CULVER CITY, Calif. -- Upon learning I'd be interviewing Marisa Miller on Tuesday, a sense of anxiety crept in.
No, it wasn't because Miller is a renowned supermodel who looks like this and I'm, well, a lowly blogger. The consternation was born out of my fear of interviewing a celebrity who says they're a football fan but really isn't. It's happened before, and it's always terrible.
I'd been told that Miller was a die-hard San Francisco 49ers fan. I entered the NFL Network green room as a skeptic; I walked out a believer.
"I'm from Santa Cruz in Northern California and the 49ers were my dad and I's bonding time," Miller said. "We would go to games in the '80s. It was a good time to fall in love with football when your team was unstoppable."
For totem pole reasons, my interview time with Miller coincided with her makeup application process prior to a photo shoot. As mascara was being applied, Miller didn't hesitate when asked what Niners moment she would call as a broadcaster if given the chance.
"My biggest memory as a football fan was the Super Bowl in '89 against the Cincinnati Bengals," she said. "We were at this restaurant in Santa Cruz called The Crow's Nest. I think I was 10 or 11 years old and I remember just everybody going nuts. It was the first time I saw adults act like children. It was such a huge moment. John Taylor's catch, that was one of the best memories ever."
It turned out my fears of a bad interview were ultimately rooted in some sort of nefarious supermodel discrimination. Marisa Miller: Pulverizing misconceptions without trying.
Follow Dan Hanzus on Twitter @DanHanzus.
