Football Rivalry in Idaho

Growing up in a major metropolitan area, I didn't get to experience the feeling of having a cross-town rival.  We didn't have a small town, so the lines in the sand were much blurrier than they are in Idaho.

In my area, there are 3 main rivalries that get the locals rabid:

- The 'Black and Blue Bowl.'
- The 'Civil War.'
- And 'The Emotion Bowl.'

The third one has the lamest name, but is the one that affects my area the most.  I live within walking distance to Idaho Falls High School, and can hear the 'roar' of the stadium most Friday nights.

The Emotion Bowl is IF High vs Skyline High.  Skyline is the 'west side' school, and my wife's Alma Mater.  She's not big into school spirit, so she doesn't give two shits about this game.  She's probably one of six people in town who feel this way.

Everyone else, from residences to businesses have either Blue or Orange festooned in every way possible.  Grocery store windows are painted with motivational messages.  School spirit is at an all time high.

And for someone like me, living in the middle of 'Tiger Country', if I were caught sporting powder blue, I'd be in a world of trouble.

When I was in High School, my football team was like the Oakland Raiders.  Everyone hated us, and we hated everybody.  Nobody was a rival, because everybody was a rival.  It was interesting, but never as passionate as one of Idaho's rivalry games.

And so much is on the line for these games as well!

Don't like Obama?  Blame Skyline.

An Emotion Bowl win on an election year will tell you who our next President is going to be!  Yes, in 2012 Skyline won, so Obama was reelected.

(And I can tell you this:  If Skyline wins in 2016, there will be riots on the streets.  NOBODY was happy last year, which made IF's victory in 2013 all the sweeter.)

I am sad to say I missed this year's Emotion Bowl, but then again, I really don't care who wins.  I wouldn't know which side to sit on, who to root for, etc.  Sorry Idaho, no fucks were given from me on Friday.

Do you come from a small town?  Did you have a rival?  Were the games this intense?  I'd love to hear your story...

It's Official - Even Jesus Thinks #Tebow is a Little Intense

Southern Idaho is Bronco country.  The Denver Broncos are the closest NFL team, and the Boise State Broncos are a favorite among most Idahoans.

Top it off with this years successes in Denver, thanks in part to Tim Tebow.

Just in case you haven't caught an interview with this kid, Tebow is very religious.  He personally thanks God before and after each game.  After every touchdown he scores, he kneels and prays.

People call it Tebowing, even though other players have done this before.  He's just the most vocal about it.  Almost to the point of being in your face.

Leave it to Saturday Night Live to take Tebow and turn it into an awesome satire:

Sorry Tim... If Jesus thinks you're a little intense, maybe you should back down.

And I agree.  Give the dude a Sunday off, and learn to win on your own.  You're not the only NFL player who prays before games.  Don't make Jesus take sides...

(I especially like how Jesus mentioned he'd take a week off against the Pats, and whaddaya know, Denver gets spanked...)

(I especially especially liked the joke about the Mormons at the end of the video... who knew?  Oh yeah, Jesus knew...)

I'm not here to make fun of the guy (at least, not TOO much...) but Tim?  Seriously?  You're not the only religious NFL player.

Kurt Warner, Reggie White and countless others have been giving props to God long before you came along.  The difference between them and you?  They never shoved it down people's throats.

So.  Timmy.  Thank Him.  Praise Him.  Play football. There's no need to be a TV Evangelist... there are plenty of those out there already...

Oh, and go Panthers.

Are You Ready For Some Football?

I am.

But are we going to have a season this year?

Am I going to win my Fantasy Football League again this year?

More importantly, who's up for starting a blogger's fantasy league??  That is, if we have a season...

According to NBC sports the lockout is almost over, but I'm still not convinced.  Both sides are still taking hard stances, and both sides need to get over themselves and be less greedy.  I would like to see the minimum yearly salary raised to $600k a year, and the maximum yearly salary lowered down to $3 million a year.  This would still be grossly overpaid, but cut personnel costs down 65%.  Then, owners would be able to pay non-player personnel more livable wages, cut overall ticket prices drastically, and still let them make insane profits.

We are almost getting into preseason time.  How are teams supposed to shake off the rust?  Granted, I'm a Panthers fan and we have a LOT of rust to shake off, but I'd still like to see them play 16 games (even if they end up losing 15 of them...)

Bring on the football.  My Sundays are boring.