The Old College Try

March 26, 2006

It was a Friday afternoon in mid-October 1990 and I was napping on the couch, after a really rough day of high school. I had a dream that I had gone out the mailbox and my college acceptance letter was there.

Sure enough, I woke up from my nap, went to the mailbox and there it was, a letter from West Virginia University. I tore it open, did a little celebration jig on the front porch and ran inside to call my best friend, Lisa, who I was hoping would be joining me at WVU in the fall.

My reasons for selecting WVU were pretty lame. Lisa’s cousin had gone there and went on to become the physical trainer for the Philadelphia Eagles, making him a bit of a celebrity. Mr. Genco, our very cute, very young, physics teacher was also an alum, making the allure even greater. Add to that – it was number one on the party school list that year. I was a girl ready to go wild!

The short version of the story is - I went, I saw, I conquered, I got a 2.0 GPA. And by the spring semester of my freshman year I was back at home attending our local community college in preparation for three years at a very small, very private, very Catholic, women’s college.

Despite my short tenure at WVU, they are “my team” and my allegiance is strong. I still proudly wear a 10+ year old WVU sweatshirt on most Saturdays in the fall, and whether I am in New Jersey or South Carolina, I always meet a fellow fan.

Why is she telling us this, you may ask? Because … when I attended the Hilton Head St. Patrick’s Day parade two weeks ago, what struck me most was the large contingent of marchers showing not only their Irish pride, but pride for their alma mater. Only further demonstrating that the Lowcountry is quickly becoming a melting pot.

As floats streamed past decked in green – so did the Michigan alums, and those from Ohio State, Penn State, and Notre Dame. But, here is the kicker. As we were packing up, a gentleman approached us to comment on how nice our beach chair was. “Blue and orange stripes, huh? You must be big Florida Gator fans”, he said. “No”, I replied, “we just bought it at Wal-Mart.” “Really”, he said, “how about I take it off your hands for say … $40?”

So, yes, we left the parade $40 richer and ever more aware of the price one will pay to support “their team.” It is quite an interesting phenomenon and I have to wonder what the stories are behind everyone else’s favorite team.

Finally, it is only right that I give a big “Go Hawks” to Monmouth University (of West Long Branch, NJ and where I received my master’s degree). Monmouth was surprisingly placed in that awkward number 65 spot at the “Big Dance”. I would have loved to have heard that phone call. “Yeah, you guys kind of made it, but not really – just play one more game.” Much to my delight they won their first NCAA Tournament game ever and slid into the number 16 slot where they inevitably fell to Villanova. Well, there is always next year.

‘Til then, WVU is still going strong (or they were before I headed out of town for a long weekend). Let’s go Mountaineers!