Sports a reason to be thankful

Thanksgiving Day offers us all the perfect time to think about the important things in our lives.
We gather together with family and friends and eat good food. While we all probably spend too much time complaining through the course of the year, the holiday gently reminds us the positives far outweigh the negatives.
That’s true of life in general, and it’s true of the games we love as well. So here are some of the things I’m thankful for in the world of sports.

The resurgent Colts
Some may be surprised to learn that I’m happy the Colts are once again a team headed to the playoffs.
It’s well known that I’m not an Indianapolis fan. And I’ve even written about my feelings that fans in this state were more than a little spoiled during the Peyton Manning era.
But the reality is this: NFL football, or really any sport, is much more fun when the home team is winning. (Trust me, as a Cleveland Browns fan I’ve experienced more than my share of losing.)
Are the Colts in their second year AP (After Peyton) the best team in football? Probably not, especially given the way they’re been playing recently.
But the Colts are good. They have their franchise quarterback in Andrew Luck. Donald Brown looks like he’s figured out how to run the football. And the defense has improved over the disaster that it was a year ago.
After just a single season at the bottom of the standings, Indianapolis looks poised to be a playoff team for the next decade.

A conference
Some fans were happy with the choice for Jay County to join the Allen County Athletic Conference. Some thought they should have opted for the North Central Conference.
The positive, is that they had a chance to join a conference at all.
Although the former Olympic Athletic Conference didn’t officially disband until Anderson Highland closed in 2010, the Patriots have been looking for a conference affiliation for more than a decade. The OAC slipped from 10 teams to five in 2000, and dropped to four after Huntington North departed a few years later.
There had been informal talks with a lot of conferences in the interim, but none had ever showed real interest until this time last year.
Jay County joining South Adams, Southern Wells, Adams Central, Bluffton, Heritage, Woodlan and Leo in the ACAC beginning in the 2014-15 school year will bring a lot of positives for Patriot athletes.
JCHS teams will have a chance to play for something other than pride during the regular season as conference championships will be on the line.
Individual athletes will get the opportunity to gain all-conference recognition. And, perhaps most importantly, rivalries and relationships will be created between Jay County and its ACAC foes.

Staying involved
Moving on in July from the position of sports editor was bittersweet.
On one hand, I was excited to move into my new job as managing editor. It represented a new challenge, a chance to lead The Commercial Review into the future.
On the other hand, I had wanted to be involved in sports media ever since I was a kid. In many ways, being the sports editor was my dream job.
Being able to stay involved with sports coverage even as I’ve moved on from the full-time role has been great.
In the fall, I got to see the Jay County, Fort Recovery and South Adams teams each play several times.
I covered the regional cross country meet, and took photos as the Patriot girls soccer team won its first sectional title. I was able to see every JCHS fall team play at least once.
And so far this winter, I’ve already had the opportunity to cover a pair of Jay County girls basketball games (both wins).
I plan to see plenty more basketball, along with wrestling, swimming and gymnastics in the coming months, followed by track, tennis, golf, baseball and softball in the spring.
My days are certainly different now that I’m not constantly on the sidelines covering athletic events.
But I’m thankful to still have regular opportunities to break out the clipboard and camera.
For me, life wouldn’t be complete without the games.[[In-content Ad]]