Even the best sports writers in the world have tried to answer this question.

Take, for instance, the excerpt from Bill Simmons’ article Searching For Silver Linings in Indianapolis. “I have never been able to answer the question, “Why does this matter to me so much?” That’s just the way it’s always been. Ever since I can remember. You get older, your life changes, your friends change, your house changes, family members start dying, your kids start morphing into miniature people … and yet, one thing never changes for anyone who truly cares about sports.”

Keep in mind that this post was written about the heartbreak of sports following the Patriots’s second consecutive Super Bowl loss to the New York Giants.

I see that game in a completely different light than Bill Simmons. I remember watching with my wife (we were newly married at the time) and thinking that the Giant’s had pulled off an amazing feat by beating Tom Brady and the Patriot’s on the biggest stage in sports... for a second time!

I remember the joy, elation, food, screams, and raw emotion. I also recall the non-football fans at the party playing flipcup in the background only to take a break to watch the halftime show featuring Madonna dressed as a gladiator.

I vividly remember the sensory overload tied to that brief moment in time while cheering for our New York Giants. I recall it in the same way that I recall our wedding day or even the birth of our children.

So why is it that cheering for our sports teams creates such powerful emotions?

As I think about this even further I reflect on the following dialogue from the film Vision Quest, written by Darryl Ponicsan

”I don’t know nothing about Pelé. I'm watching what this guy can do with a ball and his feet. The next thing I know he jumps up in the air and flips into a somersault and kicks the ball in, upside down and backwards. I mean, the goddamn goalie never knew what the fuck hit him. And Pelé gets excited and he rips off his jersey and starts running around the stadium waving it around over his head. Everybody's screaming in Spanish. I'm here, sitting alone in my room. I start crying, yeah that's right, I start crying. There's another human being, a species which I happen to belong to, can kick a ball, and LIFT himself and the rest of us sad-ass human beings up to a better place to be, if only for a minute. Let me tell you kid, it was pretty goddamn glorious.”

This is beautifully written dialogue, and I think it exemplifies one of the reasons that we love to watch sports. Steph Curry’s clutch playoff 3-point shots, Katie Ledecky’s Gold Medal domination of the 1500m swim, and Barry Bond’s record-setting home run season all kept us absolutely glued to the screen.

We are drawn to the exploration of what we, as humans, are capable of, and these findings are exhilarating to witness. They are also soul-crushing if your team is on the losing end of the above achievements. But that’s just it! You can’t have highs if you don’t have lows.

What if all players could shoot a three-pointer like Steph? Basketball may not be as fun if everyone were an outlier.

Sports is a safe place to be vulnerable. It’s real life drama played out by talented characters where the stakes are high and all eyes are on the pitch, field, courts, pool, rink, ring and so on.

Speaking of drama

I recall watching the PGA US Open Golf Tournament on Father’s Day this past year. The winner, Wyndham Clark was relatively unknown to me leading into the final days of the tournament.

Wyndham eventually won the US Open edging out perennial favorite Rory McIIroy in a nail biting finale.

The match was close, but what made this so special was the story line behind Wyndham Clark. He had never won a Major Championship. Moreover, Wyndham tragically lost his mother to breast cancer in 2013.

Watching Clark sink his final putt with raw emotion on his face was incredible. Very few can relate to winning a Major golf championship, but many can relate to the type of loss that Wyndham felt when he lost his mother. In that moment, we all cheered for Wyndham Clark.

It was real, palatable drama that only sport could innocently draw one in to under the guise of “watching the big game.”

Meet your new best friend

Have you ever started watching (insert any sport here) in a public place and found yourself making friends with fellow fans?

Ever yell “Go (insert team name)!” when you come across a stranger wearing your favorite team’s apparel?

This is Sports Collective at it’s peak

The concept of the collective is well summarized in the article on breakingthelines.com titled The Psychology Behind Why We Love Watching Football where the author describes how fans may feel a sense of belonging when they are surrounded by other supporters who share similar interests and values. This can lead to increased self-esteem as well as feelings of camaraderie and connection with others.

Let me tell you about Tom

I first met Tom when I met one of my wife’s best friends, Jenna.

Jenna (who’s been an inspiration to me as a fellow blogger and is one of the funniest people I know) was dating Tom at the time. Jenna and Tom are now married and have two wonderful children.

Tom is from Long Island and now lives in California

I’m originally from New Jersey and live in California

Tom loves the New York Giants

I love the New York Giants

Tom’s favorite sports jersey number is 27, because of Rodney Hampton, who is a former standout running back for the New York Giants.

I’ve worn the number 27 on my jerseys all throughout high school and college for this exact same reason

I really love Tom like a brother. To say that Tom got the fast track to my “Circle of Trust” would be an understatement.

Though our friendship has grown over the years, like any well-built structure, it began on a solid foundation.

Our foundation was Big Blue. We use Giants games as an opportunity to get the families together during the fall and winter.

Our wives sit back and enjoy the display of behaviors put on by the “Two Tom’s” during the emotional rollercoaster known as a New York Giants season.

We are both quite pathetic and childlike in our shared swings of joy and agony during the ball game.

As Bill Simmons mentioned earlier, I don’t really know why this matters to me so much; it’s just always been that way. I agree with Bill, and it’s a blast!

If you are a sports fan, do you have a “Tom” in your life?

If you’ve spent enough time in fandom, I bet you do.

The games and how they are viewed continue to change and evolve. Maybe these changes are a reflection of our evolving society and “what sells.”

Personally, some of this evolution is quite nauseating to me. In specific, the manufactured drama and social media “TMZ” nature of sports

At its core, though, sports will always be thrilling because, no matter what graphic you post or story line you narrate, you can never manufacture raw, human emotion.

To quote the infamous coach Vince Lombardi:

“I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour – his greatest fulfillment to all he holds dear – is that moment when he has to work his heart out in a good cause and he’s exhausted on the field of battle – victorious.”

I believe that sport brings out the best in us. It’s a microcosm of life and something that all can enjoy together.

https://www.successories.com/blog/2009/02/16/vince-lombardi-speech-about-winning/

http://grantland.com/features/searching-silver-linings-indianapolis/

https://breakingthelines.com/opinion/the-psychology-behind-why-we-love-watching-football/