Opinion
Steelers’ behavior, history befitting of true champion
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Also by Darryn Beckstrom:
- UW advances own political agenda (January 25, 2006)
- 'Under God' phrase should remain (September 20, 2005)
- Steelers' behavior, history befitting of true champion (January 31, 2006)
- New challenges for Roberts court (September 27, 2005)
- Underage drinking hurts economy (February 8, 2006)
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Good things are always hard to find. And winning football teams with good moral character are no exception.
I usually find myself watching the Super Bowl for the commercials and the half-time show (sans an indecent incident involving Janet Jackson and a curly haired ex-boy band member). But with the football championship set to take place this weekend — and with some coaxing from my friends — I have decided to throw my support to one of these teams. For a team to gain my support, though, they need to be good — both on and off the field.
During the past several months, I've been looking high and low for a football team that could behave itself — both on and off the gridiron. Hailing from Minneapolis, most would naturally believe I support a team that wears purple and gold and enjoys the comforts of an indoor stadium named after a certain vice-president and former presidential candidate. But after news broke of the Vikings’ sexual rendezvous on Lake Minnetonka early last season — among other capers — I decided to leave the Norsemen behind for good.
So, then came my support for the Packers. They seemed like a classy organization, especially when the team is lead by the likes of Brett Favre. And while it may have looked like I was fraternizing with the enemy by supporting this team, I realized there was something special about this organization. Maybe it's because the Packers are owned by the city of Green Bay or that most Wisconsinites seem to live and die with every Packer victory and loss.
But after the Packers were soundly on their way to a 4-12 season — their first losing season since 1991 — I realized that maybe professional football wasn't exactly the way to go this year.
There was still the football team of my alma mater, the Golden Gophers of the University of Minnesota. But, once again, there was disappointment. The Badgers snatched Paul Bunyan's Axe from Minnesota during the last 30 seconds of a game between the two conference rivals when a punt by the Gophers was blocked by a player wearing the mascot of a certain burrowing mammal. The Gophers' season after that was never the same.
Finally, in a last-ditch attempt to find a respectable team to support, I decided to throw my support behind my other alma mater — the University of Wisconsin. But with the arrests of four football players for various offenses in little over a month, I had doubts.
I find it difficult to support a team with players that have a disregard for the fans that support them. Driving 101 miles per hour on a public roadway with marijuana in the car or assaulting people, among other incidences, shouldn't be the way players thank their fans.
Eventually, I found myself without a football team to support. But then my friend asked me to support the Steelers, and I decided to give the team a whirl.
I must admit, I haven't watched the team that closely this season. But I can say for sure this organization doesn't have players running over meter maids, squirting water bottles at officials or forgetting there is no "I" in team (can anyone say Terrell Owens?).
Though I am not an avid fan of the namesake they call their home — Heinz Field (Hunt’s has always been a quality alternative in my mind) — the team, located in the hills of western Pennsylvania, has a long-distinguished history.
Unlike many sports franchises, the ownership of the organization has stayed in the same family — the Rooneys — since the birth of the team. And the family seems to stand by its coaching staff and players. Finally, dissimilar to other franchises — such as the Chicago Bears or the Detroit Lions — the team's namesake represents the city’s heritage.
Nonetheless, win or lose, I can watch the Steelers this weekend and know that at least they aren't going to disappointment me with their behavior on or off the field.
My bet for the game? Hands down — Steelers.
Darryn Beckstrom (beckstrom@badgerherald.com) is a doctoral student in the Department of Political Science and a second-year MPA candidate in the La Follette School of Public Affairs.
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How many players does our football team have, 120? And you give up on them because of four bad apples?
So why are you such a die-hard Republican?
You're not seriously devoting article space to arguing in favor of a football team - not because of their abilities or talents, but because of their moralities?!?
You don't care one bit about football, you just want to pontificate some more about your supposed morals and how so few other people can live up to them.
Most. Pointless. Story. Ever.
Yet, somehow, it was one of Darryn's most intelligent. Says something for Ann Coulter, Jr. here.
Oh. My. God. If this were April 1st I would be sure that this is just a joke article. You are kidding me right? Well at least I now have a team to root for in an other wise boring game. Go Seahawks!
Lame.
FYI, the Steelers of the 70's bear a great deal of responsibility for the proliferation of steriods in today's sports.
It's hysterical that she's so uptight about morals... 19 year old grad student, come on, live a little.
Also hysterical that she's supporting a team whose name and early success came from an industry in which a union was strong. Surprised she gave up on the Vikings (plunderers and money-grabbers) in favor of the blue-collar Packers and Steelers.
It's because of comments and articles like this that girls who love to watch football don't get any credit. Seriously, bouncing around from the Vikings to the Packers is a sin in itself...but picking the Steelers because they seem like a "nice" team is just rediculous. It's fine to not understand the sport of football, just next time...keep it to yourself.
Hey, the more gals we can get to watch sports with us, the better!
You've got to be kidding me! I am supposed to start taking sports advice from a girl who obviously doesn't know the first thing about football, or any of the teams playing it. As a girl who knows a good deal about football (not just which teams are going to the Super Bowl), your article is insulting to read. What kind of fans bounce back and forth between teams like yourself? And I see you've done some extensive research on this topic...you've been scouting teams the whole time since the season began! Whoa! It's pretty funny how the team you ended up selecting just happens to be Super Bowl-bound. Did you even do any research on the Steelers before this year? If so, you would have found that they aren't exactly the moral team you think. This article was horrible...stick to writing about what you know.
John Heinz was a Republican, so I'm not sure what your issue there is.
This just in:
Ours is a society that pays men to perfect their ability to throw, catch, or prevent someone from catching, a ball. In fact, the society doesn't just pay them; it pays them millions of dollars. In an environment of overindulgence, is it really surprising that professional athletes don't live according to stringent morals?
I can't blame Ms. Beckstrom for being judgmental about everyone else's morality; that's her shtick (and without her, would reading the Badger Herald really be as much fun? I argue: no.). What is ridiculous, however, is her idea that she will be able to find ANY professional sports team that hasn't had at least one player get involved in a scandal. If cheering for a "moral" team is what she wants, then she's even more out of touch than any of us had ever imagined.
You know, I get the fact that you change teams for "moral" reasons, however idiotic I may think this is; but you also jump from "nice" teams just because they do poorly on the field. That is pathetic...