Talking NFL

Regular readers of Talking NFL know that every now and then I like to slack off turn things over to a guest writer. With the Super Bowl just over a week away, we’re handing the reins over to a fellow Patriots fan and 451 Press writer. Her name is Randi Morse, and she writes for the extremely popular Brad Pitt Watch and Watching House. So kick back with a pint of Chunky Monkey and enjoy Randi’s journey as a Pats fan!

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I’ve lived in Vermont for my entire life. Around here, football seems like it belongs only in high school, as there is no stadium anywhere near here. When I got older and into high school I learned about the NFL and remember thinking that the Patriots were kind of like a joke. Like the last kid to be picked in gym class because you knew he was going to suck at dodge ball. Being a girl, and being a girl who wasn’t huge into sports, I decided that I would give all of my short sports-attention span to the Dolphins – mostly because they had cool colors and an awesome mascot. Luckily the year I chose to watch them they made it to the Superbowl…and lost. And, I must tell you, the Patriots didn’t enter my mind again until only three short years ago.

Three years ago I got a part-time job working at our local, hole-in-the-wall radio station. One of my responsibilities was inserting the commercials during the Patriots game. And on radio, a Patriots game can take hours. You have a few hours of pre-game chatter, the game, and then a few hours of post-game chatter. The first few games I blocked out everything, did my job, and would read a book or surf the net during any “talking�?. Then, one day I found myself listening to the chatter and the game and realizing that – hey – the Patriots didn’t suck anymore! In fact, the Patriots were good…REALLY good!

The one thing that caught my attention the most was Bill Belichick. Whenever he had a press conference, whether it was after a great win or a tough defeat, he never bragged. He simply said that they did good, but that it didn’t mean they could rest. He embodied everything I’ve ever known and loved about old time New Englanders – they never brag, and they keep moving forward. You would never know that Belichick wasn’t born here.

Then the Patriots kept winning…and winning…and winning! Suddenly everyone I knew was holding a football party on a weekly basis, and even our tiny hole-in-the-wall radio station had teamed up with a company to give away a television for the Superbowl! And now we find that not only are the Patriots headed to the Superbowl again, they are doing so undefeated. That’s a big word, and one to live up to. Will I be watching the Superbowl on Superbowl Sunday? You bet! I’ve got someone to cheer for – a team that I can look at and tell my children that they belong to US – to New England. “They’re from around here�?, I can say, “see – there are plenty of things to be proud about in New England.�?

New England Patriots, Bill Belichick, Vermont, Guest Bloggers