Gifts from the Football Gods!

I am excited about every season...every game...win or lose, I love Redskins football.  Call me superstitious, but I am also ALL ABOUT the Ju Ju.  Much like the recent Bud Light commercial "Labels facing forward", there are certain unwritten signs, do's and don't's that seem to somehow, cosmically, seem to yield positive results, or at least positive game experiences...."it's like magic, except it works".

In 2005, I received the first "gift from the football gods".  In June of 2005, the Richmond Times Dispatch ran a promotion where if you signed up for some email list, of some kind, you would be entered for a chance to win a $500 Redskins Store Gift Card.  I entered, as I do many online contests, and forgot all about it.  Like many fans that year, I was excited about the season.  It was a great football team, both offensively and defensively, though it was in need of consistency.  I never lost faith.  The Thursday before the last preseason game, while checking the mail, I found an envelope addressed to me from the Redskins.  Inside was a short congratulations note and a $500 Redskins store gift card.  A gift from the football gods....and great Ju Ju.  That Saturday, we got up early and rode to the closest Redskins store.  I got a Sonny & Sean Taylor jersey...bought a couple jerseys, hats, and shirts for fellow fans and friends...spread the love and Ju Ju.  After buying and putting on our fresh gear, we went to eat a early lunch at Poe's Pub in Richmond.  Dawning fresh hats and jerseys, we attracted the attention of a local.  He asked, "Do you guys want go to the game today?"...without hesitation, we said "sure!".  We were directed to his friends restaurant, got our tickets, and headed to the game.  It was a sign...a gift...and it steamrolled into a giant mass of positive Ju Ju.  As it turned out, the 2005 season was another roller-coaster season for the Redskins...following two straight losses, including an chilling OT loss to the Chargers, Redskins stood 5-6 on the year in late November.  Fans were weary...but my hope never wavered, though my voice did after losses.  Then, the Ju Ju kicked in....the Redskins went on to win 6 straight, including 1 playoff win, in a season where few expected the Redskins to have a good season.

This year, like all others, started for me just after the close of last year.  I scout rookies like a Front Office manager...and boy, did I like RG3.  He had attracted me to watch many Baylor games earlier that season.  For months, I watched film and news on the draft.  I never expected we would be in position to grab RG3....then, the impossible happened...the Redskins made the move up to draft him...I took this as sign...good Ju Ju.  As we all know, RG3 impressed from day one.  Though my finances were tight, I hoped to see him play his first home game against the Bengals....and wouldn't you know it, Rich Tandler, sports writer for CSN Washington and creater of www.realredskins.com (the best damn Redskins blog out there) awarded me two great club tickets...no contest, just a "thank you" to a dedicated reader (sponsored by Papa Johns).  A gift from the football gods...a sign....great, positive Ju Ju.  We did not win that game, but as many of our losses this year, we should have and certainly could have....the future is bright.  Now, on the dawning of THE MUST WIN game of the year for us, as most here out will be, the football gods have shined down yet another gift to the most gracious of Redskins fans....four tickets to Sunday's home game versus the Eagles, compliments of Coke Zero (follow @CokeZero on twitter).  This is yet another gift...another sign...and I hope for the same magic that pulled us through the 2005 season. Trust me, me and three other super fans will be there to support our team, project our energy.....BRING THE JU JU!

Hail to the Redskins!