Opinion: Your Move, Colts

This is one of those rare times where it’s really good to be a Hoosier.

It’s been a rough ride to get here, to be sure.  Our state has been ravaged by tornadoes – north, south, east and west.  We had a rough winter full of sub-zero temperatures and a mountain of snow. 

But all that said, it’s finally a good time: winter is gone, summer is here, and our sports teams are absolutely killing it.

The entire area is alive.  The Indianapolis 500 is this weekend and the crowd is a sellout (I’ll be there).  Our sports teams are kicking a— and taking names: the Indiana Hoosiers made the college football playoff, Notre Dame reached the national championship, Purdue is great in hoops.  The Indiana Pacers tip off against the New York Knicks for the Eastern Conference Finals tonight and have a legitimate chance at capturing an NBA Championship.

Last night, I went to an Indiana Fever game to check out the Caitlin Clark Experience (and to watch the Fever, of course).  Although the Fever lost narrowly, the crowd was crazy, the atmosphere intense as they hung on every shot.  Gainbridge Fieldhouse was nearly full to watch the second-year pro player and big-time star drain long 3s and give a new birth to a struggling franchise.  The Fever are on the upswing.

Which brings us to the Colts.

You’d think the Colts would want to get it on this action.  Yet many of us who have slogged through the past few years think all the success of our state’s other teams are setting us up for a harsh fall season.  Sort of how the Wylie Coyote feels right before the anvil drops on his head.

It will be unacceptable.

It’s time, Colts.  It’s time for you all to join the club: to not just start winning, but to win big.  It’s time for you, Chris Ballard.  It’s time for you, Jonathan Taylor, to have a season just like your rookie one – if not better.  It’s time for you, Anthony Richardson, to start playing like the top-five draft pick that you are.  It’s time for you, Shane Steichen, to have this team ready to roll when you hit the field in September. 

The expectations are high, as they should be.  Get in on this action, Colts. Make this fall a season to remember for this city.