Before class began I loved sports, all sports. I still do love all sports but now I also have a certain amount of hate or distrust in sport. With every deal I see go down now I instantly question what motivated the people involved. Was it strictly business and only evoked by money? Was something if anything at all sacrificed because of the love of the game? Before class I always understood there was a business side to sport, there has to be, but never knew the extent. After having read LaFeber I realize how much deeper the business side of sport really is. Now with the multiple lockouts and the Chris Paul debacle in the NBA it only furthers my suspicions. Possibly the statement that took it over the top for me was in class when you had mentioned what the previous football athletes had said, by junior year they no longer love the game and realize that it’s all just a business.
Staying on the subject of football, the article relating dog fighting and football was a real eye opener to the brutality of the sport. Growing up in Pittsburgh in the early 90’s as a Steeler fan (what else can you be) all you heard about was the glory years in the 70’s. How the team with Lloyd, Greene, and Woodson was finally getting back to the ways of Ham, Lambert, and Blount. We were brought up wanting the tough, hard hitting steel curtain defense. Nothing else was acceptable. I now can’t help but think about the 18 year old boy who had such a high amount of the tau chemical present in his brain when I see “steel curtain” hits such as the James Harrison hit on Colt McCoy. I’ve always loved seeing the big hits that put the crowd into a roar or groan depending on which team is taking the hit. But now I have a new perspective on what is really happening. How much the lives of the individuals and their families can ultimately be affected. What makes it even worse in my opinion is that it seems to cause dementia more often the Alzheimer’s disease. It really makes one wonder...