for cheating me out of an opportunity to meet my favorite player at the time. So I did what any reasonable Carolina fan would do, I switched over to the "dark side" From that point forward I was a Duke Blue Devil all because Dante Calabria broke my heart. It was also probably the happiest day of my dad's life, other than me graduating high school and college. I loved every Duke team from that day forward all except for one player. Chris Collins, he's a cry baby, that is all I want to say about it. I like him now as a coach but not as a player from Duke. I watched when they won the national championship in 01' with Shane Battier and Carlos Boozer, I watched again as they won it again in 2010 with 2 of the Plumlee's and Kyle Singler. Coach K is a legend and I was present at the game where he passed Dean Smith for all time wins. (third greatest day of my life) I guess you won't believe me when I tell you that I have never been to a Duke game in the historic Cameron Indoor Stadium, but I haven't. That's of course on my bucket list and I know I will get there its just a matter of time. Either way I will bleed Duke Blue until I die.
So there you have it, my background into my favorite sports teams. Feel free to ask me any sports question you have. I will more than likely have the answer for it. Come at me bro!
I always knew growing up that I would have this desire to play and watch sports. I played 3 sports in high school and played volleyball in college. I do believe that if my high school would have had a girls football team I would have been captain all 4 years. I know I had an opportunity to play with the boys but our team was so terrible I didn't want to. (sorry guys but you were) I mean its pretty bad when our school is advertising our volleyball matches over our football games. (I was 32-0 my junior and senior seasons so that should tell you our volleyball team was pretty damn good) I won 2 conference championships and banners hanging up in my old high schools gym for bragging rights. I am also a proud member of the Undefeated Club at Morehead High School. The closest I ever got to playing football was playing Powder Puff but that wasn't enough to fuel my need for all things football.
The best day of my life was when my father told me he was getting season tickets for the Carolina Panthers. I almost died in pure jubilation. I can honestly say I have been to at least one game every season that the panthers have been in existence and I patiently wait for every season with the same amount of joy I have had since 1995 (I was 9 then...I am now 25). I was there when Steve Burline and Tim Biakabutuka took us to the playoffs in 96 when we beat America's Team. I watched in nervousness when we went to our first Super Bowl vs. the Patriots in 03' (we lost of course) I was also there through the awful years, (Rae Carruth, Jake Delhomme, etc) Through all the good and bad I am still to this day a HUGE fan.
The second greatest day of my life was when the Panthers drafted Cameron Jerrell Newton number 1 overall last season. I normally know who the Panthers are going to draft weeks before. So with us having the number one pick I just couldn't understand why we wouldn't draft him. I mean lets be honest Jimmy Clausen was a complete bust. I knew it as soon as we drafted him (hello just look at how successful Notre Dame QB's have been...Brady Quinn 'nuff said) Yea so what he didn't have a good team around him, neither did Cam! He had a terrible defense last year and still managed to win 6 games (he would have won more if it weren't for the defense) I remember on Christmas day my father told me he had bought something special for me, each year he tries to surprise me with gifts that could make me, and only me happy (one year he got me Rain-X wiper blades and I was elated...not kidding either). So he saved this present for last. I opened it and what I saw gave me so much joy that I am surprised I didn't die and go to heaven. It was a picture of Cam running out of the Panthers tunnel with smoke all around him and all I could see was the back of his jersey with his finger pointed down displaying the # 1. I had to force back the tears that were about to start steadily flowing from my eyes. Dad if you read this you hit a home run seriously. BEST. CHRISTMAS. PRESENT. EVER. (its currently hanging up in my home office right beside the front door, I stare at it every morning before I go to work)
My other huge passion would have to be my Duke Blue Devils. I will tell you though I did not start out as a Duke fan. I was a Carolina fan from day one, my best friend Becca was as well and we decided that we were going to go to a basketball camp that some of our favorite Carolina players were going to be at. Our most favorite and current team hottie at the time was Dante Calabria. We got so pumped up to meet him and quickly found out which day he was going to be at the camp and of course it was the last day. We waited all week for Friday, we met some other non-important players (well non-important to us) and finally Friday arrived. That morning before we got started the camp director announced that Dante wouldn't be able to make it but Ademola Okulaja would. He was a good player at the time and I totally wanted his autograph but he was no Dante. I was filled with rage and I wanted to do something basically to get back at Carolina for cheating me out of an opportunity to meet my favorite player at the time. So I did what any reasonable Carolina fan would do, I switched over to the "dark side" From that point forward I was a Duke Blue Devil all because Dante Calabria broke my heart. It was also probably the happiest day of my dad's life, other than me graduating high school and college. I loved every Duke team from that day forward all except for one player. Chris Collins, he's a cry baby, that is all I want to say about it. I like him now as a coach but not as a player from Duke. I watched when they won the national championship in 01' with Shane Battier and Carlos Boozer, I watched again as they won it again in 2010 with 2 of the Plumlee's and Kyle Singler. Coach K is a legend and I was present at the game where he passed Dean Smith for all time wins. (third greatest day of my life) I guess you won't believe me when I tell you that I have never been to a Duke game in the historic Cameron Indoor Stadium, but I haven't. That's of course on my bucket list and I know I will get there its just a matter of time. Either way I will bleed Duke Blue until I die.
So there you have it, my background into my favorite sports teams. Feel free to ask me any sports question you have. I will more than likely have the answer for it. Come at me bro!
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