I Am a Steelers Fan

Wearing one of my bazillion Steelers shirts at a local Greenville area event a couple weeks ago!

I am a Steelers fan, not a football fan. And, yes, there is a difference. When you grow up in Pittsburgh as I did, you are basically trained to love the Steelers from birth. Like sometimes I wonder if I only got black and gold baby food. I can almost hear my mom saying, “Bob, she gets prunes and bananas. That’s it.” Never mind that prunes aren’t black; they’re the closest thing she could find. Baby food doesn’t come in black bean (thank God).

I jest (sort of) but truly: Pittsburgh is a sports town, and most of all it is a football town. When I lived in Pittsburgh, I didn’t really pay attention to football. I cheered for the Steelers as was expected of me. I think I even went to a game once. I went to a few hockey games and more baseball games, but I never really “got” the whole football thing.

I remember a guy I dated trying to explain football to me. He may as well have been trying to teach me how to conjugate verbs in Russian. I have no affinity for learning languages either. That relationship didn’t last long. Not because I couldn’t understand football, but because we were a terrible fit for one another.

Anyway, my friends from Pittsburgh won’t remember me being in front of the TV every Sunday during football season because I wasn’t. I imagine that when I post something on social media about watching the game, they’re probably perplexed.

It wasn’t until several years ago that I started watching Steelers football and following them on the regular. I am not sure how it happened or when it happened. Possibly when my aunt lived up the street from my parents here is South Carolina? She and mom were/are both big fans and I enjoyed spending time with them; the empath in me fed off that enthusiasm. When I moved into my apartment, I would watch the games and yell at the TV like I knew what was going on. I didn’t. Trust me. (If you don’t trust me, ask Kelly. I can hear her rolling her eyes.) I am still easily lost on the field but do understand it much better now than I once did.

I don’t love the game of football. Like, you know, some people watch every game, have the TVs with all the blocks on the screen so they can watch several at once, pay for a special subscription so they don’t miss any, and watch reruns. I am not that fan. I only care about watching the Steelers. I don’t care about college football. I don’t care if any other NFL team is playing. I watch the Superbowl for halftime and the commercials (unless the Steelers are playing).

I think I became a game-watching, black-and-gold-bleeding, screaming-at-the-TV fan because it makes me feel closer to home. I love Greenville; don’t get me wrong. But Pittsburgh will always be my hometown. It’s a great city and I have a lot of loved ones there. Watching the Steelers somehow gets me closer to my memories of warm family gatherings and legendary parties with friends. And lady locks, pierogis, and pepperoni rolls. But mostly family and friends. Mostly.