I think football fever has finally taken over around the Carolinas. With the Panthers headed to the Super Bowl, it seems like everyone everywhere is talking about football. I’m sure there will be lots of Super Bowl parties, tailgate parties and people at home watching the big game, whether it’s on a small TV or a super-sized one.

When I was a child growing up, I’ll admit I really didn’t know very much about the game of football. Of course, my brothers, our friends and I played a little football as I grew up, but I still didn’t know much about the game other than if you ran the ball across the goal it was a touchdown and if the other team had the ball, you tried to keep them from scoring.

Even when I went to watch our players from dear ol’ Ellerbe High School play in a game, about all I knew was when they scored, I cheered along with everyone else. Then I’m afraid I’d go right back to talking with my friends and still be completely in the dark about what a first-down was or any other football terminology.

My junior year in high school, the powers-that-be decided to let the girls have a Powder Puff football game. Of course, that suited all of us girls just fine. It was not to be tackle football but flag football — which sounded wonderful to me who, at that time, weighed 98 pounds soaking wet.

The coach for our team had us stay after school one day so we could go over the rules of the game and to set up some plays and to get in some practice. When he started talked about the different positions and first downs and such things as that, I knew I should have been paying closer attention when I had attended those boys’ football games instead of doing all that talking. He finally gave up on trying to teach us any complicated plays and stuck to the basics needed to try to score some goals.

I knew I wouldn’t be the quarterback on our team because I just didn’t have the arm for it, but I was a fast runner and I could catch the ball. I knew I would be happy just to get a chance to catch the ball and run with it and to score for our team.

On the night of the big game, it was fun to suit up in pads and jerseys and helmets so people could hardly recognize who we were. There is a picture I just recently looked at in our high school annual and it was hard to pick out who was who — even me.

When the game finally got started, we were all revved up and ready to go. The other team kicked the ball and lo and behold if I didn’t catch it. I ran it all the way in for a goal! Of course, some of the girls on the other team said I had the rag too deep in my back pocket so they couldn’t pull it out. The referee checked it and said it was fine, so we went on with the game.

The next time our team got the ball, the quarterback reared back and threw me the ball. I was running down the field a few feet ahead of the girls chasing me. All of a sudden from out of the blue, one of those girls tackled me and threw me down to the ground like a rag doll. That surely did not feel like flag football to me, especially when I went to get up.

However, even if my knees had been all skinned up or whatever, I’m sure I would have gotten back up and continued playing because I’m stubborn like that, you know. I was thankful, though that the referee warned her against doing that again. I don’t think I could have taken many tackles from a girl who probably outweighed me by 50 pounds.

We had another Powder Puff game my senior year. I actually got to score a touchdown in that game, too. I’m not bragging, mind you, just stating facts. It’s a lot more fun, I think, if you feel like you’ve helped your team whether you win or lose the game. However, we did win — so that was icing on the cake.

I really have only started watching professional football in the last few years. I started out pretty much just watching the Super Bowl and a few playoff games along the way. This year, though, it seems like I must have gotten football fever early. I have watched a lot of the Panthers games this year — part of the games, at least.

There was a lot of hype even early on about them having a good team and they have really talked a lot about it on TV. All of that publicity probably helped in getting new viewers for their games, don’t you think?

I have heard a lot of people say recently that they have never even liked football but they watched the playoff games this year. I suppose if you hear a lot of people talking about something, maybe it makes you curious about it. I have found that sometimes people don’t want to be left out in conversations about things, whether it’s football or even golf if the big game is in Pinehurst.

Years ago, my mother-in-law won a 6-foot-long sub from Subway for Super Bowl weekend. I feel sure she didn’t even watch the game, but she was not going to let any of that sub go to waste. We ate off of that thing for weeks because what we didn’t eat on Super Bowl Sunday went into the freezer so it could be recycled and recycled again. That dear sweet woman would freeze almost anything rather than waste it.

Even if you don’t claim to know anything about football, I suppose it’s a good time to get together with family and friends to eat and fellowship.

At least if there’s a bunch of people all watching the game together, there ought to be a few who can help you out if you don’t know what’s going on.

Whether the Panthers win or lose, it’s been a great boost to the economy in North Carolina having so many people come in from out of state and even out of the country to watch the playoff and regular-season games.

Hope you get a chance to watch at least some of the game — and Go, Panthers!

Azalea R. Bolton is a resident of Richmond County and a member of the Story Spinners of Laurinburg and Richmond County Historical Society.

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Azalea Bolton

Storyteller