Toss That Football

Baseball is our nation’s pastime, but football is its obsession. The NFL’s season runs from September to February, but the league pervades the sports air the entire year. That’s welcome news to the many fans with insatiable appetites for anything football flavored. Mmm … pigskin!

Those afflicted with post-Super Bowl malaise can enjoy a smorgasbord of off-season events — everything from combines and the draft in the spring to OTAs (organized team activities) and training camps in the summer — that seize the spotlight from the NBA, NHL and any other sport that dares battle the NFL for attention. Even a dry subject, if it has a wisp of NFL-ness, garners “lead story” treatment on ESPN’s SportsCenter. (Example: the April release of the upcoming season’s schedule.) We can never have too much football.

Or can we?

After my alma mater won its first softball national championship last week (Go Gators!), an online vendor threw us a curve. Fortunately, I kept my eye on the ball — the one at the end of the product description. I caught that football. If I could, I’d snap it, center-like, between my legs to a quarterback to ensure that it takes a hike. Then I’d have someone toss a softball in our direction. Underhand, of course.