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The Oilers, Wade Phillips, and a Houston Football Legacy

I am a member of a new generation of sports fans; since I was born in 1996, I had missed out on the Oilers glory days in Houston. All I've ever known is the Texans, and I got to watch them grow as I grew up. I had Madden 2003 and 2004 for GameBoy and I remember always playing as Corey Bradford, Jerome Mathis, David Carr, etc. I honestly loved those guys. Fast forward a few years, and I was an 11 year old who couldn't believe the Texans didn't draft my hero Vince Young. Man oh man, little did I know that was a terrific choice. That season I pulled for the Titans because of VY(I know I know-I was a little kid alright?!) and continued to through the end of his Tennessee days. Since, I've grown to be a diehard Texans fan. I'll probably never forgive Jacoby Jones for what he did in that Divisional Game against the Ravens, regardless of how far TJ could've taken us. I'll forever believe that if Matt Schaub had his 2011 defense in 2009, or was just healthy in the 2011 postseason, we would have a Super Bowl Championship for my favorite athlete of all time, Andre Johnson. However, for all that I've followed the Texans, I had no real perspective on the history of Houston football until a couple days ago. That's when I sat down with my Dad and watched Houston '93 with him. It brought tears to his eyes seeing The Jack Pardee Show, The Run and Shoot, and all of the things he said he had forgotten about the Oilers. It truly took him back 20 years. Not only was it an experience for him, it was incredible for me. I saw The Comeback for the first time, saw how the 93 team fell apart, and saw the way the late Bud Adams screwed the city out of its football team. Suddenly, I felt awful for ever rooting for the Titans. Over the next few days, I read a little more about the history of the Oilers. Not just the end times with Bud Adams, but all the way back to the days when Bum Phillips was Head Coach. The only time a Houston team has reached the conference championship game, and he did it twice. I mentioned it to my Dad, and he smiled and recalled it was good times. Bum's passing this season really brought out an emotional response from the city of Houston and the Texans, and although I thought it was cool to have a connection like that, I didn't completely understand. But the way he continued to support the City of Houston even after the Oilers were gone was just awesome. And now, we sit here in a lost season with his son holding the Interim Head Coaching Position of our Texans. Whether it's a good idea to hire Wade Phillips, I don't know. It was a bit of a debacle in Dallas, but this feels different to me. He has a chance to continue the legacy left by his father, and he has had a lot of success as Defensive Coordinator the past few seasons. I know the number one pick is important, but I can't help but root for Coach Phillips to finish off the season with 3 W's. Bob McNair did a wonderful job bringing football back to Houston; now he gets a chance to bring the son of an Oilers and Texas legend in as Head Coach. How can he miss this chance?

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