“Incessant Score Updates Helpful At First, Then Instantly Maddening”

“Digital age.” “Smartphones.” “Apps.” “Instant gratification.” Buzzwords. The days of recording the big game are over, my friends. They’ve come and gone too fast. The first DVR-like machines made their way into households during the early 2000s. As the development of smartphones has progressed, I’m afraid DVRs have lost their value to sports fans. Before having the scores at the tips of nearly everyone’s fingers, all we had to do was tell our friends to shut up and avoid any large TVs broadcasting the game. Now? Good luck getting through the day without finding yourself rummaging through “ESPN Scorecenter” or accidentally finding out that Buster Olney has the most recent tweet on your feed.

Unimportant regular-season games? Fine. When I’m here at school and since I’m not paying for cable and I can’t watch the game anyways? Also, fine. But in situations like the one I was in last week back home in Florida, it’s just unfair.

Despite having no team in the NFL Playoffs, nothing beats the competitive nature of postseason football. Dad and I recorded the Seahawks/Falcons game before having to run out for a bit. (On a separate note: anyone notice like half the teams in the playoffs are a type of bird?) Naturally, like most people who own iPhone’s, I start pulling up my Facebook and Twitter feeds out of habit during the car ride back. The score is honestly the last thing I am thinking about. Bam! 28-30. Falcons win.

I squeeze my eyes shut then immediately start looking around for a distraction. “Didn’t see that. Didn’t see what? Nope. Nope. Your crazy. Where’s “Words with Friends’?” It was no use. The damage was done. Watching the game later was still enjoyable, but it felt like watching replays. I rewatch Game 6 of the Yankees/Marlins World Series in 2003 sometimes because it is one of my favorite games ever and has an great ending…but there’s no substitute for the first time you saw it. The anticipation of not knowing how things will turn out is a huge part of what sports are all about.

Thankfully, I stopped myself from looking into any details of the game’s finish so I didn’t yet know that it was a field goal with 8-seconds left in the 4^th quarter that won the game for the Falcons, nor did I know about the epic comeback by the Seahawks who scored 21 in the 4^th quarter to take a 28-27 lead with under a minute to play. Those exact details were novel and welcomed during the viewing process. However, each of these mysteries began piecing themselves together and by the time the 4^th quarter rolled around, it was obvious that the Seahawks had to score 21 in the 4^th and that only a field goal would finish the game 28-30 Falcons.