Boston Hockey at MSG Shows Alumni Spirit

You never know who will be the next college athlete to make it in professional sports. I was reminded of this as I watched the Boston University Terriers, my alma mater, face off vs. Cornell at Madison Square Garden last Saturday night.

In 1993, my senior year at Boston, I had no idea that some of players I shared a dorm with — Tony Amonte, Shawn McEachern, Keith Tkachuk , Jay Pandolfo, and Mike Sullivan — would go on to become major figures in the NHL. If I had clients at the time, I could have set up appearances with these guys for little more then beer money or Nintendo games! Of course, a few months after we graduated, they were all making so much money paying them with Budwesier probably wouldn’t have worked. (And yes, I also realize the NCAA does not allow their athletes to get paid for appearances while in college so it was only a dream.)

As I watched the game, I saw players named Gilroy, Yip, Cohen, and MacArthur. Who would be the next Amonte? Maybe one would become the next Mike Eruzione. Right now, Sidney Crosby is the same age as most of these guys and he is already a superstar in the NHL with major endorsement deals in place.

I hope to see many more Terriers make it in the NHL. It’s really the only sense of pride I get from BU athletics now that I am living far away from Commonwealth Avenue. At Boston University, hockey athletes are usually the only ones who have a shot at going on to the professional ranks.

The only regret I have about attending BU nowadays is that we still don’t have a major football or basketball program. Heck, forget Division I, we don’t even have a football team. There is no other outlet to show school pride through athletics once you graduate and move on to another city. As we all know, hockey is not the most popular sport around the country. It makes me sad when I see all my friends who went to Big Ten schools or ACC schools flash their paint each weekend. I’m itching to put on my Terrier hat and t-shirt and watch my team compete.

I was grateful for the Terriers’ appearance at the Garden on Saturday. It was fifteen years worth of emotion coming out as I screamed from center ice for the Terriers. The Garden sold out for this event which I don’t think anyone figured would have happened. There are tons of Boston University alumni like me looking for an outlet to support the school. It amazes me to think how much more revenue Boston University would generate through alumni donations if they had a football team people could cheer. As I was sitting with a few friends who also went to Boston University, we reminisced about the good old days and reminded ourselves of what it was like to go to school there. We all agreed we wish we could go back, even just for one semester. How great would that be?

A football team is the best marketing tool a school can have when seeking money from alumni. I don’t understand how they can charge $40,000 a year in tuition, but claim they cannot support a football team. Even though there are no Terriers playing in the NFL I still have Rhett the mascot to root for. He always brings a smile to my face when I see him at the few hockey games I attend these days. In fact, I wish more companies would do appearances with mascots. Rhett can certainly hold his own with the Trojan at USC.

One day things will change and Boston University will put itself on the map in basketball or football. I just hope I am around to see it.