Back to Football: Sports Interviews

One year and two days ago, I shared this image on Facebook with the caption, "Truf," after I saw it posted by a friend. It went around a little more after that, because you can't deny my caption.

This was shared from a group called 'No Filter'. 7 likes, no comments.

Two days later, the Seattle Seahawks defeated the San Francisco 49ers, in part because they are a good team, in part because San Francisco can't actually win "the big game", and perhaps, just perhaps, because Richard Sherman was so angry with Michael Crabtree that he could not LET them win. Sherman deflected a possible touchdown pass that was then grabbed by another Seahawk, securing the Seahawk trip to Super Bowl 48, where they later outscored the favored* Broncos by a factor of 5.375.

After the game, after Sherman took off his helmet and donned his NFC Champion Seahawks cap, a sports reporter, Erin Andrews, went to talk to him. She wanted him to "take [her] through that last play." Instead of the normal answer of "blah blah blah, stuff we can assume from the circumstances, blah blah blah," he gave us a taste of the adrenaline still coursing through his body and produced something interesting, for a change. I think I heard about it on Facebook and either watched it from another share or sought it out and watched it. When I posted, I included the caption, "Is this ... what?" to reflect my own confusion and amazement.

Erin Andrews was pleased with this interview, and concerned about the racist reactions.

The first comment on my post was from a fellow Packer fan with a similar reaction to the interview, then there were comments referencing a 'lack of class' and another person mentioned that it would cause them to root for Denver. Other friends posted their own, very negative comments on their own Facebook feeds. I was taken aback at this reaction, and instantly recognized the inherent racism, through I didn't have the desire to get into a fray with friends and relatives that evening.

The next day, the country was up in arms about the interview, which sparked a much needed conversation about the politics of respectability**. This article discusses the racism evident in the way NFL player actions are treated in the press beyond the reaction Sherman's interview. I was, once again, happy to hear people in the media giving the arguments that I know almost innately now.

Had there not been the backlash or the ensuing conversation, I might have forgotten the interview, except as an needed change from the ordinary. As it happened, my appreciation for the Seattle Seahawks increased significantly, which is a major triumph, indeed, after that Fail Mary call in 2012***. I'm also now a bit of a fan of Richard Sherman, the player and person, because really, if you want class, go watch golf.

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* When AREN'T the Broncos favored?
** I've always been more on the side of Du Bois than Washington in this debate. 
*** This Ode was actually directed at the Seahawks coach and his celebration with the OBVIOUSLY WRONG CALL. Sorry, I'm still bitter, whatever.