Not three years ago, the idea of a sold-out Rutgers stadium was pure fantasy. That a sea of scarlet-shirted fans would flood the field after a huge upset victory over a top-5 team... well, that was just crazy.
The Rutgers football team brought New Jersey together in a way that nobody could have anticipated. I mean, come on, this isn't Texas or Ohio. This is a state better known for media darlings (Bon Jovi and the Sopranos come to mind) than for athletics. Two NFL teams play in our state, but both claim to be New York teams. Something about the "New Jersey Jets" was too distasteful or embarrassing.
Now that Rutgers football is winning games, the whole state is rallying 'round the flag. You know what? It's fantastic to have a bandwagon to jump on. I don't care that there's controversy about a proposed new stadium, I don't care about the artificial correlation between athletic and academic reputation, I don't even care about Saturday morning tailgate parties outside my on-campus apartment.
It's just nice to be able to support a winning sports squadron. I did my undergrad in Cleveland, at a DIII school whose students would rather pay to watch Ohio State play 3 hours away than walk 50 yards to our school's free, empty bleachers. When the team won the homecoming game my freshman year (the only win that season), I was one of six people to rush the field.
Graduate school at Rutgers has been good to me so far - good academically, athletically, and socially, to say the least. This whole "football" thing is a very welcome icing on an already delicious cake. I wear clothing with Rutgers logos proudly, and I've even gotten used to the stupid new Block R that replaced the badass-looking knight.
When Rutgers loses, the whole state goes into mourning. This is to be expected, silly though it may be. What is surprising is that the day after a loss, if someone notices my Rutgers jacket, they'll ask, "what happened to Rutgers yesterday?"
How did they know of my secret friendship with Coach Schiano? Did they see his surreptitious 4th quarter phone call to me, asking my advice on a 3rd-and-long? Do they blame me for the bad play? Perhaps they're just idly wondering if I might have special insight into the football team because I live 5 minutes from the stadium.
My answer is always the same side-step. "Well, I wanted to play, but Schiano benched me. Wish I could've helped."
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2 comments:
schiano is heartless.
it's okay, don. some people just don't recognize talent.
Dude, i was also 1 of those 6 people who rushed the field. i was also 1 of 1 person who climbed the goal post. also the only person who stole a snare drum from the marching band and banged on it the whole 2nd half. that was an awesome saturday, for case.
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