I first dialed in as a 9 year old, drawn in by the great Final Four team. In the first five years I paid attention, RU football was 43-13, and RU basketball was 109-42. I didn't know then that I was at the top of the curve.
Life As An RU Fan
- Thread starter chrisfromnyc
- Start date
I have the personal longest streak of any American for a Power 5 team never having enjoyed an NCAA tournament appearance. I started pulling for Rutgers right after they made the tournament in 1991 and I have gone 26 years without the joy of 1 NCAA appearance, it's been hard to have never had the joy of taking that first Thursday or Friday off of work to watch my team play.
It's like the cycles of global warming--sometimes things go good, sometimes they go bad, and everything takes time (cue De Niro).
After an 8 month offseason, 2 games into the new season, you're already training your eyes to next season.
I'll keep paying attention. After all, I've been here since 1975 . . .
I've always enjoyed being an RU fan. It provided local entertainment for me and the kids. Gave the State some excitement in 2006. Provides a good education at a reasonable price. But one of the reason I never get too upset at the lows is because I'm realistic and fully understand that the Institution is not all in like at other schools. Please don't misconstrue what I'm saying, the Institution would welcome a winning season as long as it did not cost too much. I'm no professional evaluator but I'm smart enough to know when an institution and its alumni's pour hundreds of millions into their football program they stand a better chance of winning.
So I suggest that you sit back and with a cold beer and enjoy a nice afternoon of local football.
So I suggest that you sit back and with a cold beer and enjoy a nice afternoon of local football.
I'm the daughter of a professor who used to do academic support for sports teams, so I was dragged to horrible football games during the Shea error somewhat often. Then I became a freshman in 2005... Saw a bowl game all 4 years as an undergrad.
So I have an interesting fandom backstory.
So I have an interesting fandom backstory.
Life as an RU Fan is similar to Life as an Electric Fan. With the current turned off.
I know an attorney who does very well for kids whose Father has abused them.
Life as an RU fan. At least we always have tailgates to look forward to with friends and family.
I refer to that as always having an unbiased bracket for my NCAA pool...
I was in school for the last 3 years of the Shea era and (counting grad school) the first 3 years of the Schiano era...and one of the first things I did after finishing grad school was buy season tickets. Sometimes I still think I should get a plaque or something.
Joe P.
I enjoyed it much more when Army was the toughest oponent on the schedule and the other teams we played may have inlcuded Lehigh, Lafayette, Cornell, Columbia, Princeton, Holly Cross, and Bucknell. We're not cut out for the B1G.
I don't think we need to regress that far but agree regarding our current B1G status. The BE is likely where we truly belong in terms of being competitive.
You also need a sense of humor to be an RU fan. There are some really sad moments, which are at the same time somewhat funny, and you can't let them defeat you.
For example, we had a game watch in Boston last season to watch the Michigan game. We all know how that one turned out. When we finally got our first first down midway through the third quarter, with the score 60 something to 0, we all jumped up and down, screamed and yelled, and high fived and hugged each other. People in the bar watching the other games looked at us like we were were insane. I think we were for that brief moment. RU Football can do that to you.
But then again, we beat them in 2014.
For example, we had a game watch in Boston last season to watch the Michigan game. We all know how that one turned out. When we finally got our first first down midway through the third quarter, with the score 60 something to 0, we all jumped up and down, screamed and yelled, and high fived and hugged each other. People in the bar watching the other games looked at us like we were were insane. I think we were for that brief moment. RU Football can do that to you.
But then again, we beat them in 2014.
I enjoyed the later schiano years in the big east, felt we did better playing Pitt, Syracuse, and UConn
I feel we would do better in the ACC...
I feel we would do better in the ACC...
It's a shame that Big East of the 90s had to die. Would be perfectly happy playing Pitt, Cuse, WVU, VT, BC, Miami....
Became a fan as a freshman in 1997... was in the band so I had to stay to the end of the game. My class experienced 9 wins in my four years. To say that I enjoyed (and appreciated) the rebuild under Schiano is an understatement and hope to experience a portion of that again.
As someone who entered RU in the fall of 1991 and only was starting to become a fan in high school, I share that dubious distinction.
I miss the UConn, SU, WV, Pitt, UConn and Navy games. RU had to go to the B1G as conferences dissolved, but I had a good notion RU would become a "have not" team in a top conference of "haves".
Always waiting for something big to happen. And it can on any game day. I get impatient and disappointed at the losses but I always look forward to game day. It's the highlight event of the week.
I was a freshman the year after the NCAA appearance for the basketball team. Never thought it would be 26 years of hopelessness.
Well.. if he means enjoyed beating those teams rather than losing to EMU.. it makes some sense.. but really.. no one enjoyed beating those teams over beating ranked teams or beating Michigan and no one enjoyed occasionally getting blown out by those teams more than getting blown out by Ohio State and Michigan... so, yeah.. not a great post and probably just one of the 5 or 6 RU1000 posters trying to make a lost cause point.
Similar threads
Latest posts
-
-
-
FB Recruiting Irish Kicker Jack Scullion commits to Rutgers Football!
- Latest: scarlet night