My friends and regular readers (about 27 total - you make the Venn diagram . . .) know that I'm not just Steeler Gurl, I'm pretty much Pittsburgh Football Gurl. I was introduced to the Pittsburgh Power, the Arena Football League team, this year, and I've long been a supporter of the Pittsburgh Passion. So when the Post Gazette did a feature on the three women's football teams in town (Passion, Force and Three Rivers Xplosion), I was thrilled. Except for one thing.
It wasn't in the sports section. It was in the magazine section.
I'm old enough to remember when the magazine was called "the women's pages" because it covered trivial things of no interest to men - recipes, household tips, advice columns. This was the same era when, believe it or not, classified ads were divided into "Help Wanted - Men" and "Help Wanted - Women."
I graduated from high school the year Title IX was passed. When younger women in my running club ask me if I ran track or cross country in high school, they have no clue why I either laugh too shrilly or shake my head sadly.
I haven't been to a Force or Xplosion game, but I love the style of play exhibited by the Passion. They play hard. They go for it on fourth down. They want the touchdown, not the field goal. And they never, ever take a knee - they play every play till the final buzzer. Let's see the NFL get behind that kind of game.
We've come a long way, baby - I think we deserve to be on the sports page.
Friday, June 29, 2012
Friday, June 1, 2012
Kousin Kordell
Pittsburgh! I was out of town for a mere 36 hours, and while I was gone, an old quarterback controversy got stirred up. I'm talking, of course, about the re-signing and retirement of Kordell Stewart - Slash.
I was always a fan of Stewart - for one thing, it was the first time I could get a legitimate Steeler jersey with my own name on it. But it was also the first time that I suspected that there was trouble in River City/offensive and quarterback coaching department.Why did such an obviously talented athlete have such a roller coaster career - or "ebb and flow" as he called it?
One factor - and that factor remains an issue for Big Ben - was lack of protection from the offensive line. Like Ben, Kordell got hit. A lot. According to Sportometry.com, Stewart lost a total of 902 yards in his career with the Steelers, an average of 7.9 yards per game - and some years were much worse than average.
Stewart took a lot of criticism. That's another occupational hazard of quarterbacking for the Steelers. Happily, Wednesday's retirement was a class act on the part of the Steelers, Stewart, and the fans.
Stewart's mobility helped redefine the role of the quarterback in the NFL. Welcome home, Kousin Kordell. We'll even forgive that stint with the Purple Browns.
I was always a fan of Stewart - for one thing, it was the first time I could get a legitimate Steeler jersey with my own name on it. But it was also the first time that I suspected that there was trouble in River City/offensive and quarterback coaching department.Why did such an obviously talented athlete have such a roller coaster career - or "ebb and flow" as he called it?
One factor - and that factor remains an issue for Big Ben - was lack of protection from the offensive line. Like Ben, Kordell got hit. A lot. According to Sportometry.com, Stewart lost a total of 902 yards in his career with the Steelers, an average of 7.9 yards per game - and some years were much worse than average.
Stewart took a lot of criticism. That's another occupational hazard of quarterbacking for the Steelers. Happily, Wednesday's retirement was a class act on the part of the Steelers, Stewart, and the fans.
Stewart's mobility helped redefine the role of the quarterback in the NFL. Welcome home, Kousin Kordell. We'll even forgive that stint with the Purple Browns.
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