Minnesota Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder confirmed he was dating
ESPN college football reporter Samantha Steele in a tweet posted
Thursday.
A fan asked Ponder whether he was dating Steele and Ponder replied
that he was. This is far from solid confirmation; you could ask 1,000
ESPN viewers whether they were dating the attractive 26-year-old
reporter and at least 700 would reply in the affirmative.
"I'm impressed," a woman tweeted in response to Ponder's declaration.
"I'm not gonna lie," he wrote back, "I am kind of impressed with myself too."
Steele replaced Erin Andrews this year on College GameDay.
Ponder has tweeted about the sideline reporter and host in recent weeks.
In one tweet, he took a picture of a child's Cinderella costume at
Target and wrote he was "surprised to see Samantha Steele." (Smooth.)
Ponder also sent Steele a tweet that read "hello," but quickly deleted
it. (Not as smooth.)
Two additional thoughts:
1. The hectic schedules and traveling itineraries of a professional
quarterback and college football sideline reporter cannot make it easy
to maintain a relationship.
2. I can't imagine dating a player could be good for the career of any
sideline reporter. Personally, I don't see anything wrong with a
potential Ponder-Steele coupling: She covers college, he plays in the
pros. There's no reason to think it will affect her job at all. But
perception is key. You know how people get with female sideline
reporters, especially ones who look like Steele. The viewing public
refuses to judge them based on their merits. It's unfair, but this won't
make it easier.
