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A Boston College student sits impatiently in his chair during the last minutes of his Advanced Calculus class. His feet bounce up and down as the seconds tick away until his professor says the magic words: "See you Thursday." When those words are finally spoken, he is already bolting through the door - his backpack is all packed up, because he has somewhere to be.
Sprinting through campus, the student quickly punches the code to his room in Vanderslice, hearing a burst of cheers come from the other side of the door. "Please let it be something good, please let it be good," he thinks. He finally opens the door, runs to the TV, and, phew, the Red Sox scored.
This scenario is familiar to many BC students, for the baseball playoffs are much more than "just a game;" they are a time to stay glued to the TV screen for every pitch, every out. It's October, and for many, everything becomes secondary to baseball.
For many students, watching the playoffs at college is a very different experience from watching it at home. "I like [watching the playoffs at college] because you have different perspectives from all the teams," said Mike Abbot, Red Sox fan and A&S '06. "It's also great to see my Yankee fan roommate cry and/or destroy furniture after a loss."
With students from all over the country, there are fans rooting for each of the eight teams competing for the World Championship Title.
The Yankees-Red Sox rivalry is at fever pitch at a University boasting a large number of students from both the Massachusetts and New York areas.
"During big games and whatnot I watch with people and that's cool, because being at college there are people to watch the game with that are only a block at away - at most," said Leigh Sutcliffe, Red Sox fan and LSOE '06. Sutcliffe said she'll also watch the playoffs with fans of other teams, but "only if the other person is up for getting in a fight."
Still, fans of different teams can be friends and watch the games together. But even a best friend won't harness his gloating following a team's win.
Sometimes the gloating is even more fun than the game. "The best part of last year's play offs was Getting to go to Game seven with my Red Sox fan roommate and watching him directly suffer the pain of Aaron Boone's homer hitting the seats," said John O'Neill, Yankees fan and A&S '06.
Studying is often put on the back burner for baseball fans during the playoffs, or at least scheduled around the games."Watching the playoffs at BC is a lot of fun. There are always fans from both sides, especially when Yankees-Red Sox games are on, and it makes for a pretty crazy atmosphere, and you don't end up getting any work done," said Liz Zephir, Red Sox fan and A&S '06.
"I like watching the playoffs with all my friends because it provides an atmosphere of support and competition," said Nina Clarke, Yankees fan and LSOE '06.
As the playoffs progress, the intensity of the fans' watching will grow. Even students whose team isn't in the playoffs this year are keeping close watch.
"I like watching the playoffs because I dream that one day, the Mets may actually make the playoffs. And the Yankees suck," said Tim Weaton, Mets fan and CSOM '06.
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