One More Game

Somewhere, there is a radio that has been tuned to the same station since November.

Somewhere, there is a tee-shirt that hasn't been washed in months.

Somewhere, someone will realize that they are out of the snack that they've eaten during every UK game this year -- and they will dash out at the last minute for a re-supply.

And all over Kentucky -- all over the world of Wildcat fans -- there are lucky chairs, sofas, seat cushions, televisions, and even towels.

Sports fans are generally either superstitious or not superstitious, and the non-superstitious usually have little patience with their nervous brethren. But in a year like this one -- where the Cats have spent most of the season on long winning streaks -- those fans who are superstitious have probably built up a massive, and somewhat burdensome, collection of rituals by now. So let me say a few things in their defense.

First, a lot of success in sports competition really is attributable to luck. Ask the UNC fans, who will always remember this season as The Year Kendall Marshall Broke His Wrist. The Bible tells us that the race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but time and chance happeneth to them all. So it is only natural to seek ways to help time and chance work in your favor.

Second, it is simply heartbreaking to realize that we care so much about the outcome, but can do almost nothing to bring it about. The emotional toll risked by a true fan is simply enormous, and if he or she thinks that wearing certain socks or being with certain people helps the cause, then I am not willing to condemn them.

Third, humans tend to process the world through rituals. We have rituals for many traumatic experiences, such as weddings and funerals. If Kentucky beats Kansas, and wins the national championship, many of us will feel a sort of transcendent joy that happens only on very rare occasions. And it makes sense that people would turn to ritual to process the emotional tension created by that situation.

So my advice to the non-superstitious fan is to be content in your rationalism, view it as a spiritual blessing, and leave your superstitious neighbor alone. And my advice to the superstitious fan is to keep doing what you've been doing so far. It may not make any difference to the Cats, but it could make a huge difference to how you feel. After all, it's only one more game.

One more game.

One more game.