Houston Texans player Connor Barwin supports gay marriage - Houston Chronicle (blog)

Texans player JJ Watt, Mayor Annise Parker and Barwin. (twitter.com/ConnorBarwin98)

I’m not a huge sports fan. I’m not even a small sports fan. I hated gym in school and was lousy at basketball. The locker room was like a daily house of horrors. But I prevailed, getting picked last for teams and dealing with daily taunting. I still find myself scurrying through the gym, when I get around to it, in semi-embarrassment.

Houston Texans linebacker Connor Barwin has never struck me as your average sports figure. He’s funny. He’s open with his opinions. He doesn’t take himself too seriously. He’s a serious music lover. Check out his tweets and his recap of Free Press Summerfest for the Houston Press. (And, yes, he’s cute. I might as well say it before you do in the comments.)

He’s also a bit of a hero in my eyes.

Barwin, who has a gay brother, gave a candid interview to Outsports.com, a site designed “to build the broadest, deepest, most informative and most entertaining gay sports community.” He says he was inspired to voice his support for marriage equality by President Obama’s endorsement of same-sex marriage.

“Big day 4 gay! Biden nudged Obama out of the closet,” Barwin tweeted May 9. “On a serious note, I stand by Obama on marriage equality! I believe ALL families deserve the same rights. Those of us with gay relatives and friends understand how meaningful and positive this is!”

Barwin told Outsports.com he credits his upbringing and hopes his stance helps others come around:

“I just embrace diversity and it stems from my parents. I’ve seen how important it is to my brother and have watched how it’s changed over time and how it’s changed in the NFL and how much more people are beginning to understand and accept gay people in all different areas of life. I feel I can make a stand in the position I’m in, especially in such a masculine sport and hope my support can maybe have a small effect on helping to change people’s minds.

“Since I was born I remember my dad and my mom always embracing diversity and differences among people and that being the core of America and happiness and all those different things. And that goes along with equality and you should treat everybody equal and be fair and not judge people and dislike people because they are different, and embrace and enjoy people because of the differences they have.

“I had a conversation with my dad and it’s about being personal with people. That’s the only way to get peoples’ prejudice changed. If people are prejudiced,  it’s usually against people they don’t know or have talked to. But when you finally actually meet these people and talk to them, you realize how ridiculous these prejudices are that you ever had.”

He says there have been “very few” negative comments directed toward him and ultimately thinks an openly gay player in the NFL would be treated with respect.

“I think at the end of the day guys care about how you play football, because we’re all so competitive about winning that if there is a guy who comes out as gay in our lockerroom and he’s a good football player, people aren’t going to care about that. I think that’s the honest truth. I think guys care about what kind of person they are, what kind of teammate they are and how good they are at helping us win.”

Barwin’s comments come on the heels of “Idol” winner and country superstar Carrie Underwood telling U.K. paper the Independent that she also supports same-sex marriage. That’s a gamble for a singer who’s fanbase includes a fair share of God-fearing conservatives.

The Texans star expounded on his stance via Skype to sports site SBNation.com. (And, yes, he’s OK with another guy thinking he’s attractive).

As a gay man, my self-worth isn’t built on the endorsement of celebrities or “born this way” sentiments. It’s up to me, and you, to be comfortable with who we are. But it is gratifying, and encouraging, to see people with the ability to provoke, inform and change in a big way using their powers for good. When lots of people pay attention, you’re a role model, whether you accept the title or not.

I think it might be time to buy Emerson a Texans onesie. Bulls on Parade!