So long y’all: My farewell to Coastal Georgia

Spanish moss-draped live oaks in one of Savannah's famous squares

 (my last column for The Frontline)

When I moved to Savannah nearly five years ago, I was expecting to find a black hole of sports. I moved to Georgia from the Washington, DC, area, where Redskins football, Capitals hockey and Nationals baseball ruled the airways and going to the stadium or arena was a common occurrence. Before that, I’d spent my life in and around Boston, growing up at Fenway Park and living and breathing the Patriots, Bruins and Celtics. So Savannah, while a lovely town, was an anomaly to a major sports fan – who did the people in Savannah even follow, the Braves and the Falcons? Really, Savannah is much closer to Jacksonville, so I wondered if it was a town of Jaguars fans – if a town of Jaguars fans even exists?

When I first arrived and made my way down River Street, around Forsyth Park and to Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield, I quickly realized that I was deep in Southeastern Conference country. In fact, early on I learned that THE Georgia Bulldog, Uga himself, was a fellow Savannahian. My goal soon became to meet the pride of the University of Georgia in person, as I heard his caretakers took him on daily jaunts around Forsyth. Alas, four-plus years later, the closest I’ve ever come to the revered pooch is watching him on TV. But every time I go to Forsyth, my eyes are peeled for the gorgeous four-legged creature.

At Grayson Stadium watching a Sand Gnats game with my then-two month old (never too young for sports!)

While there aren’t any major professional sports in town, I quickly came to appreciate the “small townness” of Savannah Sand Gnats games – I mean, what major sports team has “Thirsty Thursdays” where you get two drinks for the price of one? I reveled in sitting in Historic Grayson Stadium with locals and fellow transplants, watching the “maybe” stars of tomorrow on a warm summer night under the "Big Ass Fans" (the actual name), all for a $5 ticket. And where else can you watch a game live, have a drink (or two on Thursdays) and dinner for less than $15?

Once I looked below the surface, I found so many other sports around Savannah to love, from the annual St. Patrick’s Day Rugby tournament at Forsyth Park, to the annual run over the Tallmadge Bridge, to the Rock and Roll Marathon that made its debut last November, and even the annual “Weiner Dog Races” on River Street during Oktoberfest. All of these events are uniquely Savannah, along with Spanish moss draped live oaks, Paula Deen and Southern hospitality.

Savannah's Tallmadge Bridge

As I venture to leave this town I’ve fallen in love with, I look back on my time in Coastal Georgia to see how much I’ve learned and grown here. Savannah is the first place my family called home – it’s where I met and married my husband and where my daughter was born; it’s where I met some of the most wonderful people I have had the privilege to know, from neighbors and coworkers to those I met around Fort Stewart, Hunter Army Airfield and Savannah; it’s a town and a community that has truly captured my heart.

I will miss Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield and I will deeply miss working for the Army; I will miss the historic district, the true Southern hospitality and the frequent references to “the book”; I will miss the Savannah Sand Gnats, but not the pesky sand gnats; but most of all, I will miss the people that make this charming town so exquisite.

Savannah's (in)famous River Street

 

So in a couple of weeks, when I hop in my Jeep and head down the road to Atlanta, I will leave a small piece of my  heart in this lovely, sleepy town that I will always call “home.”

But at least I’ll have the Braves, Falcons and Hawks.

For these things I give thanks

posted a bit late... wrote Thanksgiving week

It’s that time of year when we are asked constantly what we are thankful for. In what has become as much a tradition to me as watching football and eating turkey and gravy on Thanksgiving, I write a column about the things in the sports world that I am thankful for. This year we have much to be thankful for, that pesky NBA lockout aside.

First, I am thankful that I am from a town that has great sports teams. I know I am one of the lucky ones whose team is always in the hunt – as a New England native and sports fan, I (currently) have four teams that are always in the hunt for the playoffs. Since 2001, I have seen all four teams win a championship (with the Pats and Sox winning three and two, respectively), with the Bruins finalizing the quad-fecta (had to make that word up) this past season. Even though the Red Sox didn’t make the playoffs this year, they are always in the playoff picture in September; the Patriots have been one of the top teams in the NFL every season since 2001; the Celtics have been a powerhouse since the Kevin Garnett trade; and I mentioned the Bruins finally raised Lord Stanley’s Cup in June for the first time since the 70s.

But make no mistake – I do not take this for granted. I was born in the early 1980s and remember when Boston was the laughing stock of the sports world; I grew up with the Red Sox never being able to clinch anything, the Celtics stinking post-Larry Bird, the Bruins ownership being too cheap to bring in a decent team, and grew up calling the Patriots “The Patsies.” I remember the sinking feeling when Grady Little left Pedro Martinez in Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS, and just to make sure we in Boston don’t forget the heartbreak we were at one time so used to, we watched Eli Manning of all people lead the Giants to the Super Bowl XLII (which I like to think never happened).

The second thing I am thankful for is this crazy college football season. Over the weekend, three of the top five BCS teams lost, as No. 2 Oklahoma State, No. 4 Oregon and No. 5 Oklahoma were all upset. The last time three of the top five teams lost on the same weekend was Oct. 11, 2008, when No. 1 Oklahoma lost to No. 5 Texas; No. 3 Missouri lost to No. 17 Oklahoma State; and No. 4 LSU lost to No. 11 Florida.

What did this do to the BCS standings? Well, it proved emphatically what everyone has always known – that the SEC is the best conference, as they hold down the top-three spots – the first time one conference, and one division (SEC West) within a conference at that, has held the top three slots. LSU continues to stand atop the leader board for the ninth straight week, followed by Alabama (who lost to LSU on the road a couple weeks ago) and Arkansas.

Nothing is more exciting than a down-to-the-wire college football season… now if only they’d have a playoff and get rid of the silly BCS bowls.

The third thing I am giving thanks for is Thanksgiving football. Watching Dallas and Detroit host a game on Thanksgiving has become as much a tradition as turkey and pumpkin pie, but this is the first year in it’s something to be excited about. No longer a basement dweller, the Detroit Lions have become a force to be reckoned with, thanks to Matthew Stafford, Calvin Johnson (who really DID just need a good quarterback to turn into the player we all knew he was) and Ndamukong Suh, the sickest second-year defensive lineman I’ve ever had the pleasure of watching. And not only do we have those two games on this year, the NFL Network (which I am also thankful for) is giving us a dessert match, of the Baltimore Ravens vs. 49ers.

But of course, on Thanksgiving when I bow my head to give thanks, I will recite the things I am most thankful for – my amazing family, my wonderful friends and to have a job that not only puts food on the table, but lets me work with and for our nation’s finest and their families. Thank you all and Happy Thanksgiving!

And the sports Oscar goes to...

The most anticipated awards show of the year took place this past weekend, as the Oscars were handed out to the best in cinema. Watching the show on Sunday night, it brought some questions into my head – who are the best actors in the sports world? After immense debate, irritating nomination campaigning and vote bribing, here are the winners:

Best Supporting Actor – Michael Vick.

At the beginning of the season, no one was surprised that the Eagles traded Donovan McNabb. What they were surprised about was that Philly didn’t trade Michael Vick. People couldn’t believe that the “Wildcat gimmick” was the primary backup to Kevin Kolb. Fast forward two weeks into the season, when Kolb went down with a concussion and Vick had to step in – there was no Wildcat offense in sight, just a steady, athletic quarterback who could do things on his feet that no other signal caller in the league can do.

He became the starter, and finished second to Tom Brady in Offensive Player of the Year voting. Not bad for a guy who started the season in a supporting role.

Runner up: Chris Bosh, for sitting back and letting LeBron James and Dwyane Wade star in Miami.

Best Supporting Actress – Deanna Favre.

Early in the season, Vikings quarterback Brett Favre was accused of sending suggestive text messages to a woman who worked for the New York Jets in 2008. Favre never denied the allegations. Yet, his wife stood by his side.

She finally spoke out about a month after the allegations took place, to Good Morning America.

"I'm a woman of faith," Deanna Favre told Good Morning America. "Faith has gotten me through many difficult struggles. It will get me through this one."

A classy answer from a classy lady. She didn’t run to the tabloids, she chose to handle the situation internally, between herself and her husband.

This award has nothing to do with my opinion of Brett Favre or his texting scandal. Deanna Favre is a breast cancer survivor, and she has helped her husband through problems with substance abuse and this most recent scandal. He is lucky to have her in his corner.

Best actor – Every soccer team. 

I am a soccer lover, but the one thing I hate about the professional game is the diving. It’s so fake, and obviously fake, and I don’t understand how the referees can possibly believe it. And it turns off Americans who are watching for the first time. Soccer’s integrity is at stake because diving has become part of the European and South American game.

There are those who actually defend diving, saying it is an extended practice open to both sides. But soccer does not flourish when diving occurs. On the contrary, when diving is tolerated, accepted and celebrated, soccer’s integrity as a sport comes into question.

There have been numerous cases where a dive has garnered a penalty kick, therefore altering the score of the game, and too often, changing the outcome. And this continues to be a regular occurrence. That is, until late 2009, when the leagues took a stand. In a UEFA Champion’s League game against Celtic, Arsenal’s Eduardo da Silva dived, winning a penalty kick. He scored on the kick, and his team ended up winning 3-1, and advanced to the tournament’s group stage. UEFA officials, however, retrospectively punished Eduardo with a two-game suspension for “deceiving the referee.”

Finally. The only way we can end diving is by punishing the “best actors” in the game.

            

            Best Actress – Kim Clijsters.

This one was tricky. It’s not an Olympic year, so women’s sports are really on the backburner. In 2010, Lindsay Vonn was named AP Female Athlete of the Year. But a year after the Olympics, she is no longer a household name. The Williams sisters and Maria Sharapova, the world’s most famous female athletes, are struggling with injuries and have fallen in the ranks.

Then, Clijsters won the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the year, to follow up her title at the U.S. Open in 2010.

Clijsters has been at the top of her game as of late, and it is actually her second go-around in the game. In 2007, at the age of 23 with two U.S. Open championships under her belt, the Belgian retired because of chronic injuries and to get married and start a family.

In 2009, Clijsters announced her comeback, and has risen to number one in the world (though currently number two), and has won the last two Grand Slams. All while juggling a husband and a three-year-old daughter.

Kim Clijsters might not be the face of Women’s Tennis, but she should be an inspiration to all women, who wonder how they can successfully juggle their personal and professional lives.

            

            So there you have it – the best at their roles in the sports world, in my opinion.

Sports are what the doctor ordered

(Ran 11/5)

Sports are games - athletic competition that force us to test our limits. Sports aren’t life-or-death; they aren’t even that meaningful, really. But sometimes, things happen that cause sports to take on greater meaning. Sometimes, sports can be just what the metaphorical doctor ordered

Sports bring a smile to our faces, they bring together strangers, and they unite communities. In times of hardship, people often come together to cheer for an athlete or team. In sports, we can forget about our lives for a few hours, forget about the pain of our Soldiers being gone for a year, the debt we are in, or any of a number of other negative things that may be going on in our lives.
For two hours every Saturday or Sunday, we are taken to a different world, where red and black are the only acceptable colors, and all that matters is that the Bulldogs beat the Gators.

There are times when sports become more than just competition; they unite, they help us begin to heal, and, most importantly, they make us smile.

I just finished reading an article on ESPN.com about University of Miami walk-on wide receiver Chris Hayes, whose father committed suicide last October. Hayes had never even dressed for a game, but the Saturday following his father’s untimely death, the special teams coach told Hayes he was suiting up. And during the last play of the game, the 5’9" Hayes lined up as tight end against an All-American linebacker.

Hayes had no impact on that game; in fact, he has little impact on his team ever – in the win-loss column, anyway. But on that particular day, he showed his team made up of future NFLers what real heart is, and what sports really mean. Hayes didn’t have to show up to the game only days after burying his father. Quite frankly, most people probably didn’t expect him to. But for Hayes, I’d have to think that going to the game was a way to start the healing process. Through a game, Hayes showed the heart of a champion, and that sometimes sports can help us overcome immense pain.

Every year on ESPN, they have the Make-a-Wish series, where sick children fulfill their sports fantasies by spending the day with their favorite athlete or team. By the end of each of the three-minute segments, I am undoubtedly in tears and remembering why it is that I love sports so much. It’s because they can heal, even if it’s just for a moment.

There are small towns in America that have little to cheer for besides those games under the Friday night lights, when the entire community rallies around a group of 15-18 year old boys.
Even at the worst point in our lives, sports can pick us up; they give us something to look forward to, and something to cheer for. Whether it’s cheering up a kid who is battling illness, helping a man get over the loss of his father, or bringing together a down-and-out community, sports do mean something.