I never knew God was a Saints fan but I realized the fix was in when Drew Brees intoned that "God is great" as he accepted the Lombardi Trophy. The poor Colts never had a chance; they just weren’t spiritual enough.

Nearly every game, and I watch way too many, I see some player thanking God for his team’s victory or for his talent. It’s not long until we see conversations like these:

“Well Gene you guys pulled off an amazing win. Tell us about your defensive plan.”

“Joe, I’d first like to thank my Lord and Savior giving me the speed and strength to hit their quarterback that hard. Hearing his leg snap was one of the most moving spiritual experiences I’ve ever had.”

Or: “Tony, you came back from a 17 point deficit. What did you change up at halftime?”

“Well Joe, I think it was because we out-prayed them during the half. If you saw the way our game picked up you’d have to agree that God just likes our team best.”

How about: “You caught the winning touchdown. How did you make such an amazing catch?”

“It was an amazing catch, one of the greatest ever. I’d just like to give a shout out to The Almighty for my God-given talent and for the humility to handle it so well. And while I’m at it a big ‘Hello’ to my eight kids and their five moms.”

I kind of like Nick McAuley’s take on the whole thing. “…you never hear members of the losing team say, "I have worked so hard for this, and the only reason that things worked out the way they did must have been because God wanted us to lose…God didn't do his part"

I know that players get caught up in the moment, adrenaline and/or HGH pumping, but don’t you get a little tired of the constant sermonizing by players who one moment are using God’s name and the next making the headlines by beating up their wife? “I’d like to especially thank the Lord for my attorney who got my felony assault charge downgraded to a Class 2 misdemeanor.”

I like the example set by Craig Biggio. I don’t know how much talent he was born with but he seems to me like the kind of guy who showed up early for practice and was the last one to leave. He was and still is accredit to the Astros and this town. Most importantly, he and his wife founded Sunshine Kids, a charity that they are both actively involved with. He doesn’t need to talk about his spiritual life; his actions speak louder than words.

Who knows, maybe if we live long enough we’ll hear:

“Salaam, that was an amazing game-32 points and 19 rebounds. That’s the best game of your career.”

“Well first of all I’d like to thank my Lord Krishna…..

“CUT!!!!!”

Sam (not an athlete) Davis
pearlanddem@live.com