Columnist Sal Defilippo: Bush vs. Kerry? Redskins will settle it

Sal Defilippo

Friday, Oct. 29, 2004 | 10:36 a.m.

Sal DeFilippo's pro football picks column appears Friday. Reach him at sal@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4076.

Iused to think the whole concept of early voting was merely intended to be another American convenience. Avoid long lines. Get your civic duty out of the way ahead of time, so you can focus on more important things, such as the 19 consecutive days of nationally televised major college or professional football that began Thursday. I'll vote for that proposition any time.

But now I know the truth. People like the option of voting early because the election is already decided before the polls close.

Two days before, in fact.

You see, the Washington Redskins are home this week, hosting the Green Bay Packers on Sunday. The result of that game will tell us whether President Bush stays or Sen. John Kerry takes over the White House.

If the Redskins win on Sunday, the incumbent party will be re-elected. If the Redskins lose, the challenging party will win.

Sound crazy? Sure, but that formula has proven true time and time again -- for 70 years.

Since the nation's capital welcomed the Redskins in 1933, covering the last 17 elections, Washington's final home game before voters hit the poll has had this direct relationship with the presidential winner. Bizarre, but true.

This formula is 17-0, just like the '72 Dolphins, who, coincidentally, beat the Redskins in the Super Bowl to end that season. Spooky stuff? Well, the game will be played on Halloween, so it's all the more frightening.

The most recent chapter of this Beltway saga came when Washington fell to Tennessee 27-21 on Oct. 30, 2000, a Monday night. It was the Redskins' final home game before then-Vice President Al Gore, representing the incumbent Democrats, lost to our current commander-in-chief.

Most Democrats still are quick to point out that Gore won the popular vote, and point toward the hanging chads and butterfly ballots and the Supreme Court ruling a month later. But the real culprit came from Gore's home state of Tennessee -- the Titans' Solomon Rolle.

Rolle intercepted a pass and returned it 81 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the first half that evening, turning what could have been a possible Redskins lead into a two-touchdown deficit, and Washington couldn't recover.

But before the Democrats get too sore, they should remember the Redskins beat Indianapolis by a 31-16 score on Oct. 27, 1996, to propel then-President Clinton into a second-term, and Washington's 24-7 loss to the New York Giants on Nov. 1, 1992, helped Clinton win office against the incumbent president, George H.W. Bush.

I doubt that the younger Bush will be calling Joe Gibbs this weekend to remind him about his tax-cut plans or that Kerry will be wearing a cheesehead hat. But watching the game could certainly save them from frenzied campaigning on Monday, and allow each candidate extra time to prepare an acceptance or concession speech.

Much like recent polls suggest about the closeness of the race, the game also could come down to the wire. The point spread is less than a field goal, so the linemakers certainly feel it should be a competitive matchup.

I hope the game goes into overtime. Come to think of it, suppose the score remains tied throughout the extra period. Then what happens? President Nader?

Well, no need to worry about that just yet. We'll see how the game plays out. Here's the best part: Not only will we know the winner two days early, but this will also free up Tuesday night for the game between Toledo and Miami of Ohio (a team, perhaps coincidentally, formerly nicknamed the Redskins) on ESPN2.

Sure, you can still choose to follow the results from the precincts on myriad news channels. That's what Decision '04 is really all about. Either watch the electoral college, or elect to watch college football.

I'm Sal DeFilippo, and I approved this column.

This week's picks: A 1-2 stumble against the spread puts the season ledger at 11-9-1. This week, I'll go with the Vikings-Giants over 48, the Broncos -6 1/2 over the Falcons and Chargers-Raiders over 46 1/2.