Poll: Football on Thanksgiving

In My Humble Opinion
1

I’ve always known that part of the American Thanksgiving Tradition included football, but it never occurred to me until this year that…hey, my family doesn’t actually watch football on Thanksgiving!

Maybe we did a long time ago, but I can’t remember a time in recent history when we all huddled around the tv for a football game.

Since grandpa moved to a farm 20 years ago, and thus gets craptacular reception on the television, we don’t watch football when we go there for Thanksgiving, which has been maybe 10 of the past 20 years.

We did watch halftime one year when my brother’s college marching band was making an appearance. I’m not sure if we even watched the game.

But we’ve had plenty of Thanksgivings up here at my parents’ house, where the reception is just fine. No football.

Today we had it at my parents, and we had “new” guests in the form of my brother’s inlaws. They spent most of the day in the dining room, but when we moved to the tv-room for chit-chat, the mother-in-law asked about the lack of football. The father-in-law said there wasn’t any football on today unless you had Dish Network or something. I said “No, the Cowboys are on CBS. Check it out.”

MIL was astonished but pleased that we don’t watch football on Thanksgiving. I shrugged and said “I dunno, I think grandpa thinks it’s too violent.” She said she agreed. But FIL, upon realizing he could be watching football right now but wasn’t, hastened their departure so he could get home to his own TV.

Anyway, I was sort of shocked myself at the lack of football on our Thanksgivings. It’s an American tradition that we completely ignore. But maybe it’s like oysters in stuffing - not as widely-spread as one would think.

What say you? How much football goes on in your family during Thanksgiving? Why is it so important - or not?

2

Pretty much all of the males in both mine and my wife’s families are into sports, so football is always on the tube in the background during Thanksgiving. I don’t understand what you mean by “why is it so important?” It’s not THAT important but as long as it’s on, the guys are going to watch it. Unfortunately, the games are usually awful on Thanksgiving. Still, it’s football. I don’t think I’d even agree to go anywhere that day where I couldn’t watch the games.

3

The women too in the SEC.

4

Not everyone. :wink:

My parents were not big TV watchers, and my Mom would have skinned someone alive to suggest turning on the TV (gasp!) during any holiday gathering. One is supposed to make small talk and enjoy each others’ company. She would have considered it very gauche to watch TV at such a time.

Personally, I’m not a sports fan (or a TV fan) by any stretch, so I don’t turn it on either. Hubby and kids could take it or leave it. So, no, we don’t do the football-on-Tday either. I’d rather focus on my visitors/family and not the TV.

I know folks who do, and folks who don’t. I don’t mind it so much when I find myself at a Football household except that the constant background noise is annoying to my ears. I certainly don’t hold it against anyone who does.

As far as it being a shared holiday activity, I prefer something a little more interactive. YMMV, of course.

5

Football has never been on during any holiday in my parents house.

6

In recent years, my parents go hiking on Thanksgiving and eat a buffet dinner. This means that one might catch a few minutes of football at the lodge where the buffet dinner is held, but it isn’t a high priority. In the past, I think Dad liked to turn on the football games, but didn’t make watching them a high priority.

Watching football is a higher priority between Christmas and New Year’s, when the established practice is to set up a jigsaw puzzle in front of the TV, turn on the TV and work on the puzzle. Dad always likes to be at a side of the puzzle where he can see the TV. Some of the rest of us don’t care so much.

(I spent Thanksgiving alone this year, and while a football game was on my tv for a while, I’m not sure I could tell you which teams were playing, let alone who won. It’s dopey, but I sometimes feel less alone with the TV on, even if I turn the sound off. I was entertaining myself by cooking, cleaning, reading, and watching a movie on my laptop computer–sequentially, but in rotation, not all at once).

7

I usually watch the Thanksgiving games, although I’m not usually giving them 100% attention. I actually put on dvds during both of the pro games as they turned into blowouts.

8

None. Zip. Zero. Nada.

It’s predominantly because I hate football, but the reality is that SWMBO doesn’t like it all that much either. And if we have the kids over, we turn off the TV and talk to one another.

9

I have never in my life watched football on Thanksgiving. We don’t turn the TV on for holidays. And we don’t ever watch football anyway. Really, people watch football on Thanksgiving? Don’t the players want to be at home?

10

Football was on at both of my Thanksgiving dinners but not many people were paying much attention to it at either.

11

Only when USC is playing. Nice ass-whoopin’ we put on ASU I might add.