How I Became a Fan of My Favorite Teams

      It is no secret that I am a big sports fan. For the majority of the people that know me, it is no secret as to what teams I like. What is not really mentioned is how I became a fan of each of my favorite sports team. For the record, most teams that I became a fan of was when I was in 1st grade, unless otherwise noted.

    
     (1st Grade)Cleveland Indians- I already did a rather long and interesting blog to say the least of how I became an Indians fan. To summarize that blog, I was a fan of the Major League movies starring Charlie Sheen, in which his character (and the movie in general) was centered around the Cleveland Indians baseball team. Eventually when I saw the real life Indians make the World Series in 1995, my admiration for the them in the movie would also transport into the real world.


     

     (1st Grade)Pittsburgh Penguins- Remember when the NHL use to be broadcasted on ESPN? Not only that, but ESPN would also rebroadcast the previous nights game the next afternoon.(right after school would let it for the day) My mother was helping my brother with a school project at the table where the T.V. stood. It just so happened that on the television was a hockey game. I remember sitting there watching it and saying to myself "Whoever scores first, I want to win" the team that scored first in that game was none other than the Pittsburgh Penguins. When they scored the goal I responded with a firm "Yes!" And I remember my mom saying "Oh do you like that team?" Too which I also followed up with another "Yes". From then on, I have been a Penguins fan ever since.


    

     (1st Grade)Chicago Bulls- In 1st grade my best friend at the time, and I, were talking about what sports we like to watch. He told me how much he liked basketball, which at the time I never really followed. He also mentioned a team by the name of the "Chicago Bulls" and its star player, Michael Jordan. Thankfully I had an open mind and decided to check it out and see for myself. It just so happened that where I live, we had "WGN" which was a Chicago based sports network that would air sporting events covering Chicago sports. Needless to say I came away impressed by this Bulls team and Michael Jordan player. The very next day I told my friend that I liked basketball and also liked the Bulls as well. Being a sports fan in general, I would inevitably at some time become a fan of basketball, but I cannot say if I would have become a Chicago Bulls fan or not. Thankfully it was sooner rather than later and even better was I became a fan of one of the greatest teams in NBA history as I got to witness the Bulls compose an unthinkable Win-Loss record of 72-10. Not to mention getting a chance to witness their second "3-Peat".

    

(1st Grade)Green Bay Packers- Really simple. My dad had been a fan of Green Bay since he was a kid and in the process took a liking to them as well.

    









     (5th Grade)Tennessee Titans. In the NFL, the Titans are my "1B Team". A friend of mine happened to be a huge Titans fan. It was during their run to the Super Bowl(which also produced the memorable "Music City Miracle" in the process) that my interest in the team would grow. Ironically, I did not really become an "official" fan until AFTER they lost the Super Bowl(Kind of like becoming a fan of the Indians AFTER they had lost the world series) I guess I did not get the memo of what it means to hop on the bandwagon since I followed a team after losing rather than winning.

     




     (1st Grade)Penn State Football- I grew up in Pennsylvania, so I guess it was only natural that I would become a Penn State fan. Again, it was because of my dad, that I would become a fan. I remember it was the first game of the 1995 season (I remember I would become fond of Bobby Engram and the outstanding plays and catches he made.) Penn State was facing Texas Tech, and I remember my dad sitting in his blue recliner he always sat in when watching football. I kept an interest throughout the game and would hope Penn State would win because they were my dad's favorite team. Penn State would go on to win the game 24-23 in the closing seconds with a field goal. My dad raised his hands in trimpuh as Penn State was able to pull out the win. Today, I am not only a fan of Penn State football, but a Penn State fan in general and follow, or at the very least, keep up to date with its other sports teams.

    


(7th Grade)North Carolina Basketball- I had always followed college basketball, but it was largely in part because of March Madness. I never had an exclusive team that I followed until 7th grade when I started following the North Carolina Tar Heels. I have my best friend to thank for that, and during the next couple of years my interest for the team continued to grow. Whenever we get the chance, we will catch a Tar Heels game together and to add to the excitement my brother (my best friend is my brothers best friend as well) is a Duke fan. It is always fun when my best friend and I are on one side as my brother is cheering for the other in this "friendly" rivalry.



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