A salute to Pitt fans everywhere.
With PSU's move to the Big Ten and Pitt's place in the Big East, new rivalries have emerged. Ask any fan under 20 who Penn State's main rivals are, and chances are you'll get Ohio State, Michigan or even Michigan State before you hear Pitt mentioned. For Pitt, WVU and the Backyard Brawl is the #1 draw in town. For me, this hurts. When I was younger, I hated Pitt more than homework, broccoli and the Cleveland Browns COMBINED. If you know me, that's a whole lot of hate.
Fast forward to 2009. Pitt's hoops team is having arguably their best season in their history. If this was young Tom, I'd be seething. Instead, I find myself rushing home from work Friday to catch the second half of Pitt's first round NCAA Tourney matchup with ETSU. Old Tom would have been celebrating Pitt's struggle to barely beat a 16 seed, but instead I found myself rooting for the former rival. After Pitt gutted out the victory, I sat on my couch and thought about what has happened to me. It was one of those self-realization moments, things had come full circle. I could now be considered a Pitt fan (wait, fan is a strong word...let's call me a supporter.)
Now I know by admitting this to everyone I'm opening myself up to the "bandwagon fan" criticisms, but my Pitt support isn't limited to the cagers. I've also had some interest in what the Wannstache is doing on the football field, and not a negative interest. Pitt and Penn State might still be rivals at heart, and if by some act of God they start playing football again (if there is a God, he would make this happen) then I'm sure my hate may reemerge at some level, but it will never reach the levels of my youth. And I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing.
To get a better feel for how others have struggled with this problem, check out this post Mondesishouse did a while back. It's good to know I'm not the only one who's afflicted with this.
I can totally understand the hate that you had,kinda reminds me of the hate that I had for Shitney.what i don't understand is why the fuck you would "rush home on a Friday after work" and watch that horseshit.
ReplyDeletenot only that but our 100th post, which should be a great milestone, has been tainted with your love of basketball. may god have mercy on your soul.
ReplyDeletedo you hate Pitt as much as you hate the man, the myth, the legend - #7 for OUR Pittsburgh Steelers, 2 time super bowl winning qb BIG BEN ROETHLISBERGER?
ReplyDeleteI think the fact you have found a fondness for Pitt is just being a local sports fan. This comes with maturity. The area we live in is very rich in athletic talent and we should all celebrate it. Be it Pro, College, or High school, any shining star or great team can be a real treat to watch. Even if a local kid goes to a college on the other side of the country, or gets drafted by the Cardinals and scores his first professional touchdown on a punt return against the Steelers, show some interest in that home grown talent.
ReplyDeleteSide note: PA high school graduates made up 12 of the All Americans at last weekend's NCAA wrestling championships.
Message to 6th Ward:
The Man? Me.
The Myth? The female orgasm.
The Legend? Lives in my pants.
I like broccoli when its cooked and its soft, maybe with a nice cheese sauce and pepper.
ReplyDeleteNo brackets, no interest...until i watched Ohio State go down.
Still don't really care about Pitt and I still wish they went down to the 16th, but they'll get destroyed real soon.
My brother went to penn state, and I went to a few games in the mid 90's and actually enjoyed them. Many of my relatives are PITT alum's and went to a lot of their games as well. As I grew up and realized what a douche that old coke bottle faggot was, I developed a hate for the old psu. I hope the pitt vs psu rivalry comes back because Im getting tired of the john deere matchup. Stay in your booth Joe Pa and keep deep throating those polish kielbassa.
ReplyDelete