Football and Thanksgiving go together like spaghetti and meatballs, Oreos and milk, Lady and the Tramp, Bert and Ernie, Jordan and Pippen and Tebow and ESPN. It’s not The Masters, but for a lot of families on Turkey Day, watching NFL games is a tradition unlike any other.
Sports are played on every major holiday. Christmas has the NBA, and depending on when it falls, the NFL. Easter usually has golf or March Madness. Labor Day has baseball. In fact, there are only two days out of the 365 on the calendar when no professional sport is being played – the day before and after MLB’s All-Star game.
But football on Thanksgiving is different. For better or worse, the Lions and Cowboys always have home games. For the past few years, NFL Network has thrown on a third game at night. Simply put, football and Thanksgiving together just make sense.
So as some of us get ready to head home or to spend time with family and friends for a few days, or as some of us get set for a few days off from classes to catch up on work or relax, here are some football-related Thanksgiving thoughts:
When you arrive or when your family arrives at wherever you spend Thanksgiving, make sureyour aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents know they are more important to you than the emergence of Dez Bryant, Jon Kitna or how your fantasy team is doing so far this week.
Try eating your Thanksgiving dinner away from the television and actually use a table for a change. I haven’t done this in years, so I get it if you ignore me.
Don’t bother waking up for Patriots-Lions at 12:30 p.m. If you want to watch the Macy’s parade and see Santa, then do it – but go back to sleep once Matt Lauer signs off.
If there’s a big high school football game being played in your area before you get together with family, go to it.
If you’re staying on or around campus this week, find a fellow student or two and take a break to watch the games and put things in perspective before the finals grind starts.
There is some great network television on Thanksgiving night. So, feel free to skip Bengals-Jets (if you’re in the minority of Americans who actually get NFL Network). A few Thanksgivings ago, I came across Forrest Gump on TNT, and believe it or not, that was the first time I watched it from start to finish.
On a day when the Cowboys and the Bengals’ Terrell Owens will be suiting up, some of our families might have a long-standing grudge or an estranged relative as a dark cloud hanging over the holiday. If possible, do what you can to make things better, even if it’s giving someone a much-needed hug.
Depending on the weather, play some football outside at a nearby park, in the street or on the lawn. If you have younger cousins or family friends, try to remember what it was like to be a little kid during the holidays. Then, try to internalize that feeling and think about it as often as you can throughout the year, especially if things aren’t going well.
If you’re sick of Jim Nantz, Phil Simms, Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Bob Papa, Joe Theismann, Matt Millen or all of the above, it’s officially acceptable to start listening to Christmas music while the games are on mute.
Drew Brees founded the Brees Dream Foundation for the children of New Orleans. Wes Welker has the 83 Foundation. In San Diego, current Jet LaDainian Tomlinson had the L.T. Foundation. Before you gear up for Black Friday, ask yourself what you can set aside for those in need. If we can, we should put the giving in Thanksgiving.
ost of all, as another year creeps to its conclusion, let’s be thankful for a day when family, food and football can bring us all closer together.
Dave Finn is a senior in the College and a former sports editor at The Hoya. Couch Talk appears in every third issue of Hoya Sports.”
