OT-ish: If the Lions and the Patriots meet in the Super Bowl
(ignore if you aren't a Lions fan)
If the Lions meet Tom Brady and the Patriots in the Super bowl, who would you root for? Keep in mind that winning a fourth Super Bowl would allow Brady to cement his legacy as arguably the Greatest. QB. Ever. Period. Brady is a true Michigan Man and reps his alma mater as well as anyone in the league. On the other hand, if you were born and raised in the State of Michigan, chances are you rooted for the Lions growing up, watched Barry Sanders rewrite the record books without ever getting a shot at a ring, and suffered through the Millen years. A Lions Super Bowl victory might be a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence.
Personally, I would root for Brady to get his fourth ring. Brady was our starting QB for two of my five undergraduate years at Michigan, and though I've been going to Michigan games since I was a kid, my most vivid memories of the Big House are from when he was the QB. I'm nominally a Lions fan and I enjoy watching pro football, but I find it hard to get too excited about any particular team (particularly since until now, rooting for the Lions to do well was like rooting for a lifelong alcoholic to suddenly sober up). I mainly just root for Michigan players to do well.
Thoughts?
EDIT: More context - I live in the SF Bay Area and most of my friends are annoying, smug 49er fans who think Joe Montana is the best thing that ever happened to football and that it's ridiculous to think Tom Brady is even in the same category as him. They point to the fact that Joe Montana never lost a Super Bowl and that he has 4 rings whereas Brady has 3.
October 4th, 2011 at 8:49 AM ^
(ignore if you aren't a MIchigan fan)
If Michigan meet Les Miles and the LSU Tigers in the National Championship Game, who would you root for? Keep in mind that winning a second national championship would allow Miles to cement his legacy as arguably a really good coach. Ever. Period. Miles is a true Michigan Man and reps his alma mater as well as anyone in the college football. On the other hand, if you were born and raised in the State of Michigan, chances are you rooted for Michigan growing up, watched Charles Woodson rewrite the record books without ever getting a shot at a ring (except that one...), and suffered through the Rodriguez years. A Michigan National Championship Game victory might be a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence if you were born after 1997.
Personally, I would root for Miles to get his second ring. Miles was our starting offensive lineman for two of my five undergraduate years at Michigan, and though I've been going to Michigan games since I was a kid, my most vivid memories of the Big House are from when he was the offensive lineman. I'm nominally a Michigan fan and I enjoy watching college football, but I find it hard to get too excited about any particular team (particularly since until now, rooting for the Michigan to do well was like rooting for a lifelong alcoholic to suddenly sober up). I mainly just root for Michigan players to do well.
Thoughts?
/s
October 4th, 2011 at 12:08 PM ^
Miles is a true Michigan Man and reps his alma mater as well as anyone in the college football.Except when he's telling recruits our coach has Parkinson's.
October 4th, 2011 at 1:26 PM ^
says the dude who was stumping for him as our coach in January
October 4th, 2011 at 9:32 AM ^
I grew up in Michigan. The Lions were the first pro football team I ever rooted for. I loved Barry Sanders. I still pull for the Lions but until this year their ineptitude kept me from investing any real emotion in them since Barry retired.
On the other hand, I have been a huge Patriots fan since the moment Bledsoe went down, before they won the Super Bowl. In the scenario you present, I would root for Brady. He is 34 and probably won't get too many more chances.
The Lions on the other hand are a year or two away and if they found themselves in the Super Bowl this year it would be a shock. I think the have a great young nucleus and would get another chance.
October 4th, 2011 at 9:42 AM ^
Lions and its not even remotely close.
October 4th, 2011 at 9:48 AM ^
I find Michigan fans whose favorite NFL team are the Patriots because of Tom Brady to be as annoying as all the Notre Dame fans I knew growing up who decked themselves out in 49er gear every Sunday because of Joe Montana.
In other words, Go Lions, Eff The Patriots
October 4th, 2011 at 12:53 PM ^
Why would anyone be that loyal to a pro team? I mean, if you followed a college and a player closely, why is it so wrong to root for them (and their team) wherever they go? I find the nature of pro football to be souless. There is no loyalty shown to players or fans so why should the fans show loyalty to those teams. To me, the connection I feel for my alma mater and other alumni will always trump any connection with a pro team, especially when the connection is coming from West Michigan/Ann Arbor and not from having lived in the city itself.
Don't get me wrong. I like watching the Lions/Pistons/Red Wings/Tigers. I root for them as the teams that I live closest to. But I don't think there is anything wrong with choosing loyalties based on other connections to the team, such as former Michigan players (or Notre Dame for that matter) vs. a loose connection based on geography. I didn't choose to grow up in West Michigan. I did choose to attend U of M. I lived next to Griese and Ty Law freshman year in the dorm.
When I became a Patriots fan, Brady was just taking over and Ty Law was at the peak of his powers. The Super Bowl MVP went to Brady that year but Ty Law could have won it too because of his INT and overall defense against an amazing passing offense. Just because the Lions are starting to get good doesn't mean I should switch my loyalties back to the Lions, who have been my second team since 01.
October 4th, 2011 at 1:52 PM ^
and there's that logic again that seemingly disenfranchises anyone who didn't go to Michigan
October 4th, 2011 at 10:01 AM ^
I don't understand this logic. You are a Michigan fan so you root for Michigan against all other colleges. If you are a Lions fan, then your root for the Lions agianst all other NFL teams(well for me its the Falcons, but point sitll stands).
October 4th, 2011 at 10:22 AM ^
and hope the Lions feast on his a**. Sorry, but I was born in Detroit. Barely follow the NFL, but always want the Lions to win.
October 4th, 2011 at 10:29 AM ^
Haha, Lions in the Super Bowl. Good one.
October 4th, 2011 at 10:37 AM ^
You could put every former Michigan player in the NFL on the same roster and I'd still root for the Lions to beat them.
October 4th, 2011 at 11:37 AM ^
coolest megatron shirt ever
October 4th, 2011 at 11:45 AM ^
This post is a disgrace. The Lions have won 1 playoff game in 50 years and you would root for Brady to cement his legacy. Your a joke.
October 4th, 2011 at 1:41 PM ^
If I had all of 18 points and discovered this blog way back in the early days of February '11, I probably wouldn't call other posters a joke. And even if I did, I probably wouldn't use Sparty grammar. But hey, that's just me.
October 4th, 2011 at 4:31 PM ^
Lions - not even close. They are the only one of my teams I haven't seen win a championship. M in football, basketball and hockey. Tigers in '84 (maybe in 2011). Pistons back to back in the late 80's and again in the 2000's. And of course the Red Wings multiple times. I started to pay attention to sports about '77 or '78 so I've suffered through a lot of horrible football from the Lions.