Celebrating Divisional Champs

[rmered]

No offence to those who have sigs praising their teams for 'winning' their division, but really, losing the World Series, SuperBowl, Stanley Cup or NBA Championship is what that team did.

It's like a guy boasting about being the bride's last boyfriend before she got married to someone else.

You lost. Why celebrate?

Am I on my own here? Or do other people see how pathetic it is to celebrate losing in a different way.

For example Scott Norwood misses a Field Goal and the Giants win the Super Bowl, No problem, as least we won the AFC. I don't think so.

[Intimidator85]

If a team won its division, it stands. A loss in the playoffs can't take away a division title. Though Green Bay lost in the playoffs last year, did they not win the division title? Did the Braves not win more games than everyone else in their division 14 out of the last 15 years? Illinois won the Big Ten basketball title last year, but does it all go away just because they didn't win the national title?

You can't take away or deny division titles just because teams lose in the league championship competition. You can look it up in the record book and it will be confirmed these teams are indeed division champs. Though there is opportunity to accomplish more, not everybody gets to be a division champ so it is indeed a big accomplishment. If the statement is not false, then there is no problem.

I'm not saying this thought process is best or worst, but not all sports fans have a "championship or bust" mentality. You might not be on your own, but many people so far have shown they're not with you in this case.

[infrared41]

No offence to those who have sigs praising their teams for 'winning' their division, but really, losing the World Series, SuperBowl, Stanley Cup or NBA Championship is what that team did.

It's like a guy boasting about being the bride's last boyfriend before she got married to someone else.

You lost. Why celebrate?

Am I on my own here? Or do other people see how pathetic it is to celebrate losing in a different way.

For example Scott Norwood misses a Field Goal and the Giants win the Super Bowl, No problem, as least we won the AFC. I don't think so.

I totally disagree. I would rather lose in the playoffs than not even get there. Sure it's not the ultimate successful season but you can't write off a good season just because you didn't win it all.

As a Buckeye fan what is Ohio State supposed to do? Write a letter to the Big 10 and say thanks but we won't be accepting that Big 10 Conference championship ring because we tied Penn State and we won't be playing in the Rose Bowl?

So if Seattle makes the Super Bowl but gets smoked by the Colts does that mean their season was for nothing? I am betting Seattle fans won't see it that way.

And yes if I was Jennifer Anniston's last boyfriend before she married Brad Pitt I would consider that a pretty nice accomplishment. Only a fool wouldn't.

[mjrbaseball]

What I don't understand are banners that say "Wild Card Champions." That doesn't even make sense. If you're a Wild Card team and lose in the playoffs, you didn't win anything.

[Jigga]

It's like a guy boasting about being the bride's last boyfriend before she got married to someone else.

Dude, that made me laugh so hard I nearly choked on my pizza.

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IMHO, each division is a separate contest. I think victory in those should be celebrated. I also think winning a conference deserves a banner as well. It doesn't celebrate losing as much as it reminds you that eventhough you weren't the league champion, you should take pride in what you accomplished that season.

[sscrunner06]

I don't agree at all. The Houston Astros, for instance, won the NL pennant. There are 15 other teams in the National League who did not. Just because the Astros lost the World Series doesn't mean that the season was a failure, or that they have nothing to be proud of.

Now, I agree with the whole "Wild Card" champions banner. That doesn't really make a lot of sense.

So, rmered, I think you are on your own for this one. And I will continue to proudly display my "2005 Houston Astros NL Champions" sig.

[Alphabet Man]

i kinda agree with rmered.....the aim at the start of the season is to win the Grand Final/Super Bowl/World Series/Stanly Cup etc....not to win things lower than that like Div. and Conf.'s......what i consider a good season is winning the ultimate trophy in the sport (the Premiership)......saying you are conference champs is like us, rmered, celebrating making the finals....not that hard to do.....

i think celebrating winning a conf. or div. title is pretty mediocre, imo, becasue they've lost the real stuff and then gone 'oh but we won the Conf. and or Div.

[JQK]

The big thing in the beginning of the year is to win your division. That's the first step in any championship run. I have no problem celebrating Divisional wins.

Celebrating every playoff series, other than a Championship Series, is retarded, though.

[rmered]

Well, maybe I'm on my own.

My team, Essendon, in the AFL see coming second as wasting a season.

(Coming 10th might not be, so long as the players developing get to a point where the team can win in the near future)

If Seattle were good enough to come second, in my view, it would be a terrible shame to then lose and celebrate winning the NFC.

No shame in losing. They do their best, good for them.

But celebrating a minor achievement, after missing out on the main prize is kinda pathetic.

sscrunner, don't take this personally, I've only just seen your sig.

But that's exactly what I could never do myself. They came second.

Second sucks.

[rmered]

i kinda agree with rmered.....the aim at the start of the season is to win the Grand Final/Super Bowl/World Series/Stanly Cup etc....not to win things lower than that like Div. and Conf.'s......what i consider a good season is winning the ultimate trophy in the sport (the Premiership)......saying you are conference champs is like us, rmered, celebrating making the finals....not that hard to do.....

i think celebrating winning a conf. or div. title is pretty mediocre, imo, becasue they've lost the real stuff and then gone 'oh but we won the Conf. and or Div.

Exactly, the NFL there's 4 teams per Division.

You think New England should be celebrating beating Buffalo, Miami and the Jets to the line?

Damn, we could make a team out of guys on this forum that would give any one of those teams a run for their money.

So when New England finally make the playoffs and lose, I will spew up if I see a Pats 2006 AFC East Champs banner.

Surely wining a Super Bowl, or working towards one is the aim of football teams, as Alpha has said, as it is in our version of it. OK, you have to win your division to get there. But that's a stepping stone, not a destination.

[rmered]

And yes if I was Jennifer Anniston's last boyfriend before she married Brad Pitt I would consider that a pretty nice accomplishment. Only a fool wouldn't.

Mate, If you were, and I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that it wasn't you, but had you been, you wouldn't be announcing it to the world that you're the guy she dumped for someone better in the days afterwards.

My point being that when you lose, just suck it up and lose graciously. Don't make out that you won something. Second place is called first loser for a very good reason. You didn't get what you were after. Be that Jennifer Anniston or Lord Stanley.

[DEAD!]

I guess it depends on the league's structure and what your club's expecations are. The AFL (Australian Football League) is not set up in a way that you can really celebrate some kind of achievement other than a premiership.

Essendon is one of the more successful clubs in the AFL and they expect to win the premiership most seasons much like the Bayern Munich's, the Manchester United's of the soccer world. But a club like St Kilda or Southampton or New Orleans Saints. probably don't have those same expectations.

Baseball's a good example as well. The Astros, for example, have never been to the World Series and an event that has never happened before is a cause for celebration for them. On the other hand, Yankees more likely don't celebrate anything other than a World Series victory.

[rmered]

I guess it depends on the league's structure and what your club's expecations are. The AFL (Australian Football League) is not set up in a way that you can really celebrate some kind of achievement other than a premiership.

Essendon is one of the more successful clubs in the AFL and they expect to win the premiership most seasons much like the Bayern Munich's, the Manchester United's of the soccer world. But a club like St Kilda or Southampton or New Orleans Saints. probably don't have those same expectations.

Baseball's a good example as well. The Astros, for example, have never been to the World Series and an event that has never happened before is a cause for celebration for them. On the other hand, Yankees more likely don't celebrate anything other than a World Series victory.

Perhaps that's why the Yankees win it more often than the Astros.

Expectation.

Look at Alpha's Aints versus our Bombers.

We expect to win premierships, we've won 16. And another 4 before the VFL started.

They celebrate winning a chook raffle like they've won something, and they've won 1. In 130 years.

They even have business articles contrasting the two expectations and the impact on achievements.

(I'll find the link to that and paste it here)

[Mac the Knife]

It's like a guy boasting about being the bride's last boyfriend before she got married to someone else.

Dude, that made me laugh so hard I nearly choked on my pizza.

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IMHO, each division is a separate contest. I think victory in those should be celebrated. I also think winning a conference deserves a banner as well. It doesn't celebrate losing as much as it reminds you that eventhough you weren't the league champion, you should take pride in what you accomplished that season.

Having been in that situation at least twice, I've been grateful in each instance to have been the 'next-to-last'. Had I been the guy married to her, I'dve been regretting it.

[Mac the Knife]

Now, I agree with the whole "Wild Card" champions banner. That doesn't really make a lot of sense.

Yeah, the "Wild Card Champions" thing is a joke, but there's nothing wrong with celebrating a division or league title even if you don't win the whole magilla.

[rmered]

It's like a guy boasting about being the bride's last boyfriend before she got married to someone else.

Dude, that made me laugh so hard I nearly choked on my pizza.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

IMHO, each division is a separate contest. I think victory in those should be celebrated. I also think winning a conference deserves a banner as well. It doesn't celebrate losing as much as it reminds you that eventhough you weren't the league champion, you should take pride in what you accomplished that season.

Having been in that situation at least twice, I've been grateful in each instance to have been the 'next-to-last'. Had I been the guy married to her, I'dve been regretting it.

Perhaps that says more about the women you've dated and broken up with.

I take it, the aforementioned Jennifer Anniston wasn't one of them.

OK, maybe it's just Alpha and me, but I think the whole thing is a bit pathetic.

In my book, you win or you don't. You don't have three winners per Conference.

And one is a really big winner, the others minor winners.

I'll consider it a cultural thing and move on.

[infrared41]

Mate, If you were, and I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that it wasn't you, but had you been, you wouldn't be announcing it to the world that you're the guy she dumped for someone better in the days afterwards.

OK theoretically speaking...

Yeah you're right. I'd never tell someone I was hitting it with Jennifer Anniston. Dude are you serious? It's always better to be the guy before than the guy after. Yeah she ended up with Pitt after "me" but "I" was there first. No one remembers the second mission to land on the moon you know what I mean?

Second, who's to say she dumped me? Maybe we parted amicably and 6 months later she starts dating Pitt. Now why on earth would I not want someone to know about me hooking up with her?

Finally, based on your logic you're telling all of us that every relationship you ever had ended because the girl found someone better?

So yeah I stand by what I said. So to relate all this to the actual topic... if my Cleveland Browns somehow end up losing the AFC title game this season then I'll still consider it a truly great season.

And no you weren't out too far on a limb. I was not Jennifer's last boyfriend before Mr. Pitt. I stopped dating her in '99....and never told a soul until now.

[rmered]

OK, I think you miss my point.

I'm not talking about first.

I'm talking about when you're the guy who she dumps for Brad Pitt, you don't go telling the world.

Whether she does or not, and I don't know why this has become part of the Anniston soap opera, is irrelevant.

I used that analogy to explain the position of the person in question. The loser.

The one NOT with Jennifer Anniston currently.

The team who lost the Super Bowl.

All I'm saying is, when you're the loser in a situation, don't go telling everyone how you're technically the winner.

However, this is apparently only reserved for teams who are used to winning, so good luck with the Browns.

[Alphabet Man]

I guess it depends on the league's structure and what your club's expecations are. The AFL (Australian Football League) is not set up in a way that you can really celebrate some kind of achievement other than a premiership.

Essendon is one of the more successful clubs in the AFL and they expect to win the premiership most seasons much like the Bayern Munich's, the Manchester United's of the soccer world. But a club like St Kilda or Southampton or New Orleans Saints. probably don't have those same expectations.

Baseball's a good example as well. The Astros, for example, have never been to the World Series and an event that has never happened before is a cause for celebration for them. On the other hand, Yankees more likely don't celebrate anything other than a World Series victory.

Perhaps that's why the Yankees win it more often than the Astros.

Expectation.

Look at Alpha's Aints versus our Bombers.

We expect to win premierships, we've won 16. And another 4 before the VFL started.

They celebrate winning a chook raffle like they've won something, and they've won 1. In 130 years.

They even have business articles contrasting the two expectations and the impact on achievements.

(I'll find the link to that and paste it here)

maybe 2002 and prior it was a huge celebration to actually win a game for us....nowadays, now that we are winning more games, we don't celebrate as much as we did back then- see Milney has toned down his post-goal celebrations since then......

yeh i tihnk it's just us Rob....they all accept mediocrity here, you aim to win the big thing, not to win a really unimportant title that means 'we didn't win the super bowl or whatever'....do the NE Patriots say 'Super Bowl Champions and N/AFC East Champions'?......aim for the top

[OnWis97]

To each their own....

When the Twins won it all in 1987 and 1991, was as good as it gets. But when they finally made it back to postseason in 2002, it was very nice for me. It was great to get home, turn on the TV and see them in the postseason once again. I got an AL Central Champs T-Shirt. It's not as sweet as winning it all, but it represents a solid season.

Our teams mean more then "Winning it all is good, everything else is bad." WHen your team can win a division and get to the postseason, they give you something to follow in your leisure time. THe Utah Jazz never won it all with Stockton and Malone. I submit to you that their fans had much more fun during that time than did Clipper fans.