Hi, everybody! Phew — what a whirlwind for sports these last couple of weeks! I’m exhausted, and I’m just a spectator. Let’s review:
(Please note: I am by no means a sports writer. That said, I am by all means a sports fan. Believe it or not, I am not an “outcome-based” fan. I enjoy all aspects of the competition. It’s certainly a bonus when the team I am cheering for—Penn State, no surprise, if it’s collegiate—wins!)
Let’s discuss the crazy March Madness we are in. This year especially, the NCAA Tournament has been a lot of fun to watch, with several down-to-the-wire games, including one in particular that didn’t go the way we all had hoped: Penn State vs. Temple. The Lions’ last-second loss to the Owls was a great game to watch. Even though the Nits lost, they had a great season, they grew a lot as a team, and I think this brief appearance this year in the big dance will lead only to more opportunities down the road.
Speaking of down the road — I attended the other NCAA tournament of March Madness, the NCAA Wrestling Tournament at the Wells Fargo Center. What you may not know about me is how much of a high school and college wrestling fan I am! I can remember when I was in fifth grade, my parents let me attend a wrestling match in Lock Haven, and I have been a fan ever since. (That’s 50-plus years we’re talking about!)
Back to Philadelphia: what a tournament! This one had a much better outcome for our team. This very young, yet very talented, group of guys won the national title. Congrats, guys! For the first time in 58 years, the Penn State wrestling team proudly hoisted its winning trophy Saturday, March 19.
This wrestling tournament was broken into six sessions. On March 17, there were morning and evening match-ups, same with March 18 and March 19. During these sessions, 104,000 fans cheered their teams on from the stands. I was having fun with one particular Iowa fan, advising (read: slightly taunting) him to get familiar with this PSU team. By that Saturday, he didn’t have a choice!
I attended the tournament with my friend Chris, a Penn State student, and we had a blast in between the sessions, too. There were about five hours from the end of the morning match-ups to the beginning of the evening ones, so Chris and I took the subway downtown to explore the historic city of Philadelphia. Friday, we went to the Philadelphia Museum of Art to visit the Rocky statue and run up those infamous steps (We even entered the museum for a little while). On Saturday, we visited the Liberty Bell and other historical sites in the Old City area. What a feeling to stand right in the middle of where our country’s history truly developed.
On Saturday, we went to the Italian market to taste the world-famous Philly cheesesteaks. Chris and I chose Geno’s for these steaks, and I have never waited in line for more than 25 minutes just to say three little words, “Hi. Whiz wit.” To be completely honest, it wasn’t until Chris and I started to pay attention to the people in line ahead of us order that we learned this special, sacred “steak speak.” I actually feel I developed a little (very little) street credibility, and I can’t wait to bring my family for this delicious meal to show off my know-how! From what Chris and I gathered, Geno’s is consistently busy with no peak time of day, night or year.
Cheesesteaks—and whiz aside—I think this time of the year is the best time for sports.
March Madness in NCAA men’s and women’s basketball and wrestling is just the beginning. Other highlights:
The Penn State fencers took second at the NCAA Championships. The Frozen Four (Division I ice hockey finals) is next weekend. (This is something I think we will really become aware of in 2013 when Penn State’s new ice rink opens and PSU is considered in this division.) Currently at University Park are men’s and women’s lacrosse, tennis and outdoor track and field. It’s almost time for baseball season to begin, and the women’s softball team just opened its new Lion Park with a thrilling 8-5 win against Wisconsin. Not to mention in professional sports, the NHL Stanley Cup run is about to begin and spring training for the MLB is winding down.
With all of the above going on, I wonder how many of you will miss work, skip class or all of a sudden be “feeling under the weather” to watch/attend some of the sporting events. I found some fun stats about how people are keeping tabs on the NCAA basketball tourney at work:
- Fifty-nine percent read/watch/check stats online during the workday.
- Fifty-eight percent talk to colleagues about bracket selections.
- Twenty-eight percent check scores from mobile phones.
- Nineteen percent do not follow the tournament during the workday. (This has to be inaccurate! Results must’ve been tampered with!)
Here’s something that can’t be debated: My love for sports, and adoration for Penn State and all of its student-athletes.
