The Super Bowl is America’s unofficial national holiday, bringing 110 million people together to watch the game every year. However, this year’s Super Bowl between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots might be tearing some BU students apart.
The Boston and New York rivalry is back and fiercer than ever in anticipation of Sunday’s game. Although the rivalry might not be as deeply ingrained as the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox war, this Super Bowl is nothing to take lightly. At BU, the tension is tangible as the student population is split between students from both the Boston and New York areas.
TO BE OR NOT TO BE . . . A GIANTS FAN
Living in Boston can be difficult for die-hard Giants fans. Some students, such as College of Arts and Sciences freshman Dylan Smith, experience torment from fellow students who are Patriots fans.
“It’s rough dealing with [Patriots fans]. All the Patriot fans hype themselves up and always talk us down,” said Smith. “I like Patriots fans as people. But as fans they are a bit delusional.”
CAS freshman Baptiste Fassin simply finds it hard to coexist with Patriot fans during high stress times like the Super Bowl. Fans like Fassin often cite many different factors when arguing about who is going to win this year’s game.
“Here at BU it is very easy to get into an argument with Patriots fans,” Fassin said. “Usually there will be an argument about the past and the present: who deserved to win the 2008 Super Bowl, who is going to win [this year’s Super Bowl] and it sometimes even comes down to who has the best cheerleaders.”
THE OPPONENTS
Because they are from Boston, Patriots fans show a lot of pride for their team and city.
“Being born and raised in Boston, I love all the Boston sports teams. My dad was a Patriots’ fan, which by nature made me one,” said Matt Sliwkowsk, a sophomore in the School of Management. “It doesn’t hurt that the Patriots are also the best team in the past decade.”
When asked how he feels about Giants fans, SMG junior Joe Tiano said that fans should stick by the team that is from their home state.
“I think they are fair-weathered and bandwagon fans. I think it is stupid that people from Connecticut are Giants fans because Connecticut is in New England,” Tiano said.
SMG Junior Jack Logan blames his negative feelings toward the Giants based on their fans’ indecisiveness.
“Giants fans are unable to make up their mind about what they want the team to do,” said Logan. “If the team slightly struggles they want to fire the head coach and completely change the team. When the team is winning, they will blindly praise them.
WHERE TO WATCH AND WHERE TO EAT
People across the country tend to prefer watching the game from the their own couch. However, college students—such as CAS sophomore Christain Sclachte—must find new ways to watch the game.
“Last year we watched it in one of my friend’s rooms. He had a big TV so we crowded 15 people into one small dorm room,” Sclachte said.
The one thing all fans seem to have in common is the snacks they eat while watching the game. One popular item seems to be Buffalo and chicken wings. Super Bowl Sunday boasts the nation’s largest one-day consumption of wings, with around 1.25 million wings eaten every year.
The place for BU students to get a deal on wings is Sunset Cantina located at 916 Commonwealth Ave. Owner Marc Kadish said that his restaurant will be offering menu specials for their customers this Sunday.
“We are having a Super Bowl Poo Poo platter that will have a dozen wings, nachos and salsa, a half rack of bit sized ribs, chicken fingers and onion rings,” he said. “We will also have a bunch of drink specials and a $30 pack of 50 chicken wings to go with all the sides included.”
TWITTER – THE NEW WATER COOLER
Social media has changed the way we view many events, and the Super Bowl is no exception. College of Communication professor Steve Quigley said that Twitter is the new water cooler.
“[Twitter] gives people a chance to share, and social media gives us the chance to have that water cooler that we used to have at work,” said Quigley. “You would stand around for 15 minutes and talk about what happened last night and could be confident that people knew exactly what you meant. It’s harder to have those moments now.”
According to a Washington Post article, during the NFL’s Pro Bowl this past Sunday the players themselves were permitted to tweet both before and during the games. NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said this was to engage the fans more in the game.
“It’s such a mix of humans all over the country, and world, coming together around a shared interest that spurs emotion and connection and all those kinds of things,” said Quigley.
“Until you realize that we are not that faceless mob of couch potatoes that we used to be, and still are, you are not going to get it,” he said. “We’re going to parse it, we’re going to vet it, we’re going to kick it out, and we’re going to share it. We are not just an audience anymore; we are the publishers, critics and participants.”
Can’t get enough Super Bowl action? Check out our blog at http://freepblog.wordpress.com/2012/01/31/super-bowl-xlvi-survival-guide/
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