As we just completed Week 1 in Oregon, and we get set to kick the season off in Washington, the buzz and excitement of “Game Day” is in the air all over the Northwest.
For weeks now players have been tweeting and posting pictures of their gear they’ve ordered for the season – those must-have items that they feel like takes their game to the next level. It’s a superstition of sorts, which got us thinking that there might not be anything quite as superstitious as playing a sport.
Players and coaches alike all have those routines we have to go through before a game, something we like to wear, and order we have to put our pads on, that if we DON’T do, leaves us feeling off. They’re our “Game Day Traditions”.
For this week’s #NEIpoll we are asking you what is your game day tradition or superstition.
To submit your answer, simply tweet using the hashtag #NEIpoll telling what yours tradition is and why.
As always, the team here at NEI will start it off with ours from our playing days.
Ryland – Pre-game Nap:
Before games I have to take a nap. Still to this day before I play a sport I take a solid power nap before I gotta go. Usually try to do it a few hours before the game. I don’t usually sleep well the night before and this helps me feel refreshed.
Scott – Two-for-twos for breakfast:
When I was in high school, McDonald’s sold 2 sausage McMuffins for two bucks, their “two-for-two” promotion. Every game day that was my breakfast, no matter what, and it continued through my time coaching as well. It was just something special that I only did on game days, and the day wouldn’t feel right unless I did.
Taylor – Throwing the route tree:
I went out before actual warmups and threw the entire route tree with my WRs to both the left and right sides, and had to be 100% or we’d start over at the beginning. I believed if you can’t beat air, you definitely can’t beat an opponent. It ended up becoming very intimidating to teams, because they saw a glimpse of what they were in for later that night.
Jordan – Lucky arm band:
I wore the same black Nike arm band during all of my Football and baseball games I played in. It smelled something awful and I could never fully get the smell of Icee Hot off of it. I never felt complete suiting up for a game without it.
