While talking to a buddy (see #1) today he mentioned he may skip watching Minnesota/USC game Saturday in favor of a neighborhood party. I told him his Top 10 Sports Fan status would be in jeopardy. He inquired what the criteria for this high regard was....I told him, "read my blog and you'll find out."
The following is a list of 10 dudes who make my top 10 list - 66 total dudes - the criteria was generated by a crack committee of sports experts and a panel of Sea Lions off the coast of Chile.
Criteria: must be passionate about ALL sports (Men's Figure Skating is not a sport, it's for men who couldn't play another sport, period). Liking some sports is an automatic DQ (if you need to ask what DQ is, you're probably not gonna make the list). You can show no signs of bandwagon-ism (that eliminates my wife Debi....she magically became a Packer fan again last Winter). And for tiebreaker purposes being a good athlete helps your cause.
10. Scott Polman: Hailing from Shakopee, Minnesota - Scott is the guy who speaks sports, not english. He refers to players on his favorite teams by first name (e.g. Donovan has a great arm), he uses Ron Jaworski type language (e.g. two deep zone and 8 in the box) about sports that he never even played. But the #1 reason he makes this list is he always thinks his team is going to win the prize (e.g. "...the Vikes with the last place schedule are going to make a run this year....").
9. Jay Ettinger: This guy barely makes the list. He is a sports fan Times Ten. I just hate his choice of teams to follow: LA Dodgers and North Carolina Hoops (what is it 1982??? - c'mon Jay, bump the Levi cordorouys and get with the times).
8. Dave Krikke: This guy is a noob to my blog, but he memorizes each word to this blog like a Bible verse (that would qualify most). But this guy bleeds sports (again despite poor choices like the Yankees and Hawks) - his lack of hockey knowledge doesn't keep him out of the top 10, mostly because he respects it as a cultural icon here in MN.
7. Carl Monty: passionate about all sports, loyal to his teams (White Sox, Wolverines, Red Wings, etc) - his athleticism hurts him for sure.
6. Dave Lissauer: First of all, any guy who gives himself his own knickname (Deuce) scores points on the Sports Fan list. A die hard Indians, Cavs, and Browns fan, Deuce is one for the ages. Whenever he's feeling a little big for his britches these phrases usually come in handy: "The Drive", "The Shot", "The Fumble", or my favorite "Edgar Rentieria".
7. Carl Monty: passionate about all sports, loyal to his teams (White Sox, Wolverines, Red Wings, etc) - his athleticism hurts him for sure.
6. Dave Lissauer: First of all, any guy who gives himself his own knickname (Deuce) scores points on the Sports Fan list. A die hard Indians, Cavs, and Browns fan, Deuce is one for the ages. Whenever he's feeling a little big for his britches these phrases usually come in handy: "The Drive", "The Shot", "The Fumble", or my favorite "Edgar Rentieria".
5. Steve Monson: Steve and I go way back. Steve met his wife on a baseball trip to East Lansing, MI to watch his brother play against MSU. Whenever and wherever there is a game -- Steve (like his dad Rich) will be there. Lives in Dallas and is more connected on Minnesota sports than anyone I know.
4. Tony/Scott Cattelino: They both deserve a spot on this list...but ranking one higher than the other would be offensive. My brother/father in-law combo is a treat to be around (except when the Gophers play the Badgers). They know it and love it all (they're admittedly weak in hockey, but still follow it).
3. Jeff Lobl: this guy defines sports fan -- sports drips out of his pours every minute of every day. Loyal is an understatement, he's Pitt Panther football fan through and through (he proposed to his wife on the 50 yard line of Pitt Stadium with and gave his wife an autographed ball of then coach Johnny Majors). Jeff's short coming is his huge disdain of anything basketball. If you asked him who LBJ is he'd say that crummy president from the '60's.
4. Tony/Scott Cattelino: They both deserve a spot on this list...but ranking one higher than the other would be offensive. My brother/father in-law combo is a treat to be around (except when the Gophers play the Badgers). They know it and love it all (they're admittedly weak in hockey, but still follow it).
3. Jeff Lobl: this guy defines sports fan -- sports drips out of his pours every minute of every day. Loyal is an understatement, he's Pitt Panther football fan through and through (he proposed to his wife on the 50 yard line of Pitt Stadium with and gave his wife an autographed ball of then coach Johnny Majors). Jeff's short coming is his huge disdain of anything basketball. If you asked him who LBJ is he'd say that crummy president from the '60's.
2. Pete Johnson: I remember the first day I met Pete (September, 1986). Imagine the first day Wally Pip met Lou Gehrig. I thought I knew everything about sports - this guy put me to shame within 5 minutes. I felt like that guy in Amadeus who knew he's never be as good as Mozart. The guy is a sports encyclopedia. Now if he could only beat me in golf or backgammon.
1. Joe Janasz: The Polish Bow and Arrow....this guy is D, all of the above. I am continually amazed by his fandom. There isn't an event he misses...he is as die hard as they come (he walked home from the Dome after the 98 NFC Championship Game). The other day we show up at a party after watching the Minnesota/USC game for 3+ hours he gets out of the car with an Oregon t-shirt on. I'm like, "Joe, what's with the Duck shirt?" To which he responds, "hey, if you got an Oregon shirt on, the odds of us seeing the game tonight just doubled!!!!!" On top of his fandom the guy runs at least 3 marathons a year, plays 40 rounds of golf, and coaches winning baseball.
Others receiving votes: Jeff Traylor (he'd be #1 if this were the University of Texas only category), Debi Zosel (for marrying me), Mark McCrory (he'd make my list - but Bears and Yankees is an automatic DQ), and my Mom (for letting me come home from Kindergarten to 12th grade to watch the State High School Hockey Tournament).
