(Part 1 of a 2-blog series)
San Diego is known for their world-class attractions... Sea World, the Gaslamp Quarter, the San Diego Zoo just to name a few. But "America's Finest City" is in great peril of losing one of it's own regional gems, and that could spell disaster for a city still trying to establish itself as a big-time player in the world of professional sports. That gem is the San Diego Chargers. In an era where cities such as Los Angeles, San Antonio, and Las Vegas have been vying (and struggling in some cases) to woo an elusive National Football League franchise, San Diego is in danger of watching their prized team bolt to another city (perhaps a 2-hour trek north on interstate 5) and that would be chaotic for the county's professional sports fans whom still hunger for a world championship. Below are a few reasons as to why the Chargers must remain a San Diego asset, and why San Diego politicians must find a way to keep those Uhaul trucks away from Qualcomm Stadium... permanently.
The Chargers were created in 1960 and in their first year of existence called Los Angeles their home. But it wasn't until the team moved to San Diego in 1961 did the franchise begin to establish a strong foundation amongst football enthusiasts and sports fans alike. During the Chargers presence in San Diego, the team has made 17 playoff appearances, won 14 Western Division championships, 1 Conference championship, and made 1 Super Bowl appearance. The Chargers also take part in various charitable events throughout the year in San Diego County and even award their own athletic scholarships to local San Diego student athletes.
But lets place the statistical history of the Bolts aside. Charger games have become a highly-anticipated yearly tradition among San Diego's football aficionados. Like many Bolt fans, I remember growing up in the South Bay area of San Diego (National City and Bonita to be precise) and hosting carne asadas on Sundays with friends and family alike. The thrill and excitement of watching our team take on a weekly adversary (especially the much-hated Oakland Raiders) became entrenched in the very fabric of my being. Should the team pack it's bags and move then this tradition, which is practiced amongst thousands of San Diego football fans, will be eliminated. Sunday Chargers football gatherings, carne asadas, and bar-b-ques will cease to exist. Depression will be aplenty. That takes me to my next reason...
In December 2009 I had the pleasure of taking one of my nearest and dearest friends (Trollop as I affectionately refer to her) to her first professional football experience. The game was held at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium and featured the Chargers versus the Cincinnati Bungles... errrr... I mean Bengals. As we entered the parking lot, the look that overcame her face can only be compared to a kid at a candy store. The site of fan camaraderie and beer consumption, along with the smell of steaks and grilled chicken was intoxicating to her and from that moment on she knew she was hooked. She was grabbing her first taste of the Charger tailgating experience, and she loved every second of it.
Yup, Charger fans know how to have a good time, and the immense love they have for their team is always on full display when experiencing a game in Mission Valley. But this devotion was not started over night. It was nourished and strengthened because of over 50 years of Chargers football in San Diego. The community is tied to this team, and one can only assume (hope?) the team is tied to the community. If the team should pack up and move it stands to reason they will not be able to replicate this kind of fan devotion right off the bat. San Diego provides them with generation after generation of Bolt fanatics.
SAN DIEGO DESERVES THE LOMBARDI TROPHY
It was a crisp afternoon in San Diego. The date was Sunday, January 29th, 1995 which coincidentally was also my birthday. My family and I were huddled around the television as we watched our team participate in the greatest sports spectacle in American culture, the Super Bowl. Behind the fire-power of quarterback Stan Humphries, and the thunderous running game headed by Natrone Means, the Chargers made their first (and so far only) appearance in the NFL's grandest show. Their opponent, however, was more than capable of taking them on and by game's end Hall-of-Fame QB Steve Young and the San Francisco 49ers sliced and diced the Bolts 49-26. It was a shellacking of epic proportions courtesy of the Northern Californians, no doubt about it, but what this game did was establish a hunger never before realized by Chargers faithful. Charger fans got their first taste of the "big show" and the dream of one day hoisting the Vince Lombardi Trophy in downtown San Diego became all the more coveted.
Fast-forward 16 years and that dream still has not come to fruition. Year in and year out Charger fans have grown accustomed to saying "wait till next season," but the heartache remains. Watching their team get oh so close to a return to the promised land but then lay an egg in the playoffs has been excruciatingly frustrating for even the most die-hard fanatics. Now after more than 50 years of dreaming and yearning for the Lombardi Trophy, the possibility of San Diego never winning a world football championship is very real. The Chargers have made it known their days in San Diego will be numbered should a stadium deal not be in the works by the end of the 2011 season. And as the 11th hour of Chargers football in San Diego approaches, area politicians have to make a vital decision: should they put an added emphasis on getting a new stadium built thereby keeping the team in San Diego, or will they fumble the team away to some other city desperate for NFL action. The time for action has arrived... Los Angeles awaits.
-Antonio X. Garcia
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