Rivalry, anyone?

The big debate in the City of Houston this week is whether or not a rivalry exists between our beloved Texans, and the Dallas Cowboys. All week, on all three major sports talk radio stations the argument has been turning the airwaves blue.

Allow me to clarify the reasons for this strange and rapidly expanding case…

The Cowboys have been around for fifty years now. As most of us grew up, we were inundated with legendary games between the ‘pokes’ and the rest of the league. The “Ice Bowl” and numerous Super Bowls have left a sense of tradition, excellence and winning that few teams can rival. They took the label: America’s Team, somehow, only I don’t remember when that was voted into place. It just seemed like we woke up one day and the talking heads were calling them that. So be it.

The Houston Texans were voted into existence just ten years ago, sort of a reach-around from the league to offset the way that Bud Adams (owner of the former Houston Oilers) left town, like a thief in the night. I don’t know if you’ve ever had the experience, but it left our city stunned and suddenly without football. Imagine a heroin addict suddenly forced to go cold turkey…you get the idea.

When the league voted us back in with a new franchise, they did so by default, mostly. They gave L.A. a few chances to get the newest team, but LaLa land could not get the proper funding together. So, reluctantly, the league turned back to Houston, who was standing there with a big bag of dirty oil money and the plans for a new, state-of-the-art stadium that we built right down town, just next door to our other famous old landmark the Astrodome.

I remember when my old stomping grounds in Carolina got their franchise. Within three years, because of all the special drafting and free agent picks the league allowed at the time, both Carolina and Jacksonville (they got an expansion team as well, remember?) were able to assemble a couple of nice teams that made it to the playoffs within their first three years; hell, Carolina made it to the Super Bowl!

The league decided they would change the rules for expansion draft after that; evidently the old boys with the old teams did not take well to new upstarts getting too many advantages right off the bat. After all, teams like Green Bay started back when drinking was still illegal and women had to dress with their ankles covered. So, the Texans came into the league with a weak team, a frail quarterback and a lot of hope.

Just to be a good guy, Jerry Jones even offered to let us play his Cowboys in our very first game. With a few years of no football still leaving a bad taste in our mouths, the devoted Houston fans did not ask for much, just to beat the damn Cowboys! Posters were printed up stating that we fans did not particularly care if we won any of the other games in that inaugural season, as long as we beat those POKES!

You may remember, we did win that first game: 19-11 in September of 2002. But from that point on, it has been an agonizing eight years of trial and error until we finally put together enough pieces to make what can now be called “A Contender”.

This preseason the experts already had the Cowboys picked as the natural team to go to the Super Bowl and be the first team ever to actually host the game as well. But, the Pokes are 0-2 and we Texans (the red-headed step child of Texas, evidently) are 2-0, impressively.

While Dallas fans keep talking as if they’re surprised to find another team in Houston, we are thumping our chests and shouting Hell Yeah!

It’s strange really; since we have so small a history, it is known only to us, as a whole. Most of the country is still waking up to the idea that Houston could actually have a competitive team, ask the Colts. Most other cities with great history and tradition behind their teams don’t want to take us seriously, ask the Redskins. But, whether you know us or not, you need to get your heads around the fact that we are here and we are going to make a little noise this season. After Sunday, you can ask Dallas if Houston has a team.

Within the city, we have so many people who have come from all around the country to live here, since we actually have a strong economy, among so much else. Those who came to live here have brought the love of teams they grew up with. Instead of doing that, I let go of all my old allegiances and put my flag down behind the team that my adopted city has. But when Cowboy fans call in to HOUSTON radio stations to talk about the Pokes, it makes us want to crush those poor fuckers all that much more.

Maybe, after this season, a few of those who call this town their home will start calling the Texans their team.