General Reaction
Bernie Wilson, Associated Press (AP) sports writer, wrote in his book, San Diego Chargers, that the song is "perhaps one of the catchiest fight songs of all-time". The New York Times said the song "has a distinctly 1970’s roller disco vibe". AP referred to the song as a "dated disco smash", while The Standard-Times called it an "infamous piece of NFL kitsch". Mike Downey of the Chicago Tribune commented that the song "has tortured more eardrums than anything Simon Cowell or Paula Abdul ever judged" on American Idol. The San Diego Union-Tribune calls the song "cool, catchy and camp" and "a local anthem" while noting that the 1989 remake was "ill-advised."
The Union-Tribune noted that a generation of fans grew up hearing the song and associate it with the good times and winning during the Chargers' Air Coryell era. Safety John Lynch, a San Diego native, sang the song to his Denver Broncos teammates before a 2004 game in his hometown against the Chargers. “When you've grown up with that, it's part of you,” he said. After hearing "San Diego Super Chargers" during a 2005 game, Chargers linebacker Donnie Edwards, another San Diego native, had a flashback to his childhood and attending a Chargers game, watching Dan Fouts throwing to Charlie Joiner.
Prior to the 2008 AFC Championship game against the Chargers, New England Patriots head coach Bill Belicheck said, "I hate that song." He first heard it when he was an assistant coach with the New York Giants in 1980, when the Chargers won 44–7 while Fouts threw for 444 yards. Belicheck called the game a "track meet" and recalled Chargers players such as Chuck Muncie, Kellen Winslow, and John Jefferson. "They didn’t get through playing that song before they had scored again and they started playing it again. It was ‘San Diego Super Chargers,’ that’s still ringing in my head."
Read more about this topic: San Diego Super Chargers
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