There?s this thing about sports that makes people crazy. It?s the competitiveness that carries over from the field of play and into the psyche of the ones watching. We all want to win. You hear coaches say, ?I don?t care what the stats say or how many points we score as long as we win the game.? There are no ugly wins in sports. A win is a win is a win. Statistics are meaningless in the real world of sports because if you do not win the game, nobody cares about the numbers.
But what if winning the game didn?t matter? What if it were all about the numbers?
Well, there is a place where winning comes second to statistics. It?s called fantasy sports and it?s making sports fans crazy.
Fantasy football is taking over the world. Everyone is playing. Leagues full of housewives hold draft parties in place of Tupperware parties. Fathers huddle down in their basements, listening to old Bob Seger albums and drinking whiskey, hoping to out-strategize the guy across the street. Kids churn out dozens of mock drafts online and compile a master list of players using complex formulaic operations. Students put off studying in order to make sure their grant money is spent wisely on the three auction leagues they?re in. I?m telling you, people who play fantasy football have gone batshit crazy. And I?m one of them.
Two weeks ago, I sat in Dr. Reich?s Hemingway class taking part in a discussion about bullfighting and masculinity. As the class debated, I had a moment of what I like to call fantasy-hypnosis. My mind wandered as I tried to figure out who I should start at wide receiver the next week: Dwayne Bowe or Desean Jackson? I went with Jackson and later found out I should?ve started Bowe. Jackson did next to nothing while Bowe caught a few passes and scored a touchdown. I couldn?t tell you who won their respective games because I didn?t care. I was focused on the statistics, not the wins and losses.
This is what fantasy football has done to me. It interrupts my thoughts and skews my beliefs as a sports fan. Do I root for the team I grew up cheering for or my new make believe fantasy team? Is it more important if the Bears beat the Packers or if Jermichael Finley scores three touchdowns?
It?s a tough spot we sports fans find ourselves in. How can you cheer for a Packers Tight End if you?re a Bears fan? You just do. And that?s what makes us all crazy.
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BY Nick Tucciarelli
The Sandspur * Rollins College
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Real.College.Life.
Source: http://swizzer.com/rollins-college/article/sports-hemingway-fantasy-fantasy-sports
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