01-14-2022, 05:36 PM
Ohio State won the title after the 2002 season. I was 15. I never cared about football previously, but that run kind of caught my attention and imagination as my family and classmates were going nuts over it. As it turned out, my interest in college football was pretty brief, and that’s because in 2003 it was replaced.
I’d always known through the ‘90s up to that point about the Bengals’ miserable reputation. They were a punchline, and I didn’t need to pay attention to football to understand that. But I was flipping channels one day and came upon Bengals/Browns in (I think) week 4 of the 2003 season. After the Buckeyes run of the previous year I decided it’d be cool to see the professional game.
It was a perfect storm that year. They started winning that day, and my fascination exploded as it continued through that awesome crescendo against the 9-0 Chiefs. By the start of the 2004 season I had immersed myself in the team and its lore, and I couldn’t believe how much I genuinely cared about their fate every Sunday. It was and remains the only thing I’ve ever known that can capture my passion so thoroughly. I’m not entire sure why.
But then cue the 2005 season with all its highs and lows, and I was entrapped forever. That never waned until a brief period of disillusionment between the Steelers playoff fiasco after 2015 and the hiring of Zac Taylor. Now I have the fever again and stronger than ever.
I’d always known through the ‘90s up to that point about the Bengals’ miserable reputation. They were a punchline, and I didn’t need to pay attention to football to understand that. But I was flipping channels one day and came upon Bengals/Browns in (I think) week 4 of the 2003 season. After the Buckeyes run of the previous year I decided it’d be cool to see the professional game.
It was a perfect storm that year. They started winning that day, and my fascination exploded as it continued through that awesome crescendo against the 9-0 Chiefs. By the start of the 2004 season I had immersed myself in the team and its lore, and I couldn’t believe how much I genuinely cared about their fate every Sunday. It was and remains the only thing I’ve ever known that can capture my passion so thoroughly. I’m not entire sure why.
But then cue the 2005 season with all its highs and lows, and I was entrapped forever. That never waned until a brief period of disillusionment between the Steelers playoff fiasco after 2015 and the hiring of Zac Taylor. Now I have the fever again and stronger than ever.
