It was common sense. When the United States took the field, court or course against anyone in the world, they had an aura of invincibility that surrounded them.
Most of the time it wasn't even worth paying attention to until the final weekend or day. Sure we might glance at a box score or two, just to see who was doing what, but that was the extent of it. In the back of our minds, we knew that the U.S. had the upper hand no matter what.
That was then, and this is now.
Now we are stuck in a funk and it only seems to be getting worse by the year.
Can you remember the last time a U.S. team in any sport, besides softball, was successful in the Olympics or championships of any kind?
It's been a while, and too long in my eyes.
We can't win anything, and in the sports we used to flat-out dominate, we do anything but.
When the Olympics started allowing our professional players to play, many countries weren't too crazy about this. It used to be that college athletes competed against the world's pros, which in all honesty wasn't quite fair, but we still showed well.
However, the original Dream Team, led by Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and David Robinson rolled over the opposing competition, by margins sometimes exceeding 30 points. It was complete domination and it continued for a span of about 10 years.
Then somewhere along the line we either got worse or the world got better and passed us.
Has international competition caught up to us that much in such a short amount of time? Or are our American athletes so overpaid that they become bored and don't have any reason to perform at a high level all the time?
Honestly, it's a combination.
It's evident to see the vast improvement of the international teams and players in all sports, especially basketball.
NBA players like Dirk Nowitzki, Yao Ming, Manu Ginobil and Andres Nocioni have all taken their games to the next level. They are savvy, heady and driven players, who may not be quite on par with the LeBrons and Kobes. But the other intangibles and the passion they possess make up for any lack of natural talent.
Our athletes make so much money, they seem to be satisfied with any outcome. This statement really rings true when it comes to America's pastime.
Baseball is America's game. Or is it?
In the first World Baseball Classic, the Americans got beat by Canada in only the second game of the tournament. I can understand maybe losing to the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Venezuela or any other Latin American country, but not Canada.
One of the many reasons for the loss was the play of Canadian Adam Stern, who had a game for the ages. He finished a double short of the cycle, hit an inside-the-park home run and drove in four runs.
Not bad for a guy who hit .133, played behind Johnny Damon and Coco Crisp and was eventually traded to the Orioles this past spring.
Point is, we had players like Derek Lee, Mark Teixeira, Chase Utley and Roger Clemens and still couldn't get the job done. Japan ended up winning and the U.S. finished a disappointing eighth.
In some cases, the U.S. has dug its own grave.
Flashback to the 1999 Ryder Cup held here on American soil in Brookline, Massachusetts. Trailing 10-6, going into the final day of play, the United States made a furious comeback, capped off by a 45-foot putt by Justin Leonard that eventually proved to be the finisher. After Leonard made the putt, capping off the improbable comeback, which broke out into a celebration reminiscent of the movie "Happy Gilmore," the match still wasn't over. Jose Maria Olazabal still had a putt that could win the tournament outright. Of course, he had a rough time refocusing after the celebration and went on to miss the putt.
Sure, it was a memorable moment, but it certainly lit a fire under the European team.
Since the celebration, Europe has won three straight Ryder Cups, including just this past Sunday when they waxed the U.S. 18.5 to 9.5.
Not even Tiger Woods could save them from Olazabal, Monty and the rest of the angered Europeans, who still hold a grudge.
However, maybe Leonard and that team had it right. Even though golf is usually a reserved sport, it's good to see a group of professional athletes bask in the glory, enjoy the moment and act like children again.
There was a point when we as fans took victory for granted. Now it should be like any other accomplishment:
Savored.
Because in all honesty, we never know when the next time might be.
Ryan M. Marsh is a sophomore journalism major and writes 'Ryan Knows All' for the Daily News. His views do not necessarily agree with those of the newspaper.
Write to Ryan at rmmarsh@bsu.edu.
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