BY KEVIN FRIEDENBERG

In print | Published November 20, 2008

The cold air cuts through you like a knife. Breathing hard from the last play, you realize you need this third-down stop more than ever. Your team is down a score and the opposition is at midfield, needing only one completion to get a new set of downs. You look at the other team’s quarterback. He’s pushing 50 and he hasn’t had much serious exercise in about a year. Regardless, he’s thrown several touchdowns today and is making a strong MVP bid. Your team’s defense matches up in man-to-man coverage and you like the odds. ­­Mom wisely goes into press coverage on Pop to take away the short routes, knowing he has a bum knee and choosing not to respect his speed. Cousin Mike, the largest of the cousins, lines up on Uncle Greg: a strong match-up since Uncle Greg has a penchant for throwing cheap shots and has already sidelined your brother’s fiancée with a knee injury. You see your little sister being covered by Aunt Judy, by far the weakest defensive pairing. At only twelve years old, your sister has proved a productive receiver, snagging several game-changing passes (though Aunt Judy’s defensive motives are highly suspect). Your team needs a big play, so you forgo the game-legislated “7-Mississippi” count in favor of your one blitz per set of downs. The quarterback motions into a shotgun package and takes the snap. The scream of “BLITZ!” rushes from your mouth, and you nearly get the sack but he manages to get a wobbling off-balance throw over your head. Fortunately, alleviating your suspicion, Aunt Judy has swatted the ball to the ground, inches from the hands of the other team’s go-to receiver.

Does this scene sound familiar? Maybe, maybe not. As Thanksgiving rolls around the corner, the opportunity for family-oriented sporting activities is at the year’s peak. Playing sports with your family is a great way not only to get some exercise and work up a strong appetite for a gargantuan meal, but also to spend time with your family. Since many of us here at Swarthmore do not go home or see our families very often, the Thanksgiving weekend gives us a nice chance to spend time with those we love.

Sports are an integral part of the Thanksgiving experience. If your family is not large enough to field two-teamed sports, there are many other ways to enjoy both the company of your family and sports. For example, a game of wiffleball requires only two or three players, and physical activity is limited to pitching, hitting, and possibly fielding the ball. Also, if competition isn’t your style, just grab a family member and a ball and head outside and throw (or kick) around. I can guarantee you that there are plenty of things to talk about on Thanksgiving. Too cold or too lazy to watch the local high school football games? Watch sports on TV instead. College and professional football usually have several games playing on Thanksgiving, so have everyone get together and munch on snacks around a game. Sports and Thanksgiving go together so perfectly that any sports fan out there is sure to see the connection. Perhaps the best part is that sports on Thanksgiving allow you to do what is most important: spend time with your family. If for no other reason, get involved in family sports on Thanksgiving just to be active. Fortunately, sporting events (both in person and on TV) afford everyone the opportunity to gather around and just be a family. Chances are that, if you are reading this column, you are interested in sports anyway, so why not go online and check out if any of your favorite teams have games on Thanksgiving? As a last resort, you could always sit everyone around a TV in their post-meal paralysis and pop in a family-friendly sports movie like “Rudy” or “Miracle” (I wouldn’t recommend “Any Given Sunday” or “The Last Boy Scout”). So next week, when you are preparing to gorge yourself on meat and potatoes, don’t forget to give thanks to the things that make the day special: family and sports.

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