Will you play catch with me?
A reluctant ode to football, apparently.
I grew up anti-sports. I wasn’t even sports-agnostic. It was 100% Not My Thing. I stuck up my noses at those people who spent their time, energy, and money on the frivolous pursuit of cheering on boys with their balls—running, jumping, throwing, catching, passing, dunking, scoring, celebrating.
As a journalism major, I held up newspapers and turned on anchors and thought look at me, so anchored in what really matters.
Today I am here to eat my words.
I confess that today I am in the championship round of my fantasy football league—the only woman in a league of dudes and one of two final standing.1 Fantasy football has been one of the greatest ways my husband and I have connected during our dizzyingly busy fall. I am the one that would start a conversation at breakfast with, “I have a dilemma about who to start in my flex this week.” The strategy in setting my team each week has been a welcome change for my brain that is often in overdrive from triaging challenges in the classroom.2
We also have a six-year-old son who is obsessed with football. He regularly asks if his Oregon Ducks jersey (the one with our last name and #10 on the back) is clean as soon as it grazes the top of the hamper. When I’m sorting freshly laundered clothes, I toss it over to him without folding—knowing it will immediately be put back on. “Thank you so much, mama,” he earnestly replies.
In November, my husband took his dad and our son to the last Oregon Ducks game of the regular season. We moved to Eugene in 2023 and are still in awe of the ease of game attendance that comes with our proximity to Autzen stadium. Declan didn’t stop beating his chest and yelling, “LET’S GOOOOO!” for weeks.3
Each day of winter break before 8:20 a.m. “Do you want to play catch with me?” was asked dozens of times.
All the ways I looked down at sports fans as a young person—for being out of touch/ frivolous/unconcerned with real important matters of the world—I now realize it was me who was out of touch.
When I’m playing football with my son, whether it’s on a video game or with a foam ball in the living room, he is playing on the biggest field of his life. Even better: his mom and dad are, not only on his team, but his #1 fans.
After writing, I did, in fact, clench the win in my fantasy football league. Team “Shake It Offense” holds the title!
Which also happens to be my excuse for why I’ve neglected posting her for FOUR YEARS. Please accept this as my sincerest apologies and pretend I never left, thankyouverymuch.
To be honest, he still hasn’t stopped.