Going to a game at a field, rink, court or wherever else an athletic event happens here at BU is a passion of mine. I wouldn’t write about sports if I didn’t love ’em. Therefore, going an entire summer without Terrier action annually turns into a depressing time for yours truly. On a larger scope, of course, it is an empty time for the college sports world as a whole, other than a few football scrimmages that are way over-hyped.
Professional sports – baseball especially – take over the summer while college kids get their breather. All the headlines are about the pros as the temperatures skyrocket into triple digits and I use my friends for a few hours each day for their swimming pools.
One would think this period of time could be taken advantage of by the pro ranks. But this summer, unlike any other in recent memory, went a long way toward proving why college sports purists are just that. Between the Michael Vick dog fighting indictments, the Tim Donaghy betting scandal and professional sports’ most celebrated record falling to the fraud that is Barry Lamar Bonds, the summer of 2007 turned into a complete disaster.
With all three events seemingly coming to a head at the same time, I became slightly ashamed to be a sports fan. What am I really cheering for and paying money to see? A bunch of steroid users, fixed games and sadistic individuals?
After nearly having a breakdown, I took a deep breath and realized that all athletes don’t act this way – just the ones who get paid the green. College athletes (save an occasional Maurice Clarett) don’t make nearly as many of these boneheaded decisions, on or off the field.
Hustle is another major difference between the pro and college levels. Watch an occasional Sox game and you would think Terry Francona told the boys to be careful of breaking a sweat as they run down the first-base line. There’s no Manny being Manny on Jack Parker’s or Dennis Wolff’s teams. If you feel like dogging it for one of those two, you’ll find yourself riding pine in a heartbeat. There’s no $100 million contract hanging over any college athlete’s head that says they must play, and that’s what makes college athletics great.
No one – unless they are out of their mind – isn’t giving 120 percent effort every time they go out to play in a collegiate sport. Why do you think Oklahoma State football coach Mike Gundy berated a reporter who called his player soft? (If you haven’t seen this yet, go to YouTube.com immediately). While it may have been over the top, Gundy had a very important point: Just because someone is better than the player the column was written about doesn’t mean that player doesn’t bust his butt every single day of the week. Gundy had his player’s back because he tries.
This summer’s controversy is exactly what makes BU athletics so great and makes me border on hibernation every time I hear about the newest pro athlete to get arrested. All BU games provide a breath of fresh air. You feel cheated seeing someone jog to first base, proclaiming “I play when I want to play” or finding out someone enjoys injecting themselves with Hulk Juice in their spare time. It’s relieving to attend a BU sporting event and see an athlete the same size as me. Seeing a normal or smaller-sized person in a big event is something every fan loves. Brad Zancanaro, we still love thee.
Most of the athletes here will never touch the field, court or ice again once they leave BU, which is what makes watching athletic events here so enjoyable. There are no prima donnas and no effort can be questioned. Love of the game still exists on the college level.
So when you throw on scarlet and white and root on your Terriers this year, remember this – they’re leaving it all out there for their teammates, themselves and you. It’s not like they have a choice. They don’t have a Nike contract to fall back on.
Chris Lyons, a junior in the College of Communication, is a weekly columnist for The Daily Free Press. He can be reached at [email protected].