My father was a life long fan of the NFL football team, the Pittsburgh Steelers. Until I moved away from western Pennsylvania, I thought football was among the most important parts of life everywhere. In western Pennsylvania, it was and still is. If you live in western Pennsylvania during football season on Friday evenings you go to a high school football game. On Saturday you either go to a college football game or you listen to the game on radio or watch it on tv. On Sundays, and unfortunately now also on Monday and Thursday nights, you either go to an NFL game or you watch it on tv. In western Pennsylvania people needed and still need football like they need oxygen.
The Pittsburgh Steelers existed for 40 years without ever having a winning season. My father had listened to every Steelers game on the radio or later watched the Steelers games on tv, for 40 years, although his team rarely won. My dad, along with most football fans in western Pennsylvania, always hoped the Steelers would win, although Steeler wins were unlikely.
In the Pittsburgh area, football fans were not only men. In western Pennsylvanua women were and are just as interested in and knowledgeable about football as men. In western Pennsylvania, a football game was and is a family event.
Before my oldest sister got married and left home, she went to several Steelers games each season. She took my dad. After she left home, dad continued attending a few Steelers games each season live in Three Rivers Stadium. He got four tickets to a game, so he took mom, as well as me and my twin brother, to those games. We had a blast, whether the Steelers won or lost!
Suddenly, once I got to be 11 years old, the Pittsburgh Steelers started winning football games! They finally got an excellent head coach, who gathered very talented football players. In the 1970s, the Pittsburgh Steelers won many more games than they lost and even won several Super Bowls!
I was so happy for my dad. He had been a loyal Steelers fan through 40 years of losing seasons. He was unbelievably happy when the Steelers had winning seasons and even won Super Bowls!