Tradition or Just Plain Old Superstition?

True story—in 1994, I had just bought a shirt that had a picture of Sebastian the Ibis and over the top of the image of him it said, "Decade of Champions." Below that, it listed all of the years Miami had won National Championships. I wore that shirt to exactly one game.

The game I wore it to was on September 24, 1994, the Miami-Washington game, which Washington won 38-20 and ended Miami's record 58 home-game winning streak. Needless to say, I never wore that shirt to a game again.

On November 5, 2005, I watched Miami go into Virginia Tech as a substantial underdog and beat the Hokies 27-7, in a game that wasn't nearly as close as the score indicates. What was more important, I ate chicken parmigiana that night. After that, I ate chicken parm during just about every TV game for the rest of the season.

When I go see the official boxer of The Sports Chat Place, Manny Pacquiao, fight, I have this ridiculous orange sweater I wear. While I have encountered people yelling out of cars on the Las Vegas Strip making comments about the sweater, there's no denying the sweater is money.

Of course, our friends on Team Pacquiao and the Wild Card Gym were relieved that I didn't wear it for the recent Hatton-Pacquiao tilt in the desert, it validated a point for them—Manny could win without the sweater. They were sure to comment in that regard.

I was wearing a green sweater with an orange golf shirt underneath the night LSU waxed Miami in the Peach Bowl. Both have found their way to Goodwill.

I was eating a turkey sandwich made of Thanksgiving leftovers when Gerard Phelan caught Doug Flutie's last second prayer. It was the last time I ate a sandwich of that kind while watching a Cane game.

I have a closet full of shoes, shirts, pants, shorts, hats, you name it, all of which have an occasion they either need to be or can't be worn. I also have a whole host of new gear, all awaiting it's fate.

While this just touches on the subject, I know there will be a whole new round of traditions and superstitions to be born in just a few months, I can't wait.

Visit Mitch anytime at The Sports Chat Place