A Letter From the Editor: Football is back, and it feels so good

There are other sports outside of football, but to those who are die hard football fans, all others tend to fall flat.

What is it about the sport which absolutely encapsulates the public so much?

Is it the fact it is the ultimate team game, with 11 players having to play as one to reach success?

Is it the gambling aspect where people can wager on almost every aspect of the game?

Is it the fact it brings a unique, and almost unmatched, physicality compared to other mainstream sports?

I could go on, but the sport so many people love has finally returned! It started officially this past weekend when college football got into Week 1 with some marquee matchups like Ohio State vs. Texas and Clemson vs. LSU. Just like that, the long offseason was over and fans will have at least four days of football every week until January once the NFL kicks off this Thursday night in Philadelphia when the Dallas Cowboys travel to play their NFC East rivals on Thursday night.

Indeed, football is back, and for me it a beautiful time of year.

Football returning isn’t just a time when the Steelers are back on the television, but also when content creators like myself suddenly have a plethora of topics to both talk and write about. The Steelers returning also marks the unofficial end of summer when you start to feel the crisp and cool air moving into our area, signifying football, fall and the holidays on the horizon.

I love it all, but for me what I think is the biggest appeal to the sport of football, college or professional, is the timeline.

What do I mean by the timeline? Simple. They play one game a week, and that game is extremely important every week. This isn’t an 82 game NBA season, an 84 game NHL season or a 162 game MLB season. In the NFL you’re talking about 17 opportunities to prove your team is worthy of a playoff spot. Talk about pressure, and talk about must-see television.

On top of the simple fact that football is played less frequently than any other sport, I feel another huge draw to the sport is the fact there is time to breath in between contests. When a game is played, you have at least four days before the next contest. This allows fans, media, and content creators plenty of time to break down what happened, to digest the results, and prepare for the next contest on the schedule.

It is a weekly anticipatory rise to what feels like a culminating event. Every game feels as if it carries more significance.

That’s what makes football great, at least to me.

So, when the country watched Arch Manning and the Texas Longhorns invade Columbus to play the Ohio State Buckeyes only to lose, the initial reaction was that Manning didn’t have the “it factor” after struggling against one of the best teams in the country.

Was it a knee jerk reaction for a player who automatically will be held to a higher standard because of his last name? Was it a knee jerk reaction to a player who will make over $6 million dollars in NIL money this season?

It’s a yes to all of those, but it’s part of the process, and signifies the football frenzy we all love is back. It is finally back, and I’m here for all those knee jerk reactions.

This week at the Steel Curtain Network we will be getting you ready for the Week 1 game vs. the New York Jets in every way possible. If I’m this excited for the start of the regular season, I know I’m not alone.

So, if you fall into the category of Steelers fans who are ready to consume as much content as possible leading up to kickoff…we got you covered. More on that type of stuff later, but for now rest easy knowing the sport we all love and cling too is finally back!