Don't Mess with Me

My recent bike ride took me past a high-school football field. It's only late spring, but the team already was practicing; then the players posed for photos. I remember that even in the classrooms, even in private high schools which ban facial hair on the boy students, most football players usually go unshaven during the pigskin season. I guess the boys think that when they're on the line during games against other teams, their opponents will look at their facial hair and say, "OhmyGod, these guys are really tough---they don't shave! We're gonna lose!" And I remember the hundreds of newspaper and school photos of football players I've seen over the years. Not a single player ever smiles in any of them. Compare that to the smiling pictures of baseball, tennis, soccer, etc. players. Football players are special people.

-Old Gargoyle