Don’t Temper Russell Wilson Expectations

Well that title isn’t entirely true, of course. If you’re expecting an undefeated season and national championship, by all means temper away. But don’t temper too much.

Look, I know it’s the reasonable thing to do. And as common sense and years of being a fan dictate, expecting huge success and celebrating it before it comes can be painful and embarrassing later on. It’s almost like a rookie mistake for a sports fan.

However, tempering expectations is just a defense mechanism. It protects us from heartbreak, from having our best hopes and beliefs crushed. Again, it’s also founded in the reasonable observation that many times, things don’t work out, and it hurts when this happens. But in using reason to gain protection from our sports teams’ failures, something else is sacrificed.

Take this play for example—Corey Webster’s OT interception from the 2007 NFC Championship game (I apologize to Packers fans but seriously, you guys should be fine now). As a Giants season-ticket holder, it led to one of the better moments in my life as a fan. I’ll always remember those few weeks as special: I was watching a magical Super Bowl run every weekend with my best friends on the couch next to me.

But I have some regrets when I think back to that particular moment. As much as I enjoy seeing replays like that, you only have one chance to experience it in real time. And my real time experience of that moment was not the excited shock and elation it should have been; instead I was trying to calm everyone down and saying “it’s not over yet” seconds after the ball hit Webster’s hands.

Why? Because Lawrence Tynes’ two missed field goals minutes before had made me suspend all hope and belief of victory, no matter how sure it seemed. This was the natural reaction, but looking back, I feel like I shortchanged myself by worrying. And think about all the Badgers sports moments whose in-game enjoyment could have been hindered by lowering expectations. Were you just waiting for the other shoe to drop in the second half of the Ohio State football game last year? Did you keep telling yourself that it was a valiant effort but there’s no way we’d beat no. 1 during that comeback against OSU at the Kohl Center in February?

Of course, tempering hopes in the time-frame of a single game is much different than tempering them over the course of an entire offseason. Yet it’s still that same defense mechanism, and it still makes you less happy to be a fan.  I’m not trying to say that all tempering of hopes, beliefs, and expectations should be eliminated in sports fans. That’s impossible because building defenses is one of the most human characteristics there is. And they do come in handy. My disappointment over the Knicks’ close playoff losses this year was short-lived due to my pre-acceptance of their failure. And I’m sure Cleveland fans feel the same way.

But I’m just trying to say that embracing that spark of excitement you felt when you heard Russell Wilson was coming to the Badgers isn’t a bad thing. It’s the biggest victory the Badgers will ever achieve in the middle of summer (until D1 Baseball returns to win the College World Series, of course). So embrace it.

Sure, we can subject ourselves to this:

“How can Wilson do better than Tolzein’s amazing efficiency? He throws way more interceptions. Does this offense really need a quarterback who can air it out and who may take away rush attempts from a stacked backfield? He never really won at NC State. How will he fit into the offense? How will he fit into the team and be a leader when he’s only a one-year mercenary? We lost some great offensive linemen and JJ Watt, and the secondary is questionable, Wilson won’t be enough. There’s not enough time for him to fit in.”

And some of those are valid points worth discussing. But isn’t it easier to just be happy he’s here and feel great about the upcoming season? To just sit back and take in the fact that Wisconsin’s quarterback in 2011 will have most raw talent we’ve seen in years? Call me naïve, but I won’t be tempering any of my expectations anytime soon.

(Note: offer not valid once season begins)