Quick Update: I forgot to include this little conversation I had with my brother’s roommate right before this series. An “Overheard in the Stands,” if you will.

Steve (Murray’s Roomate): You know, all it takes is one big play.
Me: Steve, what have you seen in this game that makes you think we’re capable of even a single big play?
Steve: *shrugs*

So yeah, this shows what I know:

Go Hokies!

Mom: Oh the Yankees are just terrible. Our starting pitching is awful and we can’t win at all.
Me: Welcome to being a Washington Nationals Fan.
Mom: We can’t drive in runs when we have two or three players on base!
Me: Welcome to being a Baltimore Orioles Fan.
Mom: Yeah, but we pay these players enormous salaries and they can’t score at all!
Me: Welcome to being a Washington Redskins Fan!

Look at that form. At 2 years old! That’s sick.

Me: Aw Man!
Kate: What?
Me: Daniel Snyder just bought my sports talk radio station!

Edit 04/18/08: The Caps ended up losing 4-3 in double OT. But it doesn’t make this any less cute.

Of course the REAL news in the football world has nothing to do with the Super Bowl, the Patriots (aka “Choking Dogs”), or the World Champion New York Giants (you have no idea how difficult that was to type). The real news involves the 2008 class of Hall of Fame inductees. This class will include two Redskins: Darryl Green and Art Monk. Redskins fans are happy that Darryl is in, but we are THRILLED for Art Monk. Monk had been passed over several times, and we were all getting a little nervous that his classy and quiet demeanor actually hurt his chances of getting into the Hall. But never fear, enough Washington area sports writers made his case loudly enough, that the rest of the Hall of Fame voters finally came around.

Monk was my favorite player when I followed the Redskins as a kid. He was always good for a 15 yard out when you needed 14 yards for a first down. And if you were inside the 20 and you didn’t throw a fade to Monk in the back of the end zone, you were a fool. He was the possession receiver the Redskins have so desperately been missing for the past 10-15 years. The guy was a premiere receiver in an age where the NFL was not the pass-first circus that it is now. He was also a class act. There was no taunting in the end zone. No pulling out of cell phones (Joe Horn), donning of pretend Hall of Fame jackets (Chad Johnson), autographing of balls (Terrell Owens), or pretend pulling down of pants (Randy Moss). Monk was a good sport throughout his career and let his play on the field do the talking. There was no better football player to have for a role model than Art Monk. I’m glad that he’s being rewarded for it. Congrats, Art.

They say that the national pastime in the United States is baseball. Everywhere else in the world, it’s football. The original football is not the Americanized gladitorial combat that passes for football in the USA (which is admittedly really fun in a totally different way). No, what we’re talking about here is a game of finesse, strategy, speed, and power. We call it soccer.

And the rest of the world is absolutely bonkers over it. Let’s use a dubious (and completely unscientific) measuring stick. Crazy fans. Soccer’s psychotic fans far outstrip anything American sports fans can offer. Observe:

• Basketball gives us crazy college students rioting after a big win. Soccer fans routinely die in stampedes at matches worldwide.
• West Virginia University football fans have been rumored to throw batteries and liquor bottles at opposing players. Team USA was targeted with bags of urine and animal blood (ew).
• Detroit Pistons fans storm the court causing a riot with Indiana Pacers players? The ultimate psycho soccer fan (no, that’s not a compliment) sees your riot and raises you a murder. A Columbian player was killed by a fan for scoring an own goal in the 1994 World Cup.

Okay, that took a somewhat more grotesque turn than I had intended. The point I’m trying to make is this: international soccer fans really, REALLY love their sport. And, for the most part, Americans don’t. We’re just not big soccer fans. Yet. Which makes it all the more galling to the rest of the world that the USA is closing the gap.

The United States squad is talented, deep, and well-coached. Wow, listen to me spout off as if I know something. As a casual soccer fan, here’s what I know. The talking heads are all saying that this is the best USA soccer team in a long time. They say that the USA is SLOWLY gaining ground on the rest of the world and could POSSIBLY put together a decent run in this World Cup. As somebody who wants to be excited about the World Cup and the USA’s chances, I translate that to “deep, talented, and well coached”. So sue me.

The USA is in the “Group of Death” with the Czech Republic, Italy, and Ghana. So getting past the first round won’t be easy. But the more I read about it, the more I get excited and hope that they put together a decent run. Regardless, the next few weeks should be fun for soccer fans worldwide, both hardcore and casual. Tune in and watch a game or two!