October, 2001. The New York Yankees lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks, losing their chance of being the World Champions for the 27th time. Numerous Red Sox fans were glued to the TV, ecstatic only because their most hated team lost. January, 2002. The New England Patriots beat the St. Louis Rams in the Super Bowl. Instead of hearing fans celebrate this victory, shouts of “Yankees Suck” filled the air. (Totally pathetic and unnecessary)
Welcome to the biggest rivalry on campus. Fairfield is located in Southern Connecticut. Most of us come from the North East, and our loyalty is to one of these two cities.
This clearly creates problems, and not just in sports. Growing up, I never moved around, so I didn’t initially understand the cultural battle that inherently comes with our homelands. I was shocked when I first heard the “Armpit of America” comment, but now it doesn’t even phase me.
Instead, I just get annoyed and may come back with a “Masshole” one, or better yet, talk about how Derek Jeter was born in my town because I know it will make them even angrier. See, all this craziness is tainting.
Anyway, this is how it generally goes. Northern Connecticut and the rest of New England are in love with Boston. All of New York, New Jersey, and Southern Connecticut’s loyalty is to New York City.
It’s broken down so evenly that it’s scary. We all just hate each other. But it can only go so far. Some of my best friends are from Massachusetts, and as a few of them can respectfully cheer for their team and peacefully watch a game (Bennett), others (who know who they are) get outright vicious and completely out of hand. Sometimes all I want to say to them is, “Get a grip … and a clue.”
My father, the biggest Yankees fan I know, absolutely loves hearing all about this rivalry. I think he puts it all into perfect perspective when he says, “Hey, I’m a baseball fan. If I watched the Red Sox win the series after not winning one since 1918, I’d be happy for them. Truly happy.”
That is precisely what I call an actual sports fan, and I think we’d all be better off if we tried to put aside all the ridiculousness of which city is better and instead actually watched games just to enjoy them.
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