Sean's Take: I grew up with 3 heroes in sports: Joe Montana, Michael Jordan and Owen Nolan. The first of those was forced upon me by my father while the second was thrust into my mind by a combination of the media and popular culture. Only the final one of those legends was created organically, a manifestation of the pride I took in the Sharks early on in both my life and the organization's. Owen Nolan represented everything good in hockey: vicious hits, determination, incredible skill, etc. The usual cliches, but acted out in reality. Even as Nolan reached the final stages of his career, Sharks fans demanded that the organization bring him back. It never happened, but I'll always be grateful for the memories he gifted me.
So that's all three heroes done and dusted. I never had a desire to replace them, but I can't help feeling a bit like I should have. After all, it was their greatness which molded the darkly competitive side of me. Like Nolan, losing not only sat badly inside of me, it tore apart everything I knew; one can analogize Nolan's cheap shot on Ed Belfour in 1999 with any number of destructive sports related tantrums I've thrown over the years. Oh, they also carried out the hero role as inspirations for my successes, but the darkness is the theme that sticks with me most. It's a beautiful, destruction breeds creation type of darkness.
I feel like that line of thinking encapsulates the difference between the time I grew up in and the time we reside in now. I don't need to spell out the differences between the 90's and the nought's, but we can simplify them like so: the 90's were a time of happiness, excitement and discovery, while the post 9/11 2000's were a reclusive, critical, uncreative era. Lime green versus chrome, grey and silver. And such a dichotomy might help to explain why my sports fandom, like others, transformed from a sense of admiration to one of castigation.
If the 90's were a time when Michael Jordan could take over America, the 2000's were the antithesis. Sure, sports commentators ogled over the best in sport (Brett Favre, Tom Brady and LeBron James come to mind) but it seemed as though such praise fell on deaf ears. Fans just accepted the hyperbole as part of the territory, knowing in their minds that they hated the star on the other side of the country, no matter how talented he was. Message boards, blogs and new media sources appeared, all poised to portray a new view of sports from a lens of disgust. I don't mean to imply that this view is wrong, just that it became an influential part of the fan experience. It certainly became my preferred method of looking at things.
We're in a fledgling decade that hasn't yet distinguished itself from it's predecessor, but it's view on heroes is shaping up a little differently. Look at Tim Tebow, for example (I cannot stand talking about Tim Tebow, and I hopefully will not mention him on this blog again, but unfortunately he serves as an unfortunately pertinent example here). Tebow stands as arguably the most divisive figure in sports since...ever. On one hand, you have what might have to be referred to as the old guard, the thinkers of the 2000's who use devices such as logic and reason to explain why Tebow is a waste of time. The other side of the coin is an odd amalgamation of the even older school view on sports figures. As an outsider, it seems to me that Tebow personifies a rejection of hatred and an acceptance of fault. I'm sure his supporters know that he isn't the greatest football player of his time, but somehow they find in him a missing cultural and personal connection. Much like the ones I've cherished over the years.
America is back in the dating game yet again. Sure, they might make some odd choices like Tebow which come off as desperate, they may strike out a few more times with guys like Jeremy Lin, and they might go through some dry spells too. But it seems as though we're entering a new mentality towards sports, one in which heroes are back on the market. I've lost the hero worshiping side of myself, but I' m not too upset that others are finding it again.
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