Evan Brooks
In my estimation, there’s no greater indignity than masquerading as a football connoisseur while being utterly oblivious.
Apathy towards the sport is pardonable, even excusable. It’s a latent potential waiting to be tapped. However, to feign expertise in football while lacking genuine insight is a grave moral transgression. It’s a stain on one’s character, a usurpation of valor from those who truly comprehend the game. You claim to be a football aficionado, yet you can’t recall Correll Buckhalter? How rich. Can you articulate the merits and evolution of the read option in professional football during the 2010s? What are your thoughts on Chris Borland?
Of course, I’m alluding to the 2024 presidential election.
The Trump campaign and other Republicans, in a distasteful display of ignorance, have questioned the football credentials of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic Vice President nominee and former high school football coach. Some right-wing non-experts have posted and pontificated about the merits of Walz’s football career, simply because he was a defensive coordinator. They wonder how he can claim to be a football coach if he was an assistant coach.
Here’s an example of a post about it from an official Trump campaign account. The replies feature many people agreeing.
I take no pleasure in reporting that all these people lack a fundamental understanding of football. There is perhaps no more authentic football role than defensive coordinator. It’s the purest embodiment of the sport. A head coach is essentially a figurehead, akin to a celebrity chef who hasn’t worked in the kitchen for years. An offensive coordinator is all flash, no substance. They’re often young, charismatic, and angling for their next job — a politician, in essence. Special teams coordinators work closely with kickers.
Defensive Coordinator: The Unsung Hero of Football
To be a defensive coordinator is to embody honor. It’s the American equivalent of being a chivalrous knight. It’s not about seeking glory but living with purpose, because it’s right to live a purpose-driven life. You must acknowledge that points will always be scored, yet you’ll always fight against that tide. Perhaps the only more noble job is strength coach.
Walz, a mastermind defensive coordinator, orchestrated a remarkable turnaround, elevating a struggling team to state champions. Yet, the Republican Party and Trump's campaign are peddling a misguided narrative to voters in the Rust Belt, SEC country, and beyond, downplaying the significance of defense. As if it's not the backbone of championship victories? This blatant display of ignorance sparked outrage online.
Beyond party lines, this was a stunning, official exhibition of the Trump campaign's profound misunderstanding of the game. To belittle a defensive coordinator is to undermine the very essence of the sport. To question the merits of guiding a team of young athletes to triumph in the 4-4 formation? That's a slap in the face to the values that this nation holds most dear.
Not every American needs to be a football connoisseur. However, we must respect the principles of those who do and protect against those who seek to distort reality with their football ignorance.
