The career
of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick is going to the
dogs, but his NFL descent has pushed Joey Harrington to the
front of the line. Some gay fans couldn’t be happier.
Harrington,
28, a 6-foot-4, five-year veteran who is also a jazz
pianist, comes with cover guy looks and has long been a
favorite of Outsports readers. The Falcons acquired the
28-year-old free agent earlier this year soon after he
returned from his honeymoon, a move that didn’t go unnoticed
by gay Falcons fans in search of an object for their
affection since defensive end Patrick Kerney left for the
Seattle Seahawks.
And with all of the controversy swirling around Vick and the
Falcons during the pre-season, a little Harrington goes a
long way.
“I’m excited about the season and yes, I find Harrington
attractive. Who wouldn’t?” says Gregory Hendricks, a gay
Falcons fan in Atlanta. “Even my gay friends who don’t like
football, they like him. All of my friends who hate sports,
once they see him they say, ‘Hey, I’ll go to a game to see
him.’ ”
Harrington came to the Falcons in April as a backup to Vick,
the face of the franchise. He was expected to be nothing but
a backup after less-than-stellar stints with Detroit and
Miami. But that has all changed after Vick pleaded guilty in
federal court on charges relating to dog fighting. He faces
sentencing in December and the NFL has levied an indefinite
suspension.
The legal
drama surrounding Vick has overshadowed the team throughout
the summer, leaving Falcons fans anxious for football to
overtake all else when the season opens Sept. 9 at
Minnesota. Though he’ll miss the opener due to a cruise,
longtime season-ticket holder Jonathan Karron, who is gay,
said he’ll be listening to the game on satellite radio.
“I’ve been through the good and bad with the Falcons. I’ve
stuck with them through thick and thin,” says Karron, a fan
since he was a child and a season ticket holder for 15
years. “I want someone to help the team, not a hunk. It
would be great to have both. But if you watch football, you
want the players to perform. You don’t watch because the
players are hot.”
Karron, though, admits to being a Harrington fan since the
quarterback’s days as a Duck at the University of Oregon,
where he started 28 games and became a finalist for the
Heisman Trophy in 2001. Karron hopes the Falcons have talent
elsewhere to support Harrington.
“Maybe the Falcons will provide a clean slate for him. I am
hoping they have some talent around him. I have my fingers
crossed. I am always the optimist,” Karron says. “I am
hoping he can return to some of that college form.”
Harrington grabbed the national spotlight in June 2001, when
the Ducks paid $250,000 to plaster his likeness in Times
Square with a 10-story billboard promoting him as “Joey
Heisman.” He later graced the covers of “Sports Illustrated”
and “ESPN The Magazine.” Harrington didn’t win the Heisman
Trophy but later was picked third overall in the 2002 NFL
draft by the Lions.
In 2004, Harrington
took some verbal shots in the form of bizarre comments
by Fox NFL analyst Tony Siragusa who disparaged Harrington
for being "sophisticated," then added: "He's the kind of guy
that's on the other side of the club than I am. He's over
there with the champagne and caviar. And also the
strawberries and chocolate, you know?" Harrington retorted:
""Why am I not his kind of guy? Because I was cordial in a
production meeting? Because I tried to be articulate?
Because I smile when I play? Because I enjoy myself out
there? Because I'm not a ‘Billy Badass?’ "
To Falcon fans, all that is in the past. “Joey Harrington’s
been a favorite of mine since he played at Oregon,” says
Hendricks, who attends a few Falcons home games each season.
“After the billboard, that’s when I became a fan. I’m very
happy he plays in Atlanta now. I hope he does well. He’s
never really lived up to his potential, so maybe he will do
good here. “
Mike Horton, a gay football fan in Atlanta who roots for the
New England Patriots, says Harrington may change his
perspective and prompt him to give the Falcons a second
look. “It’s interesting what an extreme opposite Harrington
is to our previous quarterback. I like the fact that he’s
suave and polished, but boy, is he pretty. I think I might
try to make a few more games this year,” he says.
Brian Johnson, a gay University of Georgia graduate who
lives in Atlanta, is eagerly anticipating the Dogs season
opener on Sept. 1. He’s “primarily a college football fan –
99%” but the “other 1% is saved for Joey Harrington and the
Falcons.”
“I’m a Falcons fan only because I was born and raised here,
but I wouldn’t say I get upset when they lose,” Johnson
says. “Harrington is hot. He is much better looking than
Michael Vick, much easier on the eyes and the dogs.”
Harrington,
28, a 6-foot-4, five-year veteran who is also a jazz
pianist, comes with cover guy looks and has long been a
favorite of Outsports readers. The Falcons acquired the
28-year-old free agent earlier this year soon after he
returned from his honeymoon, a move that didn’t go unnoticed
by gay Falcons fans in search of an object for their
affection since defensive end Patrick Kerney left for the
Seattle Seahawks.