Published: Nov. 2, 2013
By NICHOLAS DETTMANN
Daily News Sports Editor
Don’t underestimate the power of women when it comes to
football.
Some area women are proving they know just as much about
football as men through fantasy football.
“I thought it was kind of foolish and a waste of time,”
Heidi Grogan of Germantown said about the concept of fantasy football. “Now
that I’m in it, I love it. It’s a lot of fun.”
She, along with Krysta Johannsen of Hubertus, are in first
place in their respective leagues, while Laurie Schultz of Jackson and Ashley
Weske of Hartford are right in the mix.
The guys in their league call it luck. With a smile, the
women say they know what they’re doing.
“A lot of girls know a lot about football, but I didn’t,”
Johannsen said. “This has taught me a lot about the sport.”
Johannsen is undefeated in her first time playing fantasy
football. Last year in Johannsen’s league, a woman was in her first season of
fantasy football and won.
For those unfamiliar, fantasy football allows people to set
up leagues, mostly online through websites like Yahoo.com and ESPN.com. People
in the leagues can draft any active player in the NFL to be on their team,
essentially creating a dream team. Then, throughout the season, players monitor
their roster, changing it for roster moves, player injuries, etc.
Teams earn points based on a player’s performance. The
better the game, the more points a player will receive from an NFL player. The
statistics are tabulated each week and the team with the most points in a
matchup each week wins the week.
Since the Internet boom, fantasy football went right along
with it, allowing fans to be more involved in the NFL.
For most people not involved in fantasy sports, including
baseball, basketball, hockey, auto racing and even golf, they often perceive
those who are in it as obsessed fanatics.
“Before I started in fantasy football, I had this idea of
people who I thought were in an obsession,” Weske said. “Maybe that was an
understanding of not knowing what it was.
“It’s just people who enjoy the game.”
Fantasy football has also done good things for spouses and
work colleagues.
Grogan just started a new job with Graef Engineering in
Milwaukee. It was a maledominated work environment. About a year after she
started the job, she heard about a fantasy football league her colleagues took
part in. She asked to join as a way to get to know more about the people she
worked with.
“I was in it for the socialization factor,” she said. “I
didn’t think I would enjoy it as much as I have.
“It was a way to build the relationships and be accepted in
a male-dominated field.” Schultz has been married to her husband, Steve, for
five years. The two have used fantasy football to build their relationship in a
different way.
“We watch the games together,” Laurie Schultz said.
“I’ve learned a lot about football. I watched the Packers,
but never watch any other games. My husband wants to watch every game he can.”
This week has been fun for their household, because the
husband and wife are pitted against each other.
The wife is 2-1 all-time against her husband.
“I like to laugh in his face,” she said. “He knows better to
laugh in my face because I’m a poor sport, but it’s all in good competition. We
don’t take it too seriously.”
She promised they’ve never had a domestic problem when she
beats him.
Schultz got into fantasy football while she was on 12 weeks
of maternity leave. She needed something to pass the time.
It’s all fun for each of them, win or lose, but it’s sure
fun to beat the boys.
“I get excited when I win,” Weske said. “It’s an
exhilarating feeling, but I don’t get upset if I lose or let it overwhelm my
life.”
They all promise it’s not luck, as each woman said they do
the research online or through magazines to prepare for the draft and monitor
the NFL on an almost daily basis.
“I love it,” Johannsen said. “I’m always checking my score.”
It’s just as sweet to win as it is when the ladies have a
player the boys desperately want, weeks after criticizing them for the pick.
For Grogan, she drafted Green Bay Packers rookie running
back Eddie Lacy. The guys thought she was being a homer. Lacy was just named
the NFL’s Rookie of the Month for October. And last year, she drafted
Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III, who went on to be the NFL
Rookie of the Year. She was made fun of for that pick too.
“You want to show them up,” Grogan said. “That’s a big part
of it, but in a healthy and fun way.
“They like to say I’m lucky.”
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