I’m no stranger to the game called football.
The Sundays of my youth were spent not only attending church, but also enjoying lunch while my dad watched and sometimes yelled at the New Orleans Saints on our television screen.
However, I never paid that much attention to specific plays or how the game is played. I preferred reading my Nancy Drew novels or watching Nickeloden’s “Double Dare” on a lazy Sunday afternoon.
I attended the University of Mississippi during Eli Manning’s last two years there and I only attended one of the football games he played during my time there. However, the Grove is a wonderful place to visit during game days.
When the Saints won the Superbowl, I, along with my die-hard-fan father, was ecstatic.
I still keep up with, and root for, my Ole Miss Rebel football team. I even stayed up late Saturday night to watch them beat Alabama for the second year in a row.
However, if you ask me what a shotgun formation is, I will probably stare at you with a blank face. Now, if you want to know where you can find the latest in fashion from Rebecca Minkoff, I can probably talk your head off.
There are many who are experts on the game and I usually call them before I must cover a high school football game.
I’m slowly learning the terminology. Admittedly, it took me a long time to decipher the difference between offense and defense.
Now, the position names are harder to figure out. There’s so much each player does.
I have mostly covered Poplarville High School football games and writing a story after those games can be quite challenging after an evening dodging players and taking notes while balancing my camera to take a good picture.
For me, it’s easier to write a lifestyle or news story.
I do my best and I know true sports fans expect more when they read a sports article. But I’m learning and, I must say, I do get excited when I see the boys from Poplarville play well, especially when they beat a rival of this former Bay High Tiger, the Hancock Hawks.