If you’re not aware or don’t care about sports, the football team, the Jacksonville Jaguars had a chance to play in the Super Bowl this year. This would have been a huge win for a team with a ten year losing season. The Jaguars were up against The New England Patriots. Fans called it the “David vs. Goliath” of football. Unfortunately, David lost, but I still hold the Jaguars in high regards and I will love them next season too.
Dear Jacksonville Jaguars,
I have lived in Jacksonville, Florida my entire life. I went to my first ever Jaguars game when I was seven. My dad won a contest and I was interviewed and my face was plastered on the jumbotron. I thought I was famous. The best part of the game was that we actually won. I thought I was the Jaguars’ good luck charm. I made sure to wear my Jaguars T-shirt every Sunday.
I was seven and didn’t understand sports, then I became a teenager and still didn’t understand sports. I had associated Jaguar games with winning and lemonade and ice cream so I still wanted to go for a fun time. But then something happened at the games when I got older, the Jaguars started losing. Consistently. I had enough football knowledge to know that was bad.
Time went on. And we lost again. And then again. And then again. Now I’m at UF, where it is basically required to at least understand football. Now I can scream at plays and yell at the TV. Being a Jaguars fan this year was crazy. We used to be the laughingstock of the NFL. No one thought we would come that close to the Super Bowl. Yet we were one game away.
Jacksonville needed the winning streak this year. It really impacted the city and the fans. We had pride in our town and our team and we were not just another joke on The Good Place (great show by the way). Jacksonville doesn’t really have that much going on, so it is rarely in the public’s eye. It was awesome hearing our city’s name on the news, and in Tweets and Facebook posts. Sundays were now fun and not a stress-filled day of anxiety.
Thank you Jacksonville Jaguars for winning games this year. Thank you Jacksonville Jaguars for proving that we do have the best defense in the NFL. Thank you Jacksonville Jaguars, because our city is back on the map and in a positive light. I have always been a Jags fan, but this year it felt good to say it out loud.
Duval Til We Die,
Kelvy Alter