Arian Foster (23) of the Houston Texans is pretty good.
The answer to the question posed in the headline is: no. But it’s fun to think that maybe, there’s an all-powerful force somewhere guiding the universe and making sure the planets revolve around their life-giving or death-dealing stars, who says “Yeah, if Bubba doesn’t brush his teeth on game day his team will win.”
However, on every game day for every sport, there are probably thousands of people who believe that something that they may do or not do, something they may say or not say, or even something they may think or not think, will help their team win. Or lose.
What do you think? This?
The most casual observer – usually a non-sports fan – would most likely say people who nevertheless have sports superstitions are just plain nuts. Yeah, but it’s fun and it takes our minds off that nasty day in November when our candidate would have won if we’d just worn our red sweater to the polls.
So, on Monday, our hometown team the Houston Texans are gonna face the mighty New England Patriots in cold Foxboro, Mass. The gamblers and pundits will tell you the upstart Texans are underdogs, despite having the better record (11-1) vs. the Patriots’ record (9-3), etc. The Texans haven’t lost a road game this season, but they will play in a place where a visitor hasn’t won in December since 2002.
You will hear the TV announcers say that on Monday night. Of course, if you place too much stock in that stuff then you are really no better off than those guys who think that red sweater is a key to their team’s victory.
Or this?
Naturally we want our hometown Houston boys to win, but we realize (hope) it’s gonna be a heck of a game either way. So this morning we’re at the supermarket to purchase some adult refreshment for the weekend and we see our team’s logo on a famous brand of beer. It doesn’t help that this particular company is running a commercial about fans and their stupid superstitions … to hell with that, let’s drink that stuff on Monday night!
Ha, we’re gonna help our boys win! We’re going to overcome that formidable Patriots mystique with some Texas mojo of our own.
But wait, just down the aisle there’s another display – the same brand of beer, with a different logo: Super Bowl XLVII (what number is that? Somebody please email the answer)! Hmm, what would be a better choice? Drinking a beer with my team’s logo, or swilling the same exact beer with an ever more hopeful Super Bowl logo?
Well, we bought our beer and really, we’re gonna have it all gone by Monday night. So we have to make this brutal choice again on Game Day. Life is hell sometimes.
MP3: “Superstition” by Stevie Wonder
MP3: “The Autumn Wind” with John Facenda
MP3: “Lombardi” with John Facenda
MP3: “Pain Is Inevitable” with John Facenda
MP3: “Be Savage Again” with John Facenda
MP3: “A Golden Boy Again (Up She Rises)”
MP3: “November” with John Facenda
Our own Texans fight song, by George Kovacik and Jeff Balke of Orange Is In, this blog’s house band.
MP3: “What It Was, Was Football” by Andy Griffith
MP3: “Backfield In Motion” by Mel & Tim
MP3: “Flyin’ Helmets” by Kyle Turley
MP3: “All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over For Monday Night Football” by Hank Williams Jr.
And do you remember Faith Hill? Of course you do. Sorry, we love this!
30 Days Out 
