While the BU women’s lacrosse team, softball team, et al., feverishly search for a dry and/or permanent place to play, three topics surge to the forefront of the average BU sports fan’s mind:
Terrier Insanity on Tuesday, that Godforsaken college hockey game Saturday night in Albany, N.Y., and Terrier Insanity on Tuesday.
Before we get to the results of our Final Four, I’d like to touch on the events of Saturday night.
The college hockey Frozen Four has come and gone, and 52 years of despair suddenly washed away when Boston College’s Krys Kolanos scored a very, very legitimate goal (no comment on the first two BC goals) to give our hockey neighbors their first National Championship since 1949. Congratulations to BC, they earned the title fair and square, and I’m slowly beginning to digest what happened.
I’ve heard some BU fans say they were actually rooting for BC because an Eagle victory would preserve BU’s status as the last team to win back-to-back National Championships. (BC’s championship game opponent, North Dakota, entered Saturday night as reigning NCAA champs, so a Sioux victory would have given them back-to-back titles). Also, North Dakota was the last team to defeat BU in a national title game (1997).
No way. All I’ve got to say is that any BU fan rooting for BC is not a true BU fan. Watching the game Saturday night confirmed to me that it is physically impossible to root for BC, no matter what the circumstances. Terrier fans root for two teams: BU and anybody playing BC.
When Kolanos scored the game-winner shortly after 10 p.m., I was left speechless while bracing for the worst. Those watching the game with me know that I quickly entered a rather severe, yet short-lived coma, rendering me unable to communicate or react to human pain. A mere 20 minutes later I was up walking again, fully aware of what had just happened and waiting for the repercussions.
The repercussions? The phone calls.
For the record, BC kids are not bad people — the good ones, at least. In fact, I’m friends with a few of them, which, if you’re like me, was what made this BC victory the most difficult to deal with. And the phone call I was dreading most came shortly after midnight.
Peter (recognizing number on caller ID): (wincing) Hello?
BC friend: WHHEEEEEEEWWWWWWW!!!!!! NATIONAL CHAMPIONS, BABY!!!! WHEEEHHHHHHHH!!!!! WHERE’S YOUR BEANPOT??? 1949, WHAT??? NATIONAL CHAMPS!!!!! YEAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!
Peter (42 seconds later): (Groan) I know *…
Terrier fans, we must be strong. The next couple of months may be tough, but remember this: As history dictates, we won’t have to go through this again until at least 2053.
Meanwhile, the Terrier Insanity on Tuesday also traveled to play its Final Four. Competitors Rodney Pratt, Sasquatch, Walter Brown Section 8 and Kirk Miller received all-expense paid trips to the NBA Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass., where they practiced their game before Pratt got the foursome kicked out for actions unbecoming of the Hall of Fame. Competitors were forced to pay their own way back to Babcock Street, and the Final Four was held unceremoniously at Case Gym.
As always, Terrier Insanity on Tuesday games are most certainly not played for entertainment purposes only. To date, hundreds of millions of dollars have been wagered on the outcome of these games, making me a very wealthy man. Directions on how you can get in on the action — or at least help choose the ultimate champion appear at the end of the column.
And now, the results.
No. 8 Rodney Pratt vs. No. 12 Sasquatch. Before the game, Sasquatch’s father made one bold promise to his son: win the Terrier Insanity on Tuesday championship, and Sasquatch and his legions of fans would be allowed to shave good ol’ Dad’s beard — and back, arms, legs, shoulders and bottom of the feet. It was the type of pre-game message that could potentially make a difference.
Meanwhile, Rodney Pratt, men’s crew coach extraordinaire, was preparing for the match in a different way: Hanging out in his lavish new boathouse, bellowing commands to his rowers on the Charles and recounting boyhood tales to intrigued listeners. But due to an undercover investigation, Sasquatch was weary of Pratt’s pre-game conditioning regimen.
“Now, I know Rodney, and he’s a nice guy, but my main beef against Rodney is that he’s too cushy now that he’s spending all his time in that lavish boathouse,” Sasquatch said. “That ain’t no boathouse, it’s a freakin’ penthouse. While he’s been ‘training’ in the lap of luxury, I’m taking this match seriously.
“I’ve been training in the bowels of hell,” Sasquatch added.
It was no contest. Sasquatch cruised into the Finals with ease, and his pre-game prediction could not have been more accurate.
No. 6 Section 8 vs. No. 15 Kirk Miller: As the first No. 15 seed ever to make it to the Final Four, win or lose, Kirk Miller had reason to be proud. But the dominance of Section 8 was too much, and Miller went down in defeat.
After weeks of playing the games, it all comes down to this for the Terrier Insanity on Tuesdays Title: No 12 Sasquatch vs. No. 6 Section 8. But could it really have been any better? Sasquatch and Section 8 are what BU athletics are all about, and now the rest is up to you. Your input, and your input alone will determine the Terrier Insanity on Tuesday champion, and to help pick the winners, e-mail your choice to BURivals@hotmail.com.
Let the Championship begin!
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