Typing this post as a fully converted football fan who, until four years ago despised the sport, I realized something about the state of football in the state of Alabama. Yes, it’s about touchdowns. Yes, it’s about century-old rivalries. Yes, it’s about team colors and mascots, scores and superstars in the making, but it’s more than that. It’s more than a game. It’s a movement subconsciously (and successfully) meant to build bridges.

To me, Bama football is about a state being able to work towards working past its self-inflicted wounds to win, not just on the field, but in humanity with a piece of pigskin, a crowded stadium, and four quarters as a backdrop. I know we’re not all the way there, but I believe something happens on a Saturday afternoon in the fall or Monday night in the winter that causes us to inch one yard closer to the goal of where we should be…and that’s together. Say what you…