When it comes to sports, I have bad mojo. I would go so far as to say that my level of bad mojo rises to that of Austin Powers' regular mojo. I'll give you an example. The other night, the Knicks held a 23 point lead over the Celtics with 8 minutes to play, and I called the game over. The Celtics immediately proceeded to rally back (though the Knicks barely held them off).
I am a Knicks fan, a Mets fan, a Rangers fan, and a Falcons fan. Yes, I know, one of these things is not like the others. One of these things just doesn't belong. How did the Falcons get in there? There is a story to that.
In New York, it is common for Mets fans to also be Jets fans. They played in the same building (Shea Stadium) for years. Also, the name Jets was adopted (The entered the AFL as the Titans (perhaps to compare to the Giants?)) not because they were next to La Guardia Airport, but because it rhymes with Mets. Giants fans are usually Yankees fans.
More fun facts below the fold.
So, I was a Jets fan as well. In the last 40 years, I have one World Series title, one Stanley Cup, and a whole lot of pathetic. During the 2012 presidential campaign, Woody Johnson, the owner of the Jets, said that he would rather see a Romney win than a Jets win. That day, I disavowed the Jets, they became dead to me.
I'm sure that the Tisch family and the Mara family lean toward Romney, too. Several of his friends own teams after all. However, they never expressed that sentiment on the air. When this went down, the Giants were in first place in their division. Burdened with the baggage of my mojo, they missed the playoffs. They then asked me to pick another team.
Entering the new season, burdened with guilt, I posted to facebook that I needed a team. A couple of lovely Atlanta ladies invited me to become a Falcons fan. We had watched them beat the Seahawks in the playoffs together. I had warned them of the danger involved, but they insisted. After much soul-searching, I took them up on their offer. The Falcons, considered by many to be Superbowl contenders, sit at 1-4 in the bye week.
The Giants are 0-6. While I am no longer a fan, I never disavowed them. The Jets, at 3-2, are playing better than anybody not named Rex Ryan expected. My Atlanta friends are still standing by me. Other friends have asked me to become a fan of The Patriots or the Cowboys.
I believe that Karma would see through such a tactic. I believe it would backfire. If I were to root for a team only in hopes of infecting them with my fandom, they would probably win more games. It does beg the question, however, whether or not this is a salable asset? Karmic-ally speaking, can I agree not to become a fan of a team for a price?