Dodger Stadium, one of my sports homes as I’ve been to this place over sixty times over forty some-odd years; LOVE the Downtown L.A. skyline in the background! Photo courtesy of lamag.com
WHERE THE SOCAL TEAMS STAND IN MY HEART
Counting the athletic programs at UCLA and USC, there are thirteen teams in the major sports leagues that call this greater Los Angeles area home.
I’ll go ahead and make this admission statement right now…
I am a sports fan.
If I weren’t, this blog wouldn’t exist.
And as such, to be perfectly honest,
As a fan, there are certain SoCal teams that hold a more special place in my heart than others, where I feel glad when they win and upset when they lose.
Which is not only not the case with many of the other SoCal teams,
There is one team/program in particular that, while I don’t hate them (at least not as much as I used to),
I can’t help feeling a sense of gladness when they lose.
I thought that a ranking of where the thirteen sports entities in Los Angeles and Orange County would be an interesting and honest thing for everyone to see, even for those who are fans of the teams I’m not a fan of (sorry if that’s the case with your team; it’s not personal).
These ranking are not in strict numerical order, but rather separated into three groups:
- Teams I’m a fervent fan of
- Teams where if they win, great, but I don’t really pay attention to them otherwise
- Teams that I either don’t care about or am actively not a fan of
Let me go ahead and state my fan preferences, starting with…
THE TEAMS I’M A FERVENT SUPPORTER OF
* LOS ANGELES DODGERS:
I’ve been a proud and active of this flagship baseball club since their World Series appearance in 1977, and as my grandparents were fans dating back to the Jackie Robinson days in Brooklyn and subsequently passed down their devotion to me,
Except for a couple of years in the 1980s when I rooted for other teams to try and be seen as “cool” to my peers, those Dodgers from Chavez Ravine have always held a top place in my heart.
Having a paradise of a stadium to play in, a hot dog that considered baseball’s best (which for health reasons I can’t eat anymore, but still), and the greatest sports broadcaster calling games for over sixty years doesn’t hurt, either.
* UCLA BRUINS (Especially Women’s Gymnastics and Football):
That this is my alma mater is not the only reason why I’ve been a firm member of Bruin Nation for over thirty years.
My mother first exposed me to UCLA while a student herself in the late 1960s and early 70s; I remember being attracted to the powder blue jerseys and the cute Joe Bruin mascot while watching their football games on TV as a kid.
Not to mention the dominance of the basketball teams during the John Wooden dynasty, which likewise happened during my elementary school days.
My desire to be a Bruin only intensified in high school as while I wasn’t able to get into UCLA right afterward, when I was accepted after attending a community college, well, here’s the perfect analogy…
Imagine the nerdiest, dweebiest, wimp in the 1950s asking Marilyn Monroe to be his girlfriend, or the dorkiest, most bullied and laughed at kid today who would be too much of a nerd for “Revenge of the Nerds” asking Beyonce to dump Jay-Z and marry him.
Or in my personal case, asking Lynda Carter – also known as Wonder Woman – my all time number one crush, to go out on a date with me back in the late 70s through the early 80s.
And Marilyn/Beyonce/Lynda saying yes!
THAT’S what getting into UCLA, getting my degree from there, and being part of the Bruin community means to me.
For a long time, thanks to the heroics of guys like Troy Aikman, Gaston Green, Cade McNown, Maurice Jones-Drew and Brett Hundley, UCLA’s football team was my favorite in all of sports.
Now, and for the past few years, the young ladies of the Bruin women’s gymnastics team holds that distinction, thanks to so many wonderful gymnasts ranging from (the ones I’ve personally seen) Kate Richardson, Tasha Schwikert, Anna Li and Ariana Berlin in the previous decade to Sophina DeJesus, Hallie Mossett, Christine Peng Peng Lee, Olympic Gold Medalists Madison Kocian and Kyla Ross and viral sensation (along with DeJesus) Katelyn Ohashi.
As well as – along with Ross and Kocian – current UCLA gymnasts like Felicia “Fish” Hano, Nia Dennis, Norah Flatley and Margzetta Frazier.
Led by the greatest coach to ever work in Westwood apart from Wooden, Valorie Kondos Field, known affectionately as “Miss Val”.
Of course their seven national championships doesn’t hurt my affection for this team.
And of course I greatly support the other UCLA sports like baseball, softball, and basketball.
Make no mistake, I am a fervent member of Bruin Nation.
And I don’t care how anyone else feels about that – Go Bruins!
* LOS ANGELES RAMS:
I have a history of being a fan of this NFL team as a kid, before they moved to Anaheim and subsequently moving to St. Louis, leaving SoCal without pro football for 21 years.
Though I’m not as much of a fanatic of the Rams as I am of the Dodgers and UCLA, them returning to L.A. in 2016 resurrected my fan loyalties to them.
As I’m sure many other SoCal fans.
Now I find myself happy when they win and disappointed when they lose, as they are certainly my favorite team in the NFL.
MY SECOND GROUP – TEAMS WHERE I’M HAPPY IF THEY WIN SOMETHING BIG BUT DON’T PAY THAT MUCH ATTENTION TO THEM OTHERWISE
At the top of that group…
* LOS ANGELES LAKERS:
This is a close call between this Lake Show and their hallway rivals, the Clippers.
But one simple factor gives these Lakers the nod of being on the top of this “Best of the Rest” list…
I grew up with them during their iconic “Showtime” era of the 1980s, featuring,
Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Magic Johnson, James Worthy, coach Pat Riley, Dr. Jerry Buss, A-list Celebrities like Jack Nicholson sitting courtside at the Forum, the Laker Girls (who once had Paula Abdul in their midst), their epic battles between them and the Larry Bird-led Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals;
If I had written this article thirty years ago, the Lakers would undoubtedly be in the group of teams I’m a fervent fan of.
That they fell on extremely bad times during these past six years when they were among the worst teams in the pro basketball changed that.
However,
Adding Anthony Davis to go along with LeBron James, and their 6-1 start which is the best in the league, is very encouraging.
In the meantime, I and the rest of SoCal will always have “Showtime”.
And the Kobe Bryant and Shaq era during the beginning of this century – I haven’t forgotten about them!
* LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
If this article were written twenty years ago, I definitely wouldn’t have these Clippers among my best of the rest as even Sports Illustrated stated in an article that they were the worst franchise in professional sports.
But oh, how the dead have been resurrected this decade-plus, as no matter what Laker fans say about how their Lake Show has won sixteen NBA titles to zero for the Clippers,
Face it Laker Nation, for the past six years in particular Clipper Nation has taken over L.A., not only thanks to Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and the rest of “Lob City”,
But also because of two current Clippers who are among the NBA’s best players…
- Kawhi Leonard
- Paul George
With those two stars complimenting the solid corp of players they already have, I wouldn’t be surprised to see them in the NBA Finals for the first time ever in June – at all!
And Steve Ballmer seems like a terrific and enthusiastic owner for this team, after suffering through such hell with that cheap racist Donald Sterling.
* LAFC
It’s a highly peculiar thing that a team that’s only been in existence for two years holds a higher place in my heart than what normally would be the case for a new franchise.
But the fact that black and gold-colored soccer team has taken SoCal by storm and become more popular than the more established Galaxy in just two seasons, having the best regular season record in Major League Soccer and playing in a state of the art facility next to the Coliseum that sells out all of their games,
With a fan base that’s so incredibly fanatical to the point that they come as close to the extreme fanaticism of English Premier League supporters as one will see in this country,
Has made me put this team in higher regard than the Galaxy.
When just three years ago, this franchise didn’t even exist!
*LOS ANGELES ANGELS
Much like the Lakers, I have a history with this team.
Throughout my formative years, I took a liking toward these Halos from Orange County, even going to a game at now-Angel Stadium in 1991.
It really started in 1979, when they made the postseason for the first time while the Dodgers were having a bad year.
Some of my favorite players were on that club, including Don Baylor and Hall of Famers Rod Carew and Nolan Ryan.
My liking of the Angels continued during much of the 80s as with them signing big names like Fred Lynn and Reggie Jackson, owner Gene Autry – who I heard was one of the nicest guys in baseball – essentially turned them into the American League all star team.
Unfortunately, those Halos had some bad luck in the playoffs; I’ll never forget Donnie Moore giving up that home run to the Boston Red Sox’s Dave Henderson in 1986, which affected Moore so badly that he eventually committed suicide.
I also remember liking that Big “A” scoreboard in left field before they took that out to enclose then-Anaheim Stadium for the Rams.
And though I give them much kudos for finally winning a World Series in 2002, I can’t stand the uniforms that they wear now, with those red caps and those ugly red jerseys that they wear way too much.
If they went back to what they wore in the 80s, I’d like them more.
When it comes to picking a SoCal baseball team to be a fan of, however, for me it’s not even close; I think it’s those ugly red jerseys and caps as much as everything else.
*LOS ANGELES SPARKS
I’ve always felt that it was great that the top women’s sports league in the U.S. has a strong presence in L.A., and has had one since the WNBA began in 1997.
I remember going to one of their games at Staples Center a couple of years ago, the first time I ever frequented that downtown arena and the first time I ever saw a pro basketball game.
Though the Sparks lost, I had a good time at Staples.
Even though those lady hoopsters will never surpass UCLA, the Dodgers, or even the Rams in my fan hierarchy, I like the fact that they are there.
And that unlike their two NBA brother teams that share the same building, you don’t have to spend upwards of $500 to get a good seat at one of their games.
*LOS ANGELES CHARGERS
While I really don’t mind these Bolts who, like the Clippers 35 years before, came up from San Diego to basically be a second fiddle to the Rams,
As evidenced by the way Dignity Health Sports Park is completely overrun by opposing fans who turn the place black and gold (for the Pittsburgh Steelers), green and gold (for the Green Bay Packers), and particularly silver and black (for the soon to be Las Vegas Raiders),
I’m starting to agree with the opinion that those Chargers should have never left San Diego, where they were the sports team in that area.
And I’m beginning to agree that perhaps owner Dean Spanos has made a mistake.
MY THIRD GROUP – TEAMS THAT I DON’T REALLY CARE ABOUT
*LOS ANGELES KINGS
I think my lack of enthusiasm for this flagship hockey club in L.A. stems from the fact that I’ve not only never seen a hockey game in person,
I have never even been on ice skates before.
Yes, I admit to being on the bandwagon during the Kings’ two Stanley Cup titles in 2012 and 2014; I was very happy for them after waiting for over forty years to hoist that cup.
But outside of that, it’s hard to have any real affection for teams who play a sport that, with all due respect, I’m not really feeling.
Sorry Kings fans, it’s nothing personal.
Put it this way – there’s a reason why I had a “Hockey Lady” writing about this team and their Orange County rivals on this blog and the blog I was an editor of a few years back, ” SoCal Sports Hub”.
*LOS ANGELES GALAXY
This is an MLS team that, though they have only one loss to their LAFC rivals,
That loss ended their season a month ago, illustrating how that Carson-based Galaxy squad has had their thunder completely taken away by the proverbial new kid on the block.
Plus the arrogance and often boorish behavior of their likely soon-to-be-former star, Zlatan Ibrahimovic – who after the loss to LAFC grabbed his private parts at a fan – has turned me off on that team, making me prefer LAFC in the SoCal soccer scene once and for all.
*ANAHEIM DUCKS
I care about this team even less than I do the Kings, as my word association regarding them is that hockey version of the “Bad News Bears” movies that came out in the 1990s.
Which the success of such spawned this franchise.
Again, no disrespect intended to the fervent Duck fans; it’s not personal.
At least you’ll always have the distinction of being the first SoCal hockey team to win the Stanley Cup.
AND NOW, THE ONE SOCAL SPORTS ENTITY THAT I FIND MYSELF ACTIVELY ROOTING AGAINST; THE ONLY ENTITY WHERE I AM UNHAPPY WHEN THEY WIN:
Being that I’ve expressed my sports allegiance to UCLA and the Bruin Nation in this article and constantly on this blog, you have one guess as to what that entity is.
Okay, time’s up…
*USC TROJANS
Shockingly enough, before the University of Southern California became my sworn enemies upon matriculating at UCLA,
There was a time when I actually rooted for Trojan football during my upper grade elementary and junior high school days; I even had a couple of USC shirts that I regularly wore and were among my favorites!
I hope Bruin Nation forgives me for that heinous sin, by the way. I was a kid who rooted for whoever won, and SC certainly won a lot during the 1970s and early 80s.
That liking for USC quickly waned upon entering high school, when it was time to get serious about choosing a college, and it pretty much ended for good when I arrived at UCLA during my first personal taste of the Crosstown Rivalry as a member of the Bruin Marching Band;
Those encounters with USC’s “Spirit of Troy” marching band and far too many of their students, fans, and alums were not fun; lots of middle fingers ,”F**K YOU’S” and “F**K THE BRUINS!” abounded.
As well as getting hit by a tomato by a USC fan while marching to the Rose Bowl tunnel as a Bruin band member during my first year.
It was something not unlike Harry Potter and his Dumbledore’s Army fighting Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters on a yearly basis.
Which continued for a while after graduation, to the point where the Trojan arrogance was so unbearable, I stopped attending any Crosstown Rivalry contests save for football games when the Bruins were at home.
There were a few other bad encounters with ‘SC folks, something of them including things I did that I’m definitely not proud of and ashamed to think about today, but it would take too long to detail them all.
In recent years I’ve matured to this point regarding my alma mater’s rival…
While I’ll never be a fan of USC due to not wanting to become a traitor to the Bruin Nation; after all, my name is Derek Hart, NOT Judas Iscariot or Benedict Arnold,
And while I’ll always root for whoever is playing them,
My hatred for the Trojans has considerably lessened, as it’s not at the level that it once was.
In fact, my decreasing dislike for old ‘SC reached the point to where I was able to go onto their campus two years ago and write about the experience at a Trojan baseball game at Dedeaux Field; I even chatted with a former USC band member at that game, who was friendly even AFTER I told him I was in the UCLA band!
That should count for something, as I experienced the notion that Bruins and Trojans are capable of getting along and being friendly with each other.
If that weren’t the case, there wouldn’t be all those Romeo and Juliet-style relationships and marriages between students and alumni of SoCal’s two biggest institutions of higher learning.
But it still doesn’t mean that I will ever switch my allegiances or become a member of the “Trojan Family “.
At the end of the day, I can still beat any USC student, fan, or alum by saying just two words…
Jackie Robinson.
My favorite team in football since the early 1980s! Photo courtesy of athlonsports.com