I have lived in the city of San Diego for over half of my life now, arriving in 1990 and (like so many others) never leaving. Along the way, there are certain things that I have heard so often, they have become ingrained in the brain, almost as if they were written in stone at City Hall:
1) “San Diego is not a good sports town”
2) “There is SO much to do here”
Normally, point #2 is used to explain away point #1. San Diego is NOT a good sports town BECAUSE there is so much to do here. Want to know why the Q is 85% empty for an Aztecs game? Point #1, followed by point #2. Why aren’t people plunking down their hard-earned cash in the summer to go watch the hometown nine struggle? Point #2. Why don’t they care enough? Point #1.
Today, I want to take this discussion and turn it on its head. See, we’ve been looking at it all wrong, all these years. From a top-down viewpoint, only examining the pro and top college teams and their attendance/passionate fans, it’s easy to arrive at point #1 and point #2.
But what if we approached it from the other direction? Come with me on a quick tour through some of the lesser-trolled waters in San Diego sports, and you’ll realize it’s precisely because of point #2 (there’s so much to do) that point #1 is exactly backwards.
Meb Keflezighi looks at his NYC Marathon championship medal/(619 Sports photo)
FRIDAY, 11:45am, Hall Of Champions, Balboa Park: the doors haven’t opened yet and already there’s a crowd filling up the concrete walkway leading up to San Diego’s iconic sports museum. NYC Marathon winner Meb Keflezighi, a San Diego High graduate, will be honored here, an event that was put together on the fly after Keflezighi broke the tape in the Big Apple.
Meb’s win capped a remarkable, personal comeback from pain and injury. Keflezighi was just over a year removed from surgery to repair a hairline fracture in his hip. He could not even walk around his house after the surgery, needing to drag himself or be carried to the bathroom. His longtime coach Bob Larsen told him “it had been an honor to work with him”. As in, past tense.
Keflezighi came all the way back, through countless hours of grueling rehab and solitary running. Now, he is in a much different situation, surrounded by hundreds of well-wishers from the San Diego track community.
A huge crowd at the Hall Of Champions gives Keflezighi a standing ovation/(619 Sports photo)
Did you know there was a San Diego track community? Did you know it was deep, varied, and multi-generational? Not if you’re only watching the Chargers and Padres.
Steve Brand knows. The longtime writer came down from his office inside the Hall of Champions on Friday morning and saw the Hall had only set up a couple of rows of chairs for Meb’s welcome. He told them they’d need more. A lot more.
Sure enough, the crowd filled every chair and all the space behind them as well. After Meb spoke to the media and then the assembled fans, taking questions from the audience, he stood behind the stage and signed autographs.
Keflezighi poses with all of his former coaches (including Bob Larsen, 2nd from right)/(619 Sports photo)
For everyone. And I mean, everyone. If you didn’t get an autograph from Meb that day, it’s because you didn’t ask. I watched as he signed hundreds of cards, shirts, medal ribbons, caps and bibs, each one personalized with a different message, each capped with the simple phrase, “Run To Win”. Old teachers, friends, track club members, total strangers…each sharing personal stories with Meb, touching him, getting their pictures taken.
For a sport that is so very solitary, it was a uniquely warm display of community.
This lasted well over an hour after the event was supposed to have ended. I know, because I waited for the very last autograph to be signed before sitting down with Keflezighi for an interview. Naturally, he was happy to do it.
The football field at Valley Center High School/(619 Sports photo)
FRIDAY, 6:55pm, Valley Center High School: up here in of the deepest outposts of North County, the Friday Night Lights shining from Valley Center’s football field are a gleaming beacon for travelers who are sure that they must have taken the wrong road. It’s well over a 90 minute drive from downtown San Diego, given the traffic for a Friday commute, but way out here some serious high school football is taking place.
The Valley Center Jaguars are more than a football team, they are a gathering. For hundreds of yards in each direction from the school parking lot, Cole Grade Road has cars parked with two wheels over the curb. #4 Valley Center is 8-0 and hosting #1 Oceanside, their annual chance to take on the big boys from the coast.
Valley Center senior Stanton Upson poses with his parents on Senior Night/(619 Sports photo)
This scene is being repeated, of course, at countless schools throughout the county. Each week I go out to cover a prep football game, and I’ve yet to see less than a packed house. Tonight, it’s Senior Night in Valley Center, and star VC running back Stanton Upson gets a big cheer as he hugs his parents on the field in pregame ceremonies.
For those who only watch the pros and top college teams, you miss out on something very special at the lower levels. The spirit and passion of high school football is unmatchable. It has its own unique feel; the big-time prospects who literally stand out as men among boys, the hard-working pluggers who are putting in their hard knocks now so they can talk about them for the next 65 years.
This night doesn’t go so well for the home team. By the time Stanton Upson gets his first carry, he’s popped so hard by Oceanside defenders Thomas Molesi and Jake Fely that the crowd gasps. Mom and Dad are going from proud to nervous. The Pirates swashbuckle their way to a 24-0 lead after the first quarter and never look back in a 45-7 thumping.
Still, win or lose, the experience of attending each week’s game is something this community will continue to relish. Did you know there was this much passion for prep sports in your county? If you didn’t, you’re just not paying attention.
Canyonview Acquatic Center, UCSD/(619 Sports photo)
SATURDAY, 2:24pm, Canyonview Aquatic Complex, UCSD: Two student-athletes bob in front of each other, with a crowd of nearly 1,000 standing and cheering. Tritons’ All-American senior Steven Donahoe is preparing to take a penalty shot against Santa Clara, trailing in the 4th quarter 13-12. Broncos’ goalie Michael Wishart is in his way.
The winner of this water polo game will be the 2nd seed in the upcoming Western Water Polo Association playoffs, the loser will be the 4th seed. For added spice, it’s Senior Day, and the UCSD class of 2009 is getting their one and only chance to play in their home pool this season. An equipment failure at the start of the year forced the Tritons to play their home games at La Jolla and Cathedral Catholic high schools, until today. The home opener is also the home finale.
Steven Donahoe scores the game-tying goal for UCSD/(UCSD photo)
Donahoe rises, fakes, fires, and finds the left side of the net. The crowd, which includes all of the UCSD men’s basketball team and several others from different sports around campus, goes crazy. UCSD holds off a desperate last possession from Santa Clara, scores the only goal in overtime, and secures an emotional 14-13 win.
A large crowd watches UCSD play Santa Clara in water polo/(UCSD photo)
Later, I ask Tyler Acevedo, a senior from the basketball team, why so many players from other sports are coming out to support water polo, and vice versa.
“We’re all a family here, and we all pull for one another,” he says.
Did you know there was so much excitement and action taking place on the UCSD campus? Did you even know they play college sports there?
Here’s another question: have you ever watched a water polo match in your life in person? The action moves a lot like basketball, possession to possession, fast-paced and exciting. Do you think in “great sports towns” like Philadelphia and Boston they are getting big crowds to watch outdoor water polo in early November?
If you’re sitting in a snowed-in house, stewing in your own juices and obsessing about the fortunes of your local NFL team, it’s easy to proclaim what you are doing as “being a great fan”. After all, what other option do you have?
Sockers fans cheer on the team at the home opener/(Sockers photo)
SATURDAY, 6:15pm, Del Mar Arena: The place is packed and it is rocking. The San Diego Sockers are being introduced for the first time to a crowd of over 2,700. It’s the start of another attempt to resurrect indoor socker in San Diego, and to return the proud tradition of the Sockers, ten-time indoor champions.
As 40-year-old Paul Wright emerges from the O in the giant inflatable “SOCKERS” logo, the spotlight shines and the crowd cheers like Julie Vee was on the pitch.
Chiky Luna's shot is denied by Mexican goalkeeper Oscar Dautt/(Sockers photo)
I have to admit, I had no idea what to expect in terms of crowd response for the Sockers’ return. Their first exhibition game, held this summer, was staged during the County Fair, so there was almost a captive audience. This time, people would have to choose to come out to the Fairgrounds to watch the Sockers tune up against the Stars of Mexico.
Oh, they came out, alright. The renovated Del Mar Arena is humming, the concourse is full of patrons, youth soccer teams are out in full force, and there are more teens in the stands than I would ever have expected.
Paul Wright attacks the goal for the Sockers/(Sockers photo)
The Sockers get off to a good start, leading 4-1 early, then fade in the middle quarters. The Stars of Mexico roar back to tie the game at 5 late in the third, only to see Wright electrify the crowd with a one-time shot on a rebound at the top of the penalty area, giving San Diego the lead back.
The Mexico team, led by former national team star turned 40-year-old punk Luis Hernandez, gets chippy and spends more time arguing with the refs than playing. Hernandez kicks the Sockers’ Anthony Medina from behind when he’s crouched against the boards, then challenges San Diego coach Phil Salvagio to a fight on the field. He’s ejected to lusty boos.
The Sockers score the last four goals and win 9-5, the game called with 2:07 to play when Mexican defender Lupillo Casteneda takes a hard spill and lands on his neck. He’s ambulanced away but is later OK. The fans have alternated chants for the Sockers and Mexico, joined in a wild frisbee toss contest between periods, and the youth soccer teams have all had a chance to get introduced on the field.
Did you know that indoor soccer could not only draw 2,700 on a Saturday night, but leave the crowd wanting to come back for more? I thought there was too much to do in San Diego for this to be a good sports town?
Triton spirit was in full effect on Saturday/(UCSD photo)
CONCLUSION: What is this story missing? Oh, everything. I’m leaving out roller derby, community colleges, MMA, surfing, action and extreme sports, regatta, and the list goes on.
Sure, this town may not conjure up the same insane passion for their professional and major college teams as we see in the “great sports cities” of America. But, as I hope this slice of life story reveals, our passion is diverse, divergent, and diffused among many different walks of the sporting life.
San Diego is a great sports town. There is so much to do here. And the point is, we do it all.
Craig Elsten -
Chris Ello -
Chainsaw -
