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Game day rituals, superstitions abundant among fans ahead of Seahawks playoff game
Blue fever is alive and well in Seattle as fans get set for the playoffs to begin.
The Seahawks are set to kick off wildcard weekend against the division-rival San Francisco 49ers Saturday at 1:30 p.m. You can hear the game live on KIRO Newsradio.
Whether it’s Pittsburgh’s terrible towel, former Philadelphia quarterback Donovan McNabb’s declaration to never shave in the postseason, or players avoiding social media, the NFL and its fans have a history of being superstitious (cue the Stevie Wonder song and ensuing Bud Light commercial).
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One die-hard fan, Delaina Loera, an Air Force veteran who goes by “the 12th man,” said her game day ritual is to wear a Richard Sherman good luck jersey.
“My ex-husband put it in the dryer and so the numbers are coming off,” Loera said, but she doesn’t care. She plans to wear her jersey throughout the playoffs unless Seattle loses.
“Yeah, I am going to be crying tears of joy if my Hawks win,” Loera said.
The game day rituals and superstitions are littered throughout the Puget Sound area, with some fans sharing their team pride at work, wearing jerseys, jackets, scarves, and hats in offices throughout the work day.
The same fans will be donning their Seahawks 12th-man jerseys tomorrow for good luck as well.
One fan wrote in that the Seahawks should not wear their white uniforms tomorrow because they are bad luck.
One fan on Reddit says on game day, he drinks beer out of his Seahawks frozen mug.
“When we watch the game and our team is about to make a touchdown,” a fan, Andrea G., said. “I hold my dog’s ears up for good luck and it works every time … well, most times.”
Steve, from Ballard, said he lights a cigarette, takes a puff and visualizes who will get the first touchdown.
Cindy from Puyallup can’t watch the game on one TV alone. She said if the game is not looking great, she has to get up and watch the game in another room. If it starts to turn for the worse? She pivots to the loft to finish the game on a box TV.
Brady from Federal Way refuses to predict the score and has to have a beer in hand while he watches the game.
Despite the local traditions, Seattle fans are one of the least superstitious fanbases in the country, according to a ResearchScape survey. Among the 1,076 participants surveyed, the Buffalo Bills had the most superstitious fans (34%), followed by the Miami Dolphins (33%), the Pittsburgh Steelers (32%), and the New York Jets and the Green Bay Packers (both 31%).
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Seattle clocked in at 25%, tied with Atlanta for the fourth-least among the NFL franchises. Only New England (24%), Kansas City Chiefs (24%), and Cleveland Browns (22%) have fewer superstitious fans.
“Wearing my team’s jersey,” an Atlanta Falcons fan wrote in the survey. “I have to sit up the whole game with the blinds open and everyone has to be quiet.”
“If I don’t wear my Carolina scarf, then I don’t feel right and can’t watch the game,” a Carolina Panthers fan said.
Whether you believe that game-day rituals work or not, keep doing them because it would be awesome to have the Seahawks go all the way!
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