Becoming Students of the Game

It is a division that occurs in many households: One camp spends tremendous amounts of time with eyes glued to the television set watching football; in the other camp, eyes simply glaze over.

That the division is usually along gender lines is no secret: It has spawned terms such as “Super Bowl widow” and “Monday night widow.”

Enter Dot Sirus, a football fan who teaches a class in Corona del Mar that she hopes will narrow the divide between fan and non-fan or wanna-be fan. The class, “Women’s Introduction to Football,” is a two-evening course teaching the rules and strategy of the game. A pre-Super Bowl session begins today.

“I was meeting women over the years who didn’t know the game and didn’t enjoy football season because they didn’t understand it,” says Sirus, who began teaching the class in the fall of 1995. “I thought I could explain it to them in a way that I could make it interesting for them and easier to follow. “

Because football is a sport most women don’t grow up playing, knowledge of its intricacies doesn’t come from experience in the same way it does for many men.

Sirus acquired her interest in football while attending USC and going to Trojan football games. She learned the game from her brother Jimmy, with whom she watched college football. Currently a freelance writer, her interest in teaching a class about the game came while working as editor-in-chief of Student Sports magazine, formerly California Football magazine.

Renee Nichols of Irvine attended Sirus’ class in October. She was interested in learning about the sport after watching her nephew, Corona del Mar quarterback Mike McClellan, and wanted to learn more about football by the time her 5- and 7-year-old sons started playing.

Nichols says Sirus made her feel comfortable about learning the sport. “It was less intimidating. I could ask questions without feeling stupid.”

Jill Hickerson of Costa Mesa also attended Sirus’ October class. She says that the class was excellent and that she came away wanting to learn even more about the strategies and rules of the game.

“It was nice being taught by a lady learning about a man’s sport,” she says.

Hickerson is an avid Dallas Cowboys fan and says she still has her notes from the class.

People are interested in learning about football for different reasons, Sirus says. They may want to support a specific team or a player from a city or school they once attended. They may have friends or family members who play.

Or they may simply want to be able to watch a game on TV with their spouse.

“Any time either one of the partners takes an interest in the other partner’s activities, you’re building a bond, you’re building a relationship,” says Cort Curtis, a clinical psychologist in Laguna Niguel.

Marriage and family counselor Mary Deane, who practices in Newport Beach, agrees a relationship can be enhanced when there is more common ground.

But, say Deane and other counselors, no one should take on another’s interest out of a sense of obligation. Women and men can and should have separate activities and interests without feeling obligated to participate in the other’s.

Meanwhile, 12 days from now, the showdown between New England and Green Bay will put football front and center in living rooms around the world. Super Bowl Sunday is the most watched annual network program ever. Eight of the 15 all-time top television programs viewed were Super Bowls.

ABC’s “Monday Night Football” is currently ranked fifth in prime-time television programs and is ABC’s highest rated program.

Barbara Lee, a marriage and family counselor in Newport Beach, says that though the hoopla over the Super Bowl comes and goes, the longevity of “Monday Night Football,” which has a 17-week season, can strain a relationship.

“I hear about these widows,” Lee says, “and four months is a very long time to trust the patience of a woman.”

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“Women’s Introduction to Football” is offered through Newport Beach Community Services, (714) 644-3151. The session runs today and Jan. 21 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Oasis Center in Corona del Mar. It is open to men and women. $33.