The sports world has seen its fair share of interesting national anthems - but this one from the Vikings VS. Steelers game this weekend has a lot of people talking. Robert Mizzell, an army veteran with a country twang, stepped up to the mic to sing the national anthem at the game in Ireland this weekend. He sounded great, but it wasn't his vocals that people online were talking about.
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As the singer opened with the classic "Oh say can you see" line, everything seems to be going smoothly. However, a few lines in, viewers started reacting when Mizzell looked underneath his cowboy hat mid-song, which he held closely to his chest. "Not him reading the lyrics in his hat," commented one user, saying aloud what a lot of fans might have been wondering during that moment. Another user's comment was a little more upset by the moment. "Please tell me this man didn't hide the lyrics in his hat. That's wild."
However, not everyone seemed to care about the hat situation. Some viewers in the comments were quick to commend Mizzell, saying, "One of the best, most moving National Anthems I've ever heard. Thank you Ireland."
Still, others were a little harsh. "Not knowing the words when you're about to sing on national television is wild," one user commented, and many others were in agreement.
Mizzell Shuts Down Hate With Grace and Gratitude
Despite the mixed responses to his performance, Mizzell took to Facebook shortly after to talk about how special the moment was for him. "It was a tough day in one way, but very very rewarding," he shared, not giving too much attention to one moment or another. The army veteran talked about how important it was to him to get to represent the U.S., but also Ireland, where he's been living for the past 30 years.
"I want to thank the NFL for asking me to come up and do the honor of coming up to singing the National Anthem, a song I haven't sung in 30 years. When I sing it and when I hear other people sing it, it reminds me of how patriotic that so many Americans are." Even if his performance didn't go exactly as expected, it was very big of Mizzell to express his gratitude first, and remind us all what that moment was really about.
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