By Adam Kaplan
Whether or not you are a sports fan, one of the truly captivating and heartwarming stories of the year has been this season of the NFL’s Detroit Lions. (Apologies to my daughter, Josie, who was hoping that the heartwarming NFL story I would be referencing would be the love story of a little known pop music star and a little known tight end who plays for Kansas City, falling in love.) If you are any kind of NFL fan, you know that the Lions have a very long history of frustration and disappointment. They have never won a Superbowl…and in fact have never made it to a Superbowl, the only team in the league to suffer this indignity. They did have some success in their early years (before the Superbowl) but have not won a championship in nearly 70 years. The Lions were the first team ever to lose every game of the season (2008) and just two years ago only mustered three wins. (No…I promise I am not just a frustrated Bear’s fan piling on a division rival to make myself feel better. I am going somewhere with this!)
Coach Campbell – we’re looking forward to practicing field goal technique on the Lower Diamond with you this summer!
This season, the Lions finished with the second best record in the league after an amazing regular season. Watching the Lions in their best season ever was one of the more fun sports stories I’ve seen in a while. It gave the long suffering fans in Detroit something to cheer about …and taught us all something about hope and determination and a true team mentality. The Lions’ season came to a close one game short of their ultimate goal, the Superbowl, when they were defeated by the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship game. The 49ers recorded the greatest comeback in NFC Championship history. A crushing loss for the Lions and their fans…who, it feels like, was just about everyone in the country that doesn’t live in San Francisco.
Certainly, the loss was extraordinarily disappointing to those that had been following this really neat story throughout the season. The Lions were stopped just short of their ultimate goal. Yet, true to the team’s character, they were gracious losers and promised their fans that they would redouble their efforts next season and hopefully reach that ultimate goal. Perhaps the Lions coming so close, yet still falling short, makes the story even more powerful. After such historical futility, and a really bad team just a couple of years ago, the Lions were able to do something wonderful with effort, determination, and the right attitude. It was legitimately inspirational.
One of my favorite Nebagamon traditions is an entire series of awards that are given at camp called the “Broken XXXX Award.” We give the Broken Kickboard Award in swimming, the Broken Spoon Award in M.O.C.A., the Broken Oar Award in rowing, and perhaps the most coveted award in camp, the Broken Racquet Award in tennis. These awards are special because of how one earns them. You see, all of the “Broken XXXX Awards” are given to celebrate effort and attitude over achievement. They are awarded to those kids that work hard, have a great attitude, and contribute to a positive atmosphere in those projects despite the fact that they may not be the strongest swimmer, cook, rower, or tennis player. I have taken the liberty of inviting Dan Campbell and the rest of the Detroit Lions to our Awards Ceremony at the end of the summer this year so that we can give them the Broken Football Award. (Don’t hold your breath on their attendance!) They have earned all of our respect…and some nice Rec Hall bling!
