ya know....? i dont really have an answer.. personally, i was never a big a$$ patter myself.. i was a lineman, and we mainly just bumped helmets together as sign of praise or excitement. and its not like football players pat each other on the butt when they are off the field.
scenario #1- TWO GUYS IN LOCKER ROOM.."hey, i saw you got a new 4 year, 20 million contract.. congrats".. slaps ass in non-chalant manner.. "what the F*@K was that for?" fight begins...
scenario #2- just scored the winning TD with .10 seconds left in the game. "hey, awesome catch, you just won us the game.. great job!!" ...slaps ass in excited manner.. "thanks!!" goes and gets some gatorade....
if you want me to get all mentally introspective and such, i could say it has something to do with a male bonding experience. the players on the field feel a level of comfort with each other on that field. all of you are there to fight in a battle that each of you commits to giving your all to win and be successful. there is a sense of trust and loyalty in each other, so i think it allows for guards to be let down a little. and so the normal gay-phobic male feelings are supressed and that sense of trust is bolstered among the players, which is turn makes it to where a$$ slapping is acceptable....?
if you want another, more simple reason.. keep in mind, almost your entire body is covered in pads or some sort of protection.. but, oddly enough, your a$$ is probably the most unprotected thing on your body.. so, its just easier to slap a guy on the ass for a job well done.. cause if you slap him on the shoulder, he is liable not to feel it throught all the pads....?
i wish i had a better answer for you craig. while i laugh as i write this, i know it is one of the most mysterious unanswered questions in major sports today. maybe someone should put some real effort into this?
bigjohn
