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Did you play football, at any level?


Ray Stonada

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Just curious, how many people played organized football, at any level?

 

Do you find it helps you a lot to understand what's going on when you watch the Bills/NFL? What kind of insights does it give you?

 

I don't have much real experience. I was a WR/DB on my college intramural team, but it was a small D-III college. Other than that, it's watching the NFL since I was 12 or so (in my mid-forties now), and playing some video games which actually helped me a lot to understand formations and defenses.

 

Always wish I had more of an insider view, and wondered what I would be able to see if I did.

 

 

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3 minutes ago, Brennan Huff said:

I played as a kid up to JV high school. Then I discovered weed and alcohol 

Add in the desire for the  ladies, and I’m there... 😁 

 

sure beat the hell out of high school football... 

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I have played precisely 1 game in the UK University league (which looks absolutely nothing like football and is a ramshackle amateurish joke to be honest). I am told it has professionalised a bit since but at the time I am not even sure it was safe there was no proper governing body, no proper officiating it was a shambles. 

 

Anyway I played safety and slot receiver. It was kind of fun but I learnt absolutely nothing about the game from that and all of my knowledge has come from watching, reading, listening and generally committing a lot of my spare time to it.

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Just now, GunnerBill said:

I have played precisely 1 game in the UK University league (which looks absolutely nothing like football and is a ramshackle amateurish joke to be honest). I am told it has professionalised a bit since but at the time I am not even sure it was safe there was no proper governing body, no proper officiating it was a shambles. 

 

Anyway I played safety and slot receiver. It was kind of fun but I learnt absolutely nothing about the game from that and all of my knowledge has come from watching, reading, listening and generally committing a lot of my spare time to it.

 

Interesting. I know a little more about tennis cause I played it a lot, and there it feels like the gulf between me and the pros was so big I couldn't connect to much of what they could do. But I could empathize with the mental aspect.

 

I'm amazed they have an "American" football league in UK universities. Is that across the nation?

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3 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

I have played precisely 1 game in the UK University league (which looks absolutely nothing like football and is a ramshackle amateurish joke to be honest). I am told it has professionalised a bit since but at the time I am not even sure it was safe there was no proper governing body, no proper officiating it was a shambles. 

 

Anyway I played safety and slot receiver. It was kind of fun but I learnt absolutely nothing about the game from that and all of my knowledge has come from watching, reading, listening and generally committing a lot of my spare time to it.

Interesting... never knew there was much American football in the UK

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6 minutes ago, Ray Stonada said:

 

Interesting. I know a little more about tennis cause I played it a lot, and there it feels like the gulf between me and the pros was so big I couldn't connect to much of what they could do. But I could empathize with the mental aspect.

 

I'm amazed they have an "American" football league in UK universities. Is that across the nation?

 

No back then it was just a handful of Unis that played and it wasn't in a league they were "friendlies". It was just a bunch of NFL fans running about playing a game that roughly resembled American Football to be honest. Since 2007 there has been a proper league structure and while it isn't every Uni it has grown massively. American Football is one of our fastest growing sports over here.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Universities_American_Football_League#Earlier_structures

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I played tackle at the youth level.  I also played intramurals and for my frat.  Later I played flag as an adult.  Oddly, I learned more about the game playing flag - different route concepts, plays, and even defensive concepts I see on the screen all the time. 

 

Maybe that is a bit of a statement on the direction the NFL has taken.

 

But, no, I don't think playing experience is at all necessary to understand the game.

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i played pop warner all the way through high school.  i think the football that kids get in high school if far more advanced that anything we ever learned.  whether that's a function of the team i was on, (the coaches were the math and science teachers) or the times, i have no idea.  

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1 minute ago, GunnerBill said:

 

No back then it was just a handful of Unis that played and it wasn't in a league they were "friendlies". It was just a bunch of NFL fans running about playing a game that roughly resembled American Football to be honest. Since 2007 there has been a proper league structure and while it isn't every Uni it has grown massively. American Football is one of our fastest growing sports over here.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Universities_American_Football_League#Earlier_structures

 

That's pretty cool. Makes sense that they play games in London now... I wonder if they're seriously considering putting a team there.

 

 

 

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