Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Wherever You Go, Keep the Team in Mind

If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.

In my family, that’s the way it’s always been. Even when it comes to sports. Some might call it fanatic, superstitious or just plain ridiculous, but that’s the way it is.

Like in 1995 when the Orlando Magic went to the NBA Finals. For the first three quarters of every game in that series, my mom could be found watching the game with the rest of us. Every game, though, she spent the fourth quarter firmly planted in a dark room, sure in her conviction that if she watched the end of the game, the Magic were bound to lose. Make my life easier and don’t tell her that they were swept that series, regardless of where she was sitting.

My dad grew up listening to the Cincinnati Reds on the radio, and meticulously keeping the scorecard. He too was certain in his belief that the responsibility to record the game for posterity fell squarely on his shoulders. If he didn’t keep track of the games, how was anybody else going to know who won?

In the ’70s, when the NFL announced that it was going to begin broadcasting games in color, he finally had the motivation to go out the very same day and buy his first color television so that he could see every game “the way it’s supposed to look.”

For four years now, you seniors have done the same thing for Georgetown sports. You’re the ones who were responsible for going to every game; you’re the ones who remember “the good old days” of Georgetown basketball; you’re the ones who have provided the Hoyas (whatever team it may have been) with the homecourt/homefield/home-whatever advantage.

I’d bet that more than a few of you did some things that might be considered more than a bit extreme. I certainly hope so. You were leaders in the stands. You taught the freshman the cheers they needed to know (“bulls-, bulls-“), taught the sophomores how to really pre-game and taught the juniors what they would need to teach a whole new class the next year.

You even hung up signs proclaiming your undying love for Craig Esherick.

Just because you’re graduating now doesn’t give you the right to forget about Georgetown athletics. For the last four years, Georgetown has been your home and school; but now it’s more: it’s your alma mater. And that means you’ve still got two duties to this place and this team.

One: do not, at any cost, cease to support these teams. If you expect us to cheer for the Hoyas, you’re going to have to put in some effort yourself. My mother will assure you that your actions have a direct effect on the outcome of the game. Watch them on TV, listen to them on the radio, read about them on the Web (www.thehoya.com/sports, of course). Come back and catch a game if you can. At any price, do not lose hope or lose touch with Georgetown athletics.

Get fanatic, get superstitious, get just plain ridiculous – we all know you’ve done it the past four years. Don’t let that change. Sit on your hands or stand on your head during a game; tell your wife, your kids, your neighbors, your co-workers, your neighbor’s co-worker’s kids or anyone who will listen to you about the way the Hoyas played last night.

And two (like everything else at Georgetown, this one’s going to cost you): For four years you’ve been begging the administration for games at McDonough, an on-campus baseball diamond and a real track. Don’t stop that either now that you’ve graduated. Up till now you’ve had important expenses – namely beer and books – but now that you’re out on your own, think about it. Which is more important, repaying your student loans or giving Georgetown decent athletic facilities? Just because you didn’t get a new cDonough or a better Yates or a renovated Kehoe while you were here doesn’t mean you can’t help bring it about in the future. Like I said, if you want it done right, you have to do it yourself.

In the next few days, you’ll be walking out through Healy Gates with an impressive piece of paper in your back pocket (or more likely in an equally impressive frame) and a lot of great memories. And I’d bet my college tuition that a few of them had to do with Georgetown athletics. You might be leaving Georgetown, but don’t let Georgetown leave you.

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