Superstitions can be found everywhere you look. From picking up a shiny penny for good luck to not stepping on a crack, lest you break your dear old mother’s back. From an early age, we’ve all been ingrained with the do’s and don’ts of life, if you want to keep the boogeyman at bay that is.
The world of sports is no different. From Serena Williams not changing her socks during a tournament to Jerry Tarkanian enjoying a moist towel during UNLV basketball games (a tradition he began way back in 1956), athletes are no different than us spectators. We’ll do some pretty wild and crazy things to ensure our side walks away with another notch in the win column.
While we finally have the answer on which came first, the chicken or Wade Boggs, after his year of eating chicken every day to promote a cookbook (and winning a batting title), the one they affectionately call “chicken man” continued the superstition saying, “the chicken worked…they sort of worked hand in hand.”
The red shirt, once synonymous with “that guy ain’t gonna make it” on Star Trek, is now seen as a good luck charm as Tiger Woods can usually be seen sporting it on the final round of a tournament. He owes this superstition to his mother, who says “red is [his] power color.” Mother seems to know best. Out of the 82 trophies he’s hoisted over his head, 79 of those were while he was wearing some shade of red, with light red accounting for $31.5 million in earnings, followed by dark red with $25.8 million, and burgundy with a paltry $19.8 million in winnings.
Superstition in Fans
Speaking of shirts, I won’t wear the color of the team Appalachian State is playing that week. No matter how much my eyes pop in hunter green, when the Mountaineers play the Thundering Herd, you’ll see nary a drop of green draping this beer belly. And, when my beloved Mountaineers are underperforming on the gridiron, I change the channel. Just for a bit. I know they get the message. Surely, Coach Shawn Clark is on the sidelines with the next play about to exit his mouth when his Chris Crisis Beeper(™) goes off alerting him that I have <gasp> changed the channel and they better really start playing or else! <insert huge eye roll>.
Gil Johnson, of Winston-Salem, also relies on the luck of the chemise. His threadbare 2010 USC Gamecocks World Series Championship shirt is his talisman. This particular holey amulet was procured on his honeymoon and luck was on his side then, so “why not?” Why not indeed, Gil? Just like the varying levels of fandom, there are also varying levels of superstition. Gil isn’t a full-blown superstitious fan, however. He only dons the Swiss cheese-esque tee “Whenever we are playing a big game I really want them to win.”
Middle School Coach, Scott Ashworth, also has a love/hate relationship with shirts. “If I lose more than one game in a shirt, I won’t wear that shirt again.” When asked if the shirt earns another tryout the following season, he replied, “It’s bad memories, and I don’t like thinking about bad memories. I want dominating memories.” Fair enough, Coach. It’s hard to argue with his strategy. He has impressive coaching records in baseball and basketball, including a championship season in the C35 Summer Baseball series. Atta boy, champ!
My Carolina Hurricanes are one of the few heavily favored teams to win the Stanley Cup. This is not due to an elite group of players gliding around the ice like the Ice Capades and playing with the kind of “team first” attitude and stick-to-itiveness that would make Coach Gordon Bombay burst with pride. With great aplomb, I am here to say that me and my superstitions are the reason the Carolina Hurricanes are dominating.
Before each game, I crack open a crisp and refreshing Storm Brew (drink responsibly!), and pour it in my 2006 Carolina Hurricanes Stanley Cup Playoff pint glass. Then when the game starts, I’ll enjoy another Storm Brew. But, these aren’t just any Storm Brews. The gameday Storm Brews must have the Hurricanes logo match up with the opening. Failing to do this results in an immediate loss for the Canes.
And don’t even think of throwing away the cans until after the game! To throw away the cans is to throw away the game and I have to do my part. As Spiderman’s uncle once said, “With great power comes great responsibility.” I have gotten pretty good at the art of Can Reading. In fact, I can predict how the next few games will go when I open a new case and sort the gameday brews from the everyday brews.
While the gladiators of the gridiron are tucked away in the bowels of the stadium preparing for battle, above ground, the scene is a bit more festive, but still, superstitions lurk.
Cullen Cameron and his tailgating crew also turn to the liquid courage superstition before each App State football game. “Right before we head into the game, we’ll do a shot of Fireball while ‘Black and Yellow’ blasts the speakers.”
Full Disclosure: Cullen is my brother-in-law and I have been a party to this superstition, and I am proud to announce that because of this tradition, App State holds a very advantageous home winning streak against opponents.
Superstition Explained
But why do we do it? I think it’s because we all want to be winners and in the “it takes a village” philosophy, we all want to do our part, regardless of how small or seemingly inane it may be to make that happen. When we win, we take the positives and leave the negatives. When we lose, we take the negatives and leave the positives. We can all remember seeing fans in the stadiums of underperforming teams donning paper bags to hide their embarrassment.
Fans will continue to support their teams as they see fit, taking ownership of the ups and downs their beloved teams endure. While we know deep down our antics are not really causing a “Butterfly Effect” moment, in the immortal words of Al Davis it feels good to “Just win baby!”
Is it crazy? Yes. Does it help me sleep better at night knowing that my lunacy has given my beloved teams more wins than losses? Also, yes. And until the day arrives that my record takes a Frank Reich-esque nosedive, or my wife gets tired of the Storm Brew cans piling up during games, this dance between reality and superstition will live on.
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