I really love sports. I have my whole life, and will never stop. I’ve been rooting for the B’s, Sox, and Pats since I can remember, and BC since I was accepted there my senior year in high school. Although recently these teams have been very successful (9 championships in the last 10 years), it wasn’t always like that.
When I was young, the Celtics were the only team that won anything. The B’s would lose to the Habs every year in the playoffs, and the times they managed to make it past Montreal, they lost to Edmonton and Pittsburg superteams. The Sox invented new ways to lose each year, and even better ways of choking in the playoffs. They even set an MLB record for most consecutive playoff losses. We were lucky if the Pats even made it to the playoffs, and the year they made it to the Superbowl was an embarrassment. While I was at Boston College, the football team did well and made their usual bowl game but the hockey team struggled (the only highlight was their 1994 Beanpot victory).
This year, I’ve been reminded what it felt like to root for Boston teams when I was younger. The Sox season exploded with two walk-off games that ended within minutes of each other. And last night, Boston College lost to a couple of their biggest rivals (86-64 to Holy Cross in basketball and a 3-2 overtime loss to Notre Dame in hockey with 1.1 seconds left). Ouch.
But, at least I don’t root for the Islanders. My friend Scott, a lifelong fan of The Isle, became a fan of them when he was a kid. He enjoyed their 4 consecutive Stanley Cup Championships, but has been paying the price ever since. But even though the Islanders haven’t produced lately, Scott is a great sport about it and is one of my favorite people to talk hockey with. He understands the game, loves the game, and I’m sure he’ll proudly be wearing one of his 10 Islanders jerseys tonight – just like he did in their 2-1 loss to the B’s when this picture was taken. Go B’s!
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