Intricacies of Football
It’s almost the end of August, which means one thing…the return of football, my favorite sport. The calendar inching closer and closer to September signifies incoming cooler weather, hours upon hours of college and NFL football games, and even days spent outside at the soccer field. To put it lightly, it’s my favorite time of the year.
Six years ago, my husband and I went to a UGA soccer game on our very first date and ever since then, the sport has held a special spot in my heart. Not only does it hold sentimental value that reminds me of just how far we’ve come, but it’s also one of the very first things he taught me during our relationship.
I’m definitely not a soccer connoisseur, but I’m pretty proud of how much I’ve learned just from watching the games each season. We try to attend as many games that our schedule allows, but we always catch every single game on TV. I think last year we were only able to attend one or two since most of the games were played on weekdays instead of weekends.
Since soccer is one of my husband’s favorite sports, he’s always so hype for the return of soccer season. He’s invested in knowing all the UGA players and, since they’ve changed coaches, the team has gotten immensely better than when we first started watching them consistently.
For me, I always love attending the lowkey sporting events like soccer and softball games because the atmosphere of seeing your team win is such a unique and special feeling. Football games are the most hype at UGA and tend to not be as enjoyable since there are so many people. It’s somewhat of a doozy attending the early season soccer games since the stands face directly into the afternoon sunlight. I’ve caught many tanlines and chugged numerous bottles of water before the weather finally cooled off at the soccer field.
While soccer is definitely up there for us as a couple, football is the sport that really punctuates my fall and gets me going. I absolutely love watching college football from 12 in the afternoon to 12 at night. We even plan our Saturdays around the Georgia games and I look forward to checking out the other matchups each week.
There’s just nothing like cheering on your favorite team after the quarterback throws a dot, the defensive tackle gets a sack, or even special teams gets a great punt return. Nothing makes me happier than singing the chats that stick with you for a lifetime. My absolute favorite thing is hearing the Battle Cry while pointing towards the Red Coat in the stands, playing the notorious tune. Even though I only get to experience it in person during home games, it’s something that I look forward to every time.
It was such a beautiful feeling winning back to back national championships a few years ago. Georgia historically struggled to be dominant until those two years when they were finally able to take the next step and put everything together. While I would’ve loved for them to have won the third one, I’m still a Dawg fan for life. I’m confident they’ll play some great games this upcoming season and give teams a run for their money.
We always buy flags to support Georgia during football season and it’s so fun finding new, unique designs to decorate our house with. We also have numerous UGA floor mats, keychains, and other decorative items throughout our house to not only celebrate our favorite sports team but to also commemorate our achievement of graduating from the school. Every time we go back to attend a sporting event, it always brings back sweet memories of when we were in school.
Outside of college football, I’ve also started watching more NFL games since I know a decent number of players from their NCAA days. I’m definitely a casual fan when it comes down to the NFL since I don’t have a favorite team. I more so just appreciate watching any game that’s on, similar to how I watch baseball.
One of the best things that’s helped me understand the intricacies of football is watching film. My husband likes watching a few analysts on YouTube who break down film and talk about missed reads, footwork, and concepts. Just from watching it passively, I’ve learned so much about where the ball should go and the small nuances that make a great defense. The other thing that’s helped my knowledge was my brief stint of playing Madden 2024 on Xbox last year.
While some people don’t care to watch sports or are super casual fans, I’d say the fall is an amazing time of the year to me. There’s multiple football games on multiple times each week, college soccer is in full swing, and as a bonus we even get a little bit of fall softball to keep us satisfied until the gruel of the spring. I couldn’t imagine what my life would be like without my favorite sports. It’s Go Dawgs now and forever!
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Signed,
Jessica Marie
