A personal history of being a lifelong pro-sports fan (Super Bowl special)

“Because I was entering football fandom at the same age that Star Wars was blowing up, the Roger Staubach Dallas Cowboys were my Luke Skywalker, and the Steelers and the Raiders were, in my child mind, the Evil Empire.” —Rolf Potts

In this episode of Deviate, Rolf shares his 2002 NPR “Savvy Traveler” dispatch about trying to watch the Super Bowl in Thailand (2:00); then he and Tod Goldberg discuss how they became NFL football fans as kids in the 1970s, and how this affected their fandom later in life (9:00); how it could be difficult in the days before the Internet for kids to find information about NFL teams and players, and which books they read about the early days of pro football (26:00); the origins of the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs in upstart pro leagues, their more recent fortunes in the NFL, and how the last Chiefs Super Bowl appearance was nine months before Rolf was born (42:30); on watching Super Bowls from overseas and following the Chiefs (or 49ers) as adults, the strengths of the 2020 Chiefs and 49ers teams, and the emotional stakes of Super Bowl LIV (53:00).

Novelist Tod Goldberg (@todgoldberg) is the New York Times bestselling author of over a dozen books, including the novel Gangsterland, which is currently being developed into a television series for Amazon. He is also the director of the University of California-Riverside Palm Desert Low-Residency MFA, and the co-host of the Literary Disco podcast.

NFL games and players:

• Super Bowl LIV (2020 KC Chiefs versus SF 49ers NFL title game)
• Rolf Benirschke (San Diego Chargers placekicker in the 1980s)
• Roger Staubach (Dallas Cowboys quarterback in the 1970s)
• Jack Lambert (Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker in the 1970s)
• Christian “Nigerian Nightmare” Okoye (Chiefs fullback in the 1980s)
• Ray Guy (Oakland Raiders punter in the 1970s)
• Mike Mercer (NFL punter in the 1960s)
• Lou “The Toe” Groza (NFL punter and offensive tackle in the 1950s)
• Marshall Goldberg (Jewish Chicago Cardinals running back in the 1940s)
• Red “Galloping Ghost” Grange (Chicago Bears player-coach in the 1930s)
• 1934 NFL Championship Game, aka the “Sneakers Game” (title game)
• 1940 NFL Championship Game, (73-0 Bears-Giants title game)
• Steve Grogan (New England Patriots quarterback in the 1980s)
• Ed “Too Tall” Jones (Cowboys defensive end in the 1980s)
• Super Bowl IV (1970 Chiefs versus Vikings NFL title game)
• NFL Films: Super Bowl IV Highlights (sports documentary)
• Hank Stram (Chiefs coach from 1960-1974)
• Len Dawson (Chiefs quarterback in the 1960s and 1970s)
• Lloyd C. A. Wells (pioneering scout for the Chiefs in the 1960s)
• Todd Blackledge (Chiefs 1983 draft-pick quarterback)
• Super Bowl XLVII (2013 Ravens versus 49ers NFL title game)
• Patrick Mahomes (current Chiefs quarterback)
• Andy Reid (current Chiefs head coach)
• Jimmy Garoppolo (current 49ers quarterback)
• Super Bowl XVI (1981 49ers versus Bengals NFL title game)

Other links:

• Kumbh Mela (Indian Hindu pilgrimage celebrated every 12 years)
• Watching the Super Bowl in Namibia, by Rolf Potts (essay)
• Super Bowl Exile (Rolf’s 2002 NPR dispatch)
• Tod Goldberg on why sports is so emotionally affecting (Deviate episode)
• The Catch (touchdown reception in the 1981 NFC Championship Game)
• West Coast offense (passing-oriented football strategy)
• Matthew Zapruder (American poet and editor)
• Oakland Raiders relocation to Las Vegas (NFL franchise location change)
• Candlestick Park (former stadium that hosted San Francisco 49ers games)
• Tom Landry, Existentialist, Dead at 75, by Sarah Vowell (essay)
• Nerf (toy brand that made foam footballs)
• Tecmo Bowl (1980s football video game)
• Sears Christmas Wish Book was great American literature (Deviate episode)
• Championship: The NFL Title Games Plus Super Bowl, Jerry Izenberg (book)
• The Super Bowl Shuffle (rap song performed by the 1985 Chicago Bears)
• Bill Haley & His Comets (early rock and roll band)
• All-America Football Conference (professional football league from 1946-49)
• Los Angeles Dons (football team in the AAFC)
• American Football League (professional football league from 1960-69)
• Battle of New Orleans (1815 battle between British and US armies)
• Former Minnesota quarterback Joe Kapp gets in a fight (video)
• Historically black colleges (pre-Civil Rights universities for African-Americans)
• Edgar Allen Poe (Baltimore poet whose poem inspired the Ravens mascot)
• 2014 American League Wild Card Game (Royals v. A’s baseball game)
• Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (American food reality television series)

Marshall Goldberg in 1940 (left), and Tod Goldberg in 2020 (right)

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The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel’s 2017 album Lumber.

Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we’re happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.