It’s Monday morning. The weekend is five days away. Three tests, a quiz and a lecture on Keynesian economics await Alex Ehat the moment he walks into Langley. What gets him through the day? Fantasy football.
After a big performance from his team over the weekend, Ehat has bragging rights for the whole week. Langley High School has become the stomping ground for many fantasy football teams, and leagues with friends have become very popular.
For those who don’t know what fantasy football is, it is a virtual game where you can build your own team of actual NFL players. Before the NFL season starts, you have a draft to determine which players will be on your team. Every week, you are matched up with another owner head to head to see which team prevails. Whoever has the most points after a week’s games wins. Points are given based on player performances. For example, a quarterback that has three touchdowns will earn more points than a quarterback with three interceptions.
“It makes watching football ten times more fun. When I beat my brother, I bug him every day about it,” said junior Taymour Hashemzadeh. “Bragging rights are the sole reason I play fantasy football.”
Fantasy football has also caught on with Langley teachers. In sports marketing, students are required to run a fantasy football team for the class. “One, we do it [fantasy football] because it’s fun, and two, we can connect it to the curriculum in some way,” teacher Mr. Michael Piotrowski said.
“When I beat my friends in fantasy football the feeling is indescribable,” Ehat remarked. “It’s glorious.”