The sporting world needs personalities to keep its entertainment ball rolling. People such as Rex Ryan and Hank Steinbrenner often fill the void with their moxie, for which they are often referred to as bumbling idiots throughout the media. On one side, reporters sharpen their pencils and ready their microphones as these personas utter anything resembling a word, while the public sits in anticipation to argue its point of view in conjunction with the matter at hand. Experts and naysayers may view these type “A” personas as ludicrous and self-absorbed, but in essence they produce an interesting element for their respective sport and franchise: people are always paying attention no matter what time of year it is.
Recently, Hank Steinbrenner questioned his team’s direction and desire by indicating that the failure of last season may be linked with players “building their mansions.” Obviously trying to spark a fire in his ball club during spring training, the media took it as him attacking the team’s most worshipped current figure, Derek Jeter. Perhaps he should have thought this through prior to speaking or maybe he should not try so hard to be his old man, George. Still, he was able to capture a spot in the headlines for his franchise, even with other New York teams (big trades for Knicks and Nets) controlling the back pages of the newspaper.
Not to be outdone, Rex Ryan talked about the upcoming labor lockout and still guaranteed that his New York Jets will capture next season’s Super Bowl, even though next season is not a certainty. Ryan fully understands the fact that he has as close to “job security” as anyone in professional sports due to his recent success. The Jets fans love him for his attitude, which they perceive as their own and the swagger he conveys is evident as the team lashes out against championship caliber opponents. Ryan successfully reached the root for why fans love their teams so much, they have a need to believe that this is the year the championship comes “home.”
Perhaps most importantly, it offers fuel for sports rivalries to flourish. People in Boston are chomping at the bit, desperately anticipating the Patriots to steamroll the Jets and prove Ryan wrong. How dare Rex Ryan declare such a creed with the unflappable Bill Belichick residing in New England? By the same token, Steinbrenner has now challenged the Yankees to overtake the (better team on paper) Red Sox in the American League East. Despite the fact that their respective sports are not quite “in season” fans are already looking forward to seeing their heroes return to the playing field. While marketing campaigns develop around a tremendous amount of research, design, money, and implementation time, sometimes all it takes is one person with a microphone directly in front of him to achieve the desire effect. For owners the message is quite simple, freedom of speech costs them absolutely nothing, but still puts fannies in the seats.
No comments:
Post a Comment