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BARROW NEWS-JOURNAL
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2017
The Game Plan
The darkest Sunday in Atlanta sports history
I woke up on Monday
morning and it seemed like
the entire city of Atlanta
was broken.
It was as if Atlanta was
like an old stereo system
that just wouldn’t work
anymore. All of my friends
in and around the city were
distraught, some slipping
into depression and some
just completely numb.
I guess that’s what being
an Atlanta sports fan is like
— just being numb to the
situation.
Let me start this by say
ing that I am not a Falcons
fan. Never have been and
never will be.
Although this past Sun
day during Super Bowl LI,
I was definitely cheering
for them over the
New England
Patriots. In fact,
I watched it at
a house party
where there were
nearly 40 people,
none of whom
were cheering
for the Patriots.
I remember
telling one of my
friends that if the
Falcons some
how blew the 25-point lead
that they had at the time, it
would be the most colossal
collapse in the history of
football.
Then we shared a laugh
and proceeded to watch the
game, fully expecting the
Falcons would hold on.
In one sense I
was pretty con
fident that the
Falcons were
going to win the
game and take
the champion
ship. In another
sense I had that
sick feeling in my
stomach.
You know the
feeling. It’s the
“Well, Atlanta is
up big right now but they
will probably find a way to
blow this” feeling.
Yeah, that’s the feeling
that I had.
That’s the feeling that so
many others had as well.
My heart breaks for the
city. There was so much
excitement building in
Atlanta and the surround
ing areas. Everyone was
catching the fever and
getting ready for the big
game.
When Tom Brady threw
that pick-six and the Fal
cons went up 21-0. you
could hear the entire city
of Atlanta roar with excite
ment.
Sunday night’s Super
Bowl was the most “Atlan
ta” thing I have ever seen
in my whole life.
This takes the cake over
the Braves, Hawks, Bull
dogs and Yellow Jackets
disappointments over the
years. Giving up a 25-point
lead and allowing 31 unan
swered points is the most
pathetic thing I have seen
in awhile.
Yes. the Patriots had an
impressive comeback, no
doubt about it. But the Fal
cons absolutely gave that
game away.
I hate it for all of my
friends that are Falcons
fans. It truly was one of
the saddest things that I
have seen in awhile.
The Falcons were repre
senting a city that was in
dire need of a champion
ship. A city that was in dire
need of a Super Bowl.
But instead the Falcons
left their fans exactly
where they always do — in
a dark pit of despair.
But, as sad as this is,
after seeing the Chicago
Cubs win the World Series
there is always hope.
Let’s just hope it doesn’t
take the Falcons as long
to win a Super Bowl as it
did for the Cubs to win the
World Series.
In the meantime, Atlanta
United FC is starting its
inaugural season in a few
weeks.
It’s time for the city of
Atlanta to find something
else to support.
Rise up.
Tyler Rollason is a
Winder-Barrow High
School and University of
West Georgia graduate.
You can email comments
about this column to tyrol-
lason @yahoo.com.
The roller coaster ride
of Super Bowl LI
Coping with the
Atlanta sports blues
Wow. That is the only
word I can use to describe
what happened during
Super Bowl LI.
As a Tom
Brady fan, I truly
thought at 28-3,
“This game is
over. They may
make it close, but
it will come too
little too late.”
That’s why you
can’t count No. 12
out of any game,
no matter what
the scoreboard
and social media
says.
Yes, I did check to see
what Twitter and Facebook
had to say about the pick-
six Brady threw in the sec
ond quarter, which gave
the Atlanta Falcons an
impressive 21-0 lead with
2:21 left in the first half.
Heck, after that inter
ception return, I was tell
ing myself, “The game is
over.”
But, somehow, some
way, the New England
Patriots didn’t give up.
They fought and fought
and fought and overcame
a 25-point deficit to win
Super Bowl LI. Unbeliev
able. There, that’s another
word to use along with
“wow” to describe what
took place Sunday night in
Houston.
Let’s go back a week,
shall we? Last week, a “big
prediction.” No. I didn’t
choose a winning team or
score. But, does that really
matter?
Instead, my winner was
“the fans.” If you’re a Fal
cons fan, it is OK. I under
stand if you disagree with
“the fans” being the win
ner, because one team had
to win and one team had
to lose.
The second part to my
prediction was a “great
game.” which again, it is
OK if you weren’t happy
with the outcome. I under
stand.
I also said it would be
the first overtime game in
Super Bowl history.
Here’s the word again —
wow. I didn’t even think
that was remotely possible
until I saw 00:00 on the
clock.
As a football fan. that
game had all the highs and
lows any fan of a game
would want.
You had one team jump
out to a huge lead, 28-3 at
its apex. Sure, it took into
the third quarter to get to
that big of a lead, but it still
happened.
If you were a fan of see
ing the Patriots and Brady
struggle, you were thrilled.
If you were a Falcons fan,
you were thrilled at that
point.
At a Super Bowl party
I attended, everyone was
thrilled as the lead grew
to 28-3, except me. But, I
didn’t say anything. I just
kept watching and enjoy
ing the time of fellow
ship with great
friends.
I received
texts from sever
al people about
Brady’s strug
gles in the first
half. Again. I
didn’t say any
thing. I just said,
“LOL” and left
it at that. As I
sat there in my
new Brady shirt
jersey, I just was thinking.
“This is going to be like
the Denver-Seattle Super
Bowl,” which didn’t turn
out well for the Broncos.
The Deflategate jabs I
saw on Facebook, I just let
them be. But, see, a whole
section was thrilled at how
the game was going. In
their mind, it was a great
game.
I haven’t even mentioned
commercials, which I don’t
pay too much attention to,
so no comment from here.
I’m sure fans were happy.
Nor the halftime show.
Fans were thrilled with
that, right? I’m not much
of an artist, so again, don’t
have much to say except
ask the question of how
was Lady Gaga able to use
so many drones while she
was on the roof of NRG
Stadium, even if that part
of her performance was
pre-recorded. Either way.
I’m sure fans were happy.
Back to the game:
fast-forward to the second
half, specifically when the
Patriots were able to make
it a 28-9 game. A fan base
started to come alive, but
the game still seemed in
doubt.
When Stephen Gostkow-
ski booted a 33-yard field
goal through with 9:44 left
in the game, the possibility
of a close finish seemed to
have merit as the game was
only a 16-point difference.
I wasn’t clapping or any
thing at this point. But,
you could hear it through
the TV. The stadium roars
told the story the Patri
ots’ fanbase was alive and
well. I’m sure in the New
England area, the cheers
in the pubs were deafening
as well.
When Matt Ryan got
sacked and fumbled the
football late in the fourth
quarter, the Falcons fans
I was watching the game
with could only sit in dis
belief at what was unfold
ing.
When Brady hit Danny
Amendola for a touchdown
and James White ran the
two-point conversion in to
cut the deficit to 28-20, my
heart rate started to climb.
I wanted to yell out. But
I just kept watching the
Falcons fans as one per
son’s head started to end
up in their hands a lot more
after plays. The Lombardi
Trophy was literally being
ripped from the grasp of
a team and a city that is
starving for a champion
ship.
When the Falcons were
forced to punt on their last
possession of the game,
my heart rate began to
climb even further. In my
mind, I was still having a
hard time comprehending
that the Patriots could tie
the game.
With every completed
pass, the fans at the sta
dium sounded like they
got louder and louder.
The Brady fan in me start
ed screaming louder and
louder.
But the sounds of other
fans weren’t the cheerful,
gleeful things I had heard
just an hour and a half
before.
Instead, they were groans
of what was unfolding.
My heart rate maxed out
when the Patriots scored to
tie the game.
At that point, I knew the
game was over for Atlanta.
The texts I had started to
receive were friendly texts
from fellow Brady fans
who were reveling in the
moment with me.
A 25-point deficit was
erased.
The first overtime in
Super Bowl history was
happening. Brady’s “drive
for five” Super Bowl rings
was still alive.
Then, the Patriots won
the coin toss. It was over.
When White’s 2-yard
run broke the plane of the
goal line, so much excite
ment was built up inside
of me, but I still didn’t let
it out.
The only thing I did was
clap when Brady got the
Lombardi Trophy.
It wasn’t until I walked
out with my girlfriend that
I let out a few yells of
excitement for what I had
seen.
When I got home, I
closed the door behind me
and proceeded to do three
or four Tiger Woods-type
fist pumps.
It was pitch black dark
and I just fist-pumped. I
didn’t care.
Brady got his fifth ring. I
was amped. I had to watch
the highlights, so I did.
Super Bowl LI truly did
everything a great sporting
event is supposed to do. It
made all five senses come
alive for fans.
We can only hope next
year’s game is half as good
as what we witnessed on
Sunday.
Charles Phelps is a
reporter for MainStreet
Newspapers. He can be
reached at charles@main-
streetnews.com.
Riding into the office
Monday morning, I saw
the “Go Falcons” on the
Madison County Senior
Center sign. My heart
dropped. I felt
sick from the big
loss.
I confess. It’s
a counterfeit ill
ness. My emo
tional allegiance
has always been
to the Georgia
Bulldogs. And
even that has
slipped some
what in the past
two or three
years. I’m not as
obsessive as I once was
as a sports fan. And prior
to Sunday, I had only
felt true emotion once
in my life regarding the
Falcons.
That was in 1998 when
the Falcons beat Minne
sota in a thriller to get to
the playoffs. I remember
leaping during that game
in elation. And the mem
ory has always stuck with
me as a peculiar thing.
Remember when I
went nuts over the Fal
cons? Wasn’t that weird?
To think, the Falcons get
ting me that riled up.
But it happened again
Sunday in an even deeper
way.
I turned the game on
without much expecta
tion. I sat in my recliner
with my computer in my
lap doing work for the
paper.
The game was on,
but without sound. My
children sat next to each
other on the floor in
our living room playing
Minecraft.
They were totally con
sumed in that. I had work
on my mind. The game
still seemed like an after
thought.
But hope is a funny
thing. It grows in you.
And I felt the hope start
to build.
When Robert Alford
stepped in front of a Tom
Brady pass in the first
half and returned it 82
yards for a touchdown,
the Falcons pulled ahead
21-0. But another thing
happened. The emotional
hooks gripped my chest. I
was all in at that moment.
I packed up the comput
er. I watched intently.
I felt a connection to
that young me again,
the college kid on Col
lege Avenue in Athens in
1992, marching with the
massive mob of Braves
fans and doing the Tom
ahawk Chop in unison
after Sid Bream crossed
home plate and led Atlan
ta to the World Series.
Atlanta sports fandom
has never seemed as
rabid to me as in the
early and mid 1990s,
when the Braves went
on a tear. The Braves
were denied in 1991 and
1992. but the team finally
won the World
Series in 1995.
And it seemed
like the mon
key was finally
off of the back
of Georgia
when it came
to profession
al sports. We
will always be
a college-first
state when it
comes to ath
letics.
But there’s no reason
Atlanta can’t have suc
cessful sports franchises,
too.
The six-game World
Series win over the
Cleveland Indians in
1995 felt like a wonder
ful turning point. Atlan
ta could become a title
town.
Then came 1996. I
remember young Andruw
Jones of the Braves hom
ering in his first two at
bats in game one of the
World Series against
the New York Yankees.
I watched the first two
games of that series at
the Georgia Theatre in
Athens with a raucous
crowd.
I’ve watched a number
of Georgia games there,
too. It can feel like a
real game atmosphere,
which is cool. I left game
two of that series and
I remember commenting
to a friend as we walked
down Clayton Street, “I
think the Braves might
be in the early days of a
dynasty.” Well, I guess
that was a real jinx. Sorry
Braves. Sorry Atlanta.
Jim Leyritz homered in
game four of the series
after the Braves led 6-0.
Atlanta blew the huge
lead and Leyritz’s three-
run blast tied the game.
The Yankees went on to
win the series 4-2.
And the city of Atlanta
has had two more cham
pionship attempts, the
1998 Super Bowl and
the 1999 World Series,
but neither of those felt
very likely. Denver was
too much for the Falcons
and the Yankees swept
the Braves.
I’ve been totally
ho-hum about Atlanta
sports since the late 90s.
I figure they’ll find a way
to lose.
I don’t let myself care
very much. I watch some,
but mostly I don’t. I hav
en’t been truly sick about
any sports event in five
years, since the Bulldogs
fell just short of victo
ry over Alabama in the
2012 SEC football cham
pionship. But everything
flipped back on Sun
day night. The emotion
was intense. And with
the Falcons up 28-3. I
thought I was witnessing
something great in Atlan
ta sports history. Well,
it was sports history,
all right, but for Boston
and Tom Brady, not for
Georgia folks. No doubt,
Brady, a five-time cham
pion, cemented himself
as football’s greatest of
all time Sunday.
And the 25-point
comeback will be the sig
nature win in his storied
career. Totally amazing.
Awe-inspiring. It will be
used as an anecdote at
every level of sports for
years to come.
Look at Brady against
the Falcons. That’s why
you never give up in a
game. The miraculous
can happen.
Also, the catch Julian
Edelman made will go
down in Super Bowl —
I initially typed Super
“Bowel” and nearly left
it, cause that’s how I feel
— history as one of the
greatest ever.
Sadly, the Patriots
didn’t just need brilliant
plays, they needed an
Atlanta collapse to pull
off the comeback.
And the Falcons pro
vided it.
Julio Jones made a
spectacular catch to get
Atlanta in range for a
field goal that could have
sealed the win.
But the Falcons inex
plicably ran a pass play
on second down, instead
of milking the clock and
playing for a field goal.
Matt Ryan’s sack seemed
to seal the Falcons’ fate.
Brady led the Patriots on
that long drive, forcing
overtime.
When New England
won the coin toss, a Fal
cons win seemed impos
sible.
No way they were
stopping Brady. And they
didn’t.
Yes, this one stings.
And I’m not even a die
hard fan. I’m sure many
true fans are really disap
pointed.
But one thing is for
sure.
The next time Atlan
ta or Athens gets me in
position to get my hopes
up, I’m going to fight to
keep those hopes down.
A loss is never fun, but
some are worse than oth
ers. And this one tops
the list of Atlanta sports
heartbreaks.
Zach Mitcham is editor
of The Madison County
Journal, a sister publi
cation of the Barrow
News-Journal.