OT Pro-sports town media looks at a CFB dominated town

[srru86]

Dan Shaughnessy in Boston Globe
It’s hard to get pumped up about a Super Bowl against . . . Atlanta
"I was in Atlanta to watch the Celtics play the Hawks in the first round of the NBA playoffs last April. There was zero local buzz about the Hawks or the playoffs. While the Celtics and Hawks warmed up for their postseason clash, all the televisions at Philips Arena were tuned into Georgia’s intramural spring football game, for which 93,000 fans were gathered in Athens. In the next day’s local paper, coverage of Georgia’s spring practice dwarfed that of the NBA playoff game."

I suppose in his mind the question is why aren't the locals interested in the NBA playoffs.
My question would be why should anybody care that much about first round pro hoopsters? I think the Atlantians have the right attitude on this account.

 

[RUChoppin]

This is the type of mentality we fight against for support, too. It's not about winning championships, though. The South just has much more passion for their college football teams than their professional ones, and the Northeast is the opposite.

Makes it tough when locals are supposed to care about a team that's usually further down in the sports section.

 

[e5fdny]

Dan Shaughnessy in Boston Globe
It’s hard to get pumped up about a Super Bowl against . . . Atlanta
"I was in Atlanta to watch the Celtics play the Hawks in the first round of the NBA playoffs last April. There was zero local buzz about the Hawks or the playoffs. While the Celtics and Hawks warmed up for their postseason clash, all the televisions at Philips Arena were tuned into Georgia’s intramural spring football game, for which 93,000 fans were gathered in Athens. In the next day’s local paper, coverage of Georgia’s spring practice dwarfed that of the NBA playoff game."

I suppose in his mind the question is why aren't the locals interested in the NBA playoffs.
My question would be why should anybody care that much about first round pro hoopsters? I think the Atlantians have the right attitude on this account.

Seriously.

Get a haircut Dan and then get a clue. LOL

 

[mdk01]

The South just has much more passion for their college football teams than their professional ones, and the Northeast is the opposite.

Their college football teams were the only game in town for a long, long time. The Falcons didn't exist until 1966. Outside of a 1 season disaster in Dallas in 1952, there were no NFL: teams south of Chicago and Washington until the Cardinals moved to. Louis in 1960 and the Cowboys came to be. The state universities were the best football for hundreds of miles, and before TV became omnipresent.

 

[RUChoppin]

Their college football teams were the only game in town for a long, long time. The Falcons didn't exist until 1966. Outside of a 1 season disaster in Dallas in 1952, there were no NFL: teams south of Chicago and Washington until the Cardinals moved to. Louis in 1960 and the Cowboys came to be. The state universities were the best football for hundreds of miles, and before TV became omnipresent.

Completely agree. There are multi-generational ties to these schools, and history that goes back well over 100 years. Their booster networks are huge. Many of their stadiums are larger than NFL stadiums (in this case, the Bulldogs play in front of a stadium of 93K, whereas the Falcons play in front of 71K). Kids grow up thinking of playing for these big state universities... not so much thinking of playing for a specific pro franchise.

 

[srru86]

Outside of a 1 season disaster in Dallas in 1952, there were no NFL: teams south of Chicago and Washington until the Cardinals moved to. Louis in 1960 and the Cowboys came to be. The state universities were the best football for hundreds of miles, and before TV became omnipresent.

This is a very good point.

The Falcons didn't exist until 1966.

Meanwhile the Patriots have been playing since the time of the Mayflower.

 

[BoroKnight]

Atlanta has been bashed as a bad pro sports town forever. Braves fans are routinely criticized; it will be interesting to see how their move to the suburbs (when everyone else is going the opposite way) will play out. They've lost not one but two hockey teams, the Flames and Thrashers. Not really sure how the Hawks do, although apparently a playoff series barely gets attention. Can't comment on the Falcons, as it's football and it's the South. But bashing Atlanta as a sports town is nothing new.

 

[ruready07]

The northeast is a huge entry point in the USA for immigrants. We have a constant flow of people coming in and out of this area and deep ties aren't always made - when many of the people are just trying to stay afloat in this jungleland, a resentment is often built up by the people towards the state or town or whatever.

The thing is - there is a weird pride that people in jersey have about the place that runs deeper than what many other states feel.