http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/02/1758384/rally-cry-a-real-howl.html
Sparano might have lost 55 pounds, but Dolfans have lost 37 years waiting for the next Miami Super Bowl championship since the last, those two straight in ever-distant 1972-73. Among us are thousands of fans who have literally grown old waiting, or, in my case, grown from teenagers to curmudgeonly middle-aged sports columnists.
Seventeen NFL franchises have won a Super Bowl. Of fans who have known that feeling, the Dolfans' wait is the third-longest. The only deeper hunger is that of Jets fans (there is a God) by four years and Chiefs fans by three.
LONG TIME COMING
The season-ticket mailers to fans proclaim the 2010 Dolphins season as "South Florida's Biggest Party,'' but that's so off point. Partly because the marketing claim became a bit of a fib the moment LeBron said he was taking his talents to South Beach -- but mostly because it isn't a party atmosphere fans crave.
It is a championship. Or at least the clear sense that progress means one is near.
That is what training camp is about for this Dolphins team that teeters in regard somewhere between OK and good, maybe really good.
Fans are looking for signs that's it OK to dream big, and for now even morsels and crumbs will do.
"Feed the Wolf'' has the players howling, but it's Dolfans whose stomachs are growling.
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dolfan7171, the 23rd and jetssuck like this.
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Im only 18 years old but ive been a diehard fan since '98 and i can say that alone has been a long wait for me to see a dolphins team even near the super bowl. I can only imagine how tough its been on all of the much older dolphins fans.
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I'm 25 and have been a phins fan since I played tecmo back in the day. I went through a football hiatus (damn, why?) and started watching the summer Ginn was drafted.
Always a fan when I've watched and I'm a fan for life. It has been hard. I think the older fans at least have a SB to cling onto. A lot of us young guys don't even know what the taste is like. The phins haven't even been to an AFC Championship game in (we'll just leave the years out) and I think this year we've finally got a (superstitious so I'm not gonna say it). -
Yeah, I'm 23 and became a Dolphins fan in '93. I've seen them win some playoff games but nothing past the Divisional round. There's been a lot of heartbreak but I'm confident in this team and know we can win it all.
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dolfan22 Season Ticket Holder Club Member
You hide the terrible memory very well young man :up: -
32 year old fan still thirsting to see my fins in the Superbowl. So close so many times.
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being a dolphins fan is like a mule chasing the carrot. one day that effing carrot will let its guard down and get mauled to death like a tiger mauls a baby!
siciliansith likes this. -
OWOOOOOOOOOO!! OWOO OWOO OWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
That was a howl by the way.
Should be a pretty cool thing to do in the stadium when our defense makes a play......actually, I dig the hell out of that...OWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
Cam wake comes around the corner, his body outstretched he makes the strip, the ball is on the ground, The ROOKIE MISI SCOOPS IT UP AND TAKES IT IN FOR 6 TD!! OWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!dolfan7171, siciliansith and jetssuck like this. -
Better than being a Lions fan. That is like a dead mule being beaten over and over again. Then a leg might twitch, which shows some signs of life, however nope, that is just the body twitching after death. So back to more and more beating of the dead mule.GISH likes this.
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Im 27. I've been following the fins since 2001(chris chamber's rookie season). I'll always be a fan no matter what, but I'm tired of watching other teams go deep into the playoffs. It's our turn.
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been a while since we saw a Super Bowl, hopefully... we feast this year
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One of the greatest historical aspects of the Dolphins isn't just the perfect season of 72 or the two SB wins or five SB appearances... it's the fact that prior to the 1-15 disaster we had the best win-loss percentage of any NFL team (Cowboys are ahead now by a hair). Don Shula coached the Dolphins for 26 years, 26 flippin years, that's how long I've been alive and longer than a number of folks 'round here have walked the planet... and in that time the team suffered only two losing seasons. Two losing seasons, twenty four seasons at 8 wins or better. In the 31 years between 1970 and 2001 the Dolphins made the playoffs 21 times, often with long 5 year stretches of consecutive playoff appearances. For most of the team's history winning seasons were a given, starting the season 4-1 or better was routine.
But only two Super Bowl wins in that time, 1972 and 1973. 8 to 10 win seasons were the norm for three decades, but only twice did we bring home the championship. Now not only do we not have SB trophies, we don't have near-guaranteed playoff appearances. We are ten years removed from our last playoff win and 18 years from our last AFC championship game appearance, and those 4-1 starts are a memory from another era.
This franchise and the fans are not used to losing records, decades of success has the bar raised even still today. A total of 30 years between Griese and Marino under center, on top of 26 years of Shula on the sideline. No other team had that consistency through three decades.
We are hungry for the playoffs, but we are starving for a championship!the 23rd, dolfan7171 and yousamook like this. -
At one time, I believe we had the best winning percentage of any professional sports team... and that consistency you spoke of is what accomplished that.
I'm hoping we're back on track now...
Good post :up: -
couldnt say it any better! Love the history you put there, I so have been a Dolphin fan since around '93 watching Marino do his thing.