The Football Outfit

I wonder if every boy got at least one “Football Outfit” for Christmas. The helmet was not recommended for real play and the shoulder pads were a tad deficient, but putting on that jersey and those pants was the next best thing to winning the NFL Championship. I was a Colts fan back then, and of course, there was no Superbowl.

I loved making great moves with that ball tucked safely under my arm and smashing through the line to make those game winning touchdowns.

In reality, I was plowing into the back of the couch, but I don’t remember having a flag thrown on me by my Mother or Dad. I suppose they were content to give up the furniture for my imaginary success.

Sometimes, I took my game outside. This allowed me to have a passing game as well. But I had to improvise since that usually involves two people and I mostly played alone. Being much slower than Superman (or a cartoon character like Bugs Bunny), it was rather difficult to be the quarterback and the receiver, but I was creative and had an excellent imagination.

I would take the ball from an imaginary center, fade back and throw a high arching pass that allowed me to run under it and catch it most of the time. My inconsistent throws made it a challenge to work my way down the field without running out of downs. Most of the time, though, I brought the stadium crowd to their feet to cheer for my amazing game-winning touchdowns.

Just a child’s imagination and a Football outfit. Great memories!!