I became a fan of the Chargers in the very late 90’s/early 2000’s while attending middle school in San Diego. At the time, the Chargers were only a few years removed from a Super Bowl appearance yet had sunken to the pits of the league. Growing up, I was a Packers fan as I wanted to be like my father, a native Wisconsin. Admittedly, I wore a Brett Favre jersey and enjoyed the Super Bowl festivities for their matchup with the Buccaneers at Qualcomm Stadium, though I truthfully never paid much attention. Was simply a kid trying to be like his dad, and my new Nintendo 64 made sure I was plenty occupied.
Because of how terrible the Chargers were at the time, the team often handed out tickets to students in the area who were doing well in school. They certainly weren’t selling out games (hello….LA?) and had a tough time filling the stadium, so it made sense to improve community relations while not losing any money on seats that would otherwise sit vacant. I did alright in school – well enough to earn a few free tickets, so eventually we started spending our Sunday’s at The Q. After the games, players such as Darren Bennett, Curtis Conway, Rodney Harrison and the late-Junior Seau would stick around to sign autographs for kids, which for an 12-13 year old kid was INCREDIBLE. These guys instantly became my heroes as they’d joke around, toss a football, sign a hat or, as Junior once did, pick me up over his shoulders and call me his Buddy.
Fast forward a few years and the roster has the names of iconic players such as Drew Brees, LaDainian Tomlinson, Doug Flutie and Antonio Gates. As a high school kid at the time, the Chargers were still at the bottom of the league after that infamous Leaf draft. Again, these players would come over to the fence after games and chat with us and sign autographs, take pictures, etc. Doug Flutie and Drew Brees specifically pointed me out and let me back to the little team gettogether that was taking place in a big white tent in the parking lot. I had the chance to play a brief game of catch with these guys, which completely solidified my fandom and obsession.
As a high school graduation gift (then living in Las Vegas), my Aunt bought me season tickets to the Chargers, and we made that 6 hour drive to every home game for two years before the crash of the economy forced us to give up the seats. It was official – I was DIE-HARD. I have enjoyed watching the Chargers from my beginning at the turn of the century through the great years in the mid-2000’s, and continue now through this rough stretch, which I do believe is about to turn around quick.
The move to Los Angeles was a bit hard to handle at first, but at the end of the day, I’m with the Chargers. I cannot even fathom watching an NFL game and seeing those glorious Lightning Bolts on the field and not go crazy for them. I left San Diego and couldn’t hold it against them for doing the same. At the end of the day, I was a major fan of the amazing players and the team, not just the city it came from.
Chargers fan til I die, no matter where on this Earth they play.
-MJ