A Rose By Any Other Name

So, you are a big fan of, say, the fighting Evadale Rebels. You go to a football game on a chilly Friday night to watch the hometown boys play, oh, West Hardin (Saratoga, right?). You and the Rebel faithful are pretty darn loyal to the boys in blue and gold. Why? They're your boys. If not literally, at least they're all from Evadale.

You love those fighting Texas Aggies. You head to College Station decked out head to toe in Aggies gear. Aggies cap. Aggies shirt. Aggies sneakers. Aggies underwear. Odd fashion choices for anyone who's not a thirteen-year-old boy (holds for you Longhorns, too), but OK. You and the Aggie faithful are hard core loyal to the maroon and white. Why? They're your boys. If not literally, at least they're all from Texas, right? Sure, there's the odd kid from Florida. One or two from Louisiana. A youngster from Oklahoma. Even a couple from (gasp!) California. Nevertheless, the Texas Aggies are mostly from Texas.

Man, do you love those, Dallas Cowboys. You go to Jerry World. You're decked out head to toe in Cowboys garb. Cowboys cap, Cowboys shirt...you know the routine. Again, odd fashion choices for a grown man with a family, but what the hey. You and the Cowboy faithful are fiercely loyal to the blue and silver. Why? They're your boys. If not literally, at least they're all from Dallas. No? Well, at least they're all Texans. Right? The majority at least. No?

So why are we rooting for these guys again? If the players are from everywhere and are only in Dallas/Texas because of a business decision, couldn't we just as well be fans of Carolina? Or Denver. Or just focus our attention on the mighty Rebels and Aggies.

Thought experiment:

Let's say the NFL enacts one of those weird rules they're famous for (think “in the grasp” or the infamous “tuck” rule). Let's say they dramatically loosen the policies relating to player trades.

You wake up Sunday morning and tune in to the NFL pregame shows to find out your Cowboys, who are scheduled to play the hated Eagles, traded their entire team for the Eagles entire team while you were sleeping. The Texan-less Cowboys will now take the field in Eagles' green, and the Pennsylvanian-less Eagles will oppose them in the silver and blue. Their millionaires are now your millionaires and vice versa.

Who do you root for?

The uniforms. It was always the uniforms. That big silver star looks good on anybody's noggin. Go team!