Baseball Fan Interviews: Theo Sery

For my story, “Cheering Out of a Suitcase,” featured in the May edition of Norman Einstein’s, I emailed a few people who have moved around the country to discuss their relationships with their hometown teams. Since I wasn’t able to use their complete interviews in the story, I thought I’d share their full insights here. Today’s post spotlights Theo Sery.

Theo is a friend of mine whom I met during my undergraduate years at Oregon State University. He now lives in Alaska, where he is getting his Masters in English. He will soon be pursuing his Ph.D at Indiana University in Pennsylvania, so he’ll have more moving and baseball to add to this wonderful story.

I’m going to do something a little different with Theo’s interview. I’ve removed my questions and let Theo’s words tell the story. His emails were so insightful and full of vivid images that I wanted to remove myself from the text and let his story tell itself.


My name is Theo Sery. Whenever I am asked where I am from, I am puzzled because I grew up in so many places. However, since most of my family is from Wisconsin and I spent my high school years there, I always say that I am from Wisconsin. It is where my mind goes when I think of home.

I am a die-hard fan of the Milwaukee Brewers. My grandfather, Ambrose Sery, helped build the former County Stadium, and ever since I can remember, we would go to the games in summer and would wait outside for autographs. In fact, I remember in 1987 when Grandpa passed away, we all piled into cars after the funeral, still dressed in our funeral attire, and went and cheered on the crew. I’ll never forget the stares! In fact, I believe that was the day that Robin Yount signed my program. I cannot say for certain, but I am sure he was confused as to why someone would dress their child in a suit and tie for a summer afternoon game!

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Starter: Jake Delhomme and His Mantears

Who Is He? Jake Delhomme was the quarterback for the Carolina Panthers, and now he’s not. That’s really all you need to know about him.

Why Do We Like Him? Well, we don’t really like him a whole lot. In fact, we’re pretty much indifferent to him, but we reserve our “benchwarmers” designation for people who totally suck. Since we don’t dislike him that much, we wouldn’t feel very good making him ride the pine. Plus, he used to be a pretty good quarterback. Sure, it was a long time ago, but I’d trust 2003 Jake Delhomme to run my offense. That was the year he led the Panthers to Super Bowl XXXVIII and even had them on the verge of winning until their “idiot kicker” basically handed the game back to the Patriots. Plus, he earns some points for the way he handled his recent press conference and discussed his release. Not only did he openly answer questions about his 18-interception 2009 season (still less than Jay Cutler…), he also now faces the 2010 NFL off-season in man tears. After playing as poorly as he did last year, answering questions about that season couldn’t have been easy, but he admitted, “I played not to make a mistake,” which doesn’t work in the NFL. He also said the line, “If you have any questions, I’ll be happy to babble out an answer for you.” That alone makes him a little more likable. For Oregon State Beavers fans (like myself), Delhomme’s departure means former Beaver Matt Moore will likely be the Panthers starting QB going into the season. Here’s video of Jake Delhomme’s man tear-filled press conference. The waterworks start right away.

Explaining My Fandom

This is a topic that comes up pretty frequently among my friends. Fellow There’s No “I” in Blog writer Ian once asked me, “You don’t really have an NFL team, do you?” As recently as this weekend, I had to explain why I like the Colts now that I am living in Boston and am frequently faced with fervent Patriots fans. Also, I recently took a nice West Coast vacation over the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, which included a trip to the Rose Garden to see the Blazers take on the 76ers and the Q&A session with the Mariners front office Joe wrote about yesterday. All of this got me thinking about my fairly scattered sports loyalties.

Yes, now that I live in Boston, I have become a Red Sox fan, much to the dismay of some of my family members. As much as I love the Mariners, I love the sports culture here much more than in Seattle, both in the stadium and in the city. Even when the Mariners won 116 games and were selling out the stadium, the place was so quiet you could easily have phone conversations. Sometimes it felt like the people that were there thought they had better things to be doing. That won’t fly in Boston. Fenway is all about the game. On big game days, everyone in Boston is a Sox fan. There’s something electric in the city that I love and that never happened while I was in Seattle. That being said, I’d still root for the Mariners over the Red Sox, and I’m very excited to see former Mariners Mike Cameron (and his kind of sideways hat) and Adrian Beltre (and his right testicle) join the Red Sox in 2010.

Living in Boston has also opened me up to the wonderful world of the NHL. I’ve always liked hockey, and it’s the only sport other than baseball that I get nostalgic about. Unlike baseball, I never played hockey, but like baseball, I watched it on television with my dad. He never seemed to care too much about basketball or football, but he always liked hockey, and I always liked watching it with him, even before we started making fun of the amazing mullets seen on Hockey Night in Canada. Now I own a Byron Bitz t-shirt and a Bruins jersey. I’ve been to a few games this season, and I cheer for Tuukka Rask because he’s good and has a ridiculously badass name. My original hockey allegiance is with the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League. When I eventually move to Portland, OR, I will make it my mission to get Portland and Seattle NHL teams (Portland also has a WHL team, the Winterhawks). Both cities are great sports towns and are way more deserving of an NHL team than places like Phoenix and Nashville. I’m pretty sure Portland and Seattle would draw better attendance than those teams.

I also moved to Boston in time to jump on the Celtics bandwagon for their championship season. I was a Sonics fan (and would be in the future, if that ever happens), but by now we’re all aware of how the NBA allowed Oklahoma City to steal the team and give them a stupid name (seriously, the Thunder?). As a Celtics fan, I love Rondo’s alien-like wingspan, his crazy speed, and his ability to find passing lanes that few others can find. Brian Scalabrine also brings an underrated element into each home game. No matter what the score, anytime Scal comes into a game, the crowd goes wild for his curly redhead afro and cheers like nuts any time he touches the ball. How many players can get a crowd that into a game simply by standing up? Oh yeah, those other “Big Three” guys are pretty good too.

The other NBA team I’m a fan of is the Portland Trailblazers. This comes from living in Oregon for a few years. Portland is the city I want to live in, and the city I will hopefully move to in the (hopefully not so) distant future, so there’s that connection. On top of that, I like Greg Oden’s 55-year-old expressionless face and hope for him to get and stay healthy. I think Joel Przybilla’s nickname (Vanilla Gorilla) is one of the best in sports, and love the prospect of watching LaMarcus Aldridge and Brandon Roy playing together for a long long time.

And finally, I’ll close out this post by going back to those couple of years I lived in Oregon and attended Oregon State University. That’s right, I am a die-hard Beavers fan. I own more orange clothing than any adult probably should. On the rare occasion I see someone in Boston wearing Ducks green and yellow, part of me wants to yell “GO BEAVERS” at them. I’m not sure this needs a lot of explanation. Pretty much everyone I know, sports fans and non-sports fans alike, maintain a deep-seeded loyalty to their alma mater. Plus, if you’ve ever seen this blog, you’ve probably noticed that I like the Oregon State University Beavers.

*Photo of Squatch courtesy of Funktasm via Creative Commons License

Civil War for the Roses!

Now that we’ve gotten past Rivalry Week, college football fans can focus on the Pacific Northwest where, this Thursday, the Oregon State Beavers will visit the Oregon Ducks in Autzen Stadium for a real rivalry game: the 113th Civil War. Like most rivalry games, the Civil War is always a big game for fans of either team and creates a lot of trash talking. Some Beaver fans are still quick to bring up Joey “FivePicks” with Duck fans, referring to the 2000 game, when Joey Harrington threw five interceptions in a 23-13 loss to the Beavers. All Duck fans have to say is “65-38,” the score of the 2008 Civil War, a blowout win by Oregon that kept the Beavers out of the Rose Bowl. Well, the “Grandaddy of Them All” is at stake again, but this time, for the first time ever, the winner of the Civil War is guaranteed to win the Pac-10 and play in the Rose Bowl.

Both teams come in atop the Pac-10 standings, a far cry from the early season expectations. The Beavers had to replace nine starters from last year’s defense and also had to create a new offensive line. The Ducks, on the other hand, had to deal with a situation you might have heard about in their season-opener against Boise State. Now the Beavers (#13) and Ducks (#7) are playing their best football at the right time. OSU’s defense is best in the Pac-10 and ranks 13th in rushing yards against, and their offense hasn’t been too shabby either. Running back Jacquizz Rodgers is fourth in the country with 20 TDs, and has 1,313 rushing yards (436 receiving, plus a 14-yard pass for a TD). Quizz’s brother James Rodgers ranks #1 in the Pac-10 in all-purpose yards (9th in the nation). Quarterback Sean Canfield has proved he can start a full season, channeled his inner Lyle Moevao, and become the team leader a QB should be. He’s posted 20 TDs, 2,797 yards, and a 147.47 passer rating. On the other end, Oregon freshman LaMichael James stepped in at running back after LaGarrette Blount’s suspension and racked up 1,310 yards, breaking Quizz’s Pac-10 yards as a freshman set last year. Jeremiah Masoli has accounted for 14 passing and 12 rushing TDs, for a total of 2,484 yards. In all likelihood, the quarterback of the winning team will be named the first team All-Pac-10 quarterback. Oh, and again, the winner will walk off the field at Autzen with roses in their mouths.

So who will win, and who will be sent to a second-rate bowl? About a month ago, I would have given the Beavers no shot, especially after watching Oregon throttled USC, but then a Stanford team that OSU beat hung 51 points on the Ducks. Then a decent Arizona team also proved that Oregon can be challenged even while they’re playing they’re best. Meanwhile, OSU’s defense stepped up and helped the Beavers to a 4-game win streak, including a win against then #20 Cal.

Some things to watch: will Masoli and the Ducks carry over the swagger created by their OT win against Arizona? Will the Beavers be more prepared or hung over after essentially having two bye weeks in a row against UW and WSU? Can OSU successfully control the clock with Quizz and keep the Ducks offense off the field while still taking shots down the field? How will OSU’s young defense, especially their cornerbacks, respond to the challenge of James and Masoli? How will Canfield react to the Autzen crowd and playing in his first Civil War? Why does anyone enjoy watching Oregon’s pop-warner spread-option offense? How obnoxious will Oregon’s fans act? Can I write any more questions? My prediction: Beavers win (of course) in a close one, 33-30, with their defense making a key stop in the fourth quarter.

*Photo courtesy of Greg Keene via Creative Commons License

Starter: Lyle Moevao

Who is he? Lyle Moevao is a senior quarterback for the Oregon State Beavers. After starting for most of the 2008 season, an off-season rotator cuff surgery forced Moevao to begin the 2009 season as the backup to another senior QB, Sean Canfield. With Moevao under center in 2008, the Beavers were one win away from the Rose Bowl. After finally getting himself healthy enough to play, Moevao recently suffered a foot injury that required yet another surgery. He’ll be out for the rest of the year. Beavers coach Mike Riley has said the team will pursue a medical redshirt for Moevao to get another year of eligibility, but the chances of that happening are very slim.

Why do we like him? At 5’11”, 225 pounds, Moevao has never been your typical QB prospect, but he’s exactly the type of athlete you want at QB. He’s a leader in every way, and personally, I feel his quarterbacking skills have always been far too underrated. In last year’s Sun Bowl, he led the Beavers to a 3-0 win over Pitt (obviously with a lot of help from the Beavers’ defense), despite missing star running back Jacquizz Rodgers. Before his off-season surgery, reports came out that his doctor was surprised Moevao could even throw the ball at all in that game. This year, he’s given way to Sean Canfield, who I admit I never had much confidence in. Canfield is having a great season though (1,734 yards, 11 TDs, and a 140.98 QB rating) and seems to be getting much better every game — his performance at USC has officially made me a Canfield believer. Canfield has repeatedly credited Moevao with helping him become a better leader. Despite getting on the field for only one play this year, Moevao can always be spotted on the sideline with a huge smile and is always the first person on the field to get both the offensive and defensive units fired up. Playing or not, he seems able to bring out the best of every player. No “I” in Blog also loves football players who make big blocks, especially QBs, because there are very few things that can get a team more fired up than a huge QB block. That being said, here’s my favorite Moevao highlight:



*Photo courtesy of Greg Keene via Creative Commons License