There are better ways to spend a Saturday than watching football
Published: Friday, November 23, 2012
Updated: Friday, November 23, 2012 11:11
Buckeye Nation, I’m going to let you in on a secret. I don’t like football, and I’m done pretending that I care.
I’m tired of the hordes of people that swarm campus decked out in their scarlet and gray every game day. I’m annoyed that my cell phone stops working as a result of this. I hate that every Saturday in the fall I begrudgingly must wake up and dawn something red or gray to avoid being heckled as I walk down the street. And if I need to drive anywhere on game day, forget getting there on time; I’m sick of sitting in extra traffic.
I’ve tried to fight these feelings of resentment.
Three years ago, starry-eyed and in awe of the ‘Shoe, my naive freshman self bought football tickets. I grouped with some friends and on the day of the first game proudly waded through the thousands of people to my designated spot in the north stands.
I quickly realized I know nothing about football, but it was pretty easy to follow along with everyone else. Cheer when everyone else did, boo at appropriate intervals, high five that guy behind me and no one was any wiser. I’ll admit I had some fun, it was easy to buy into the excitement of the crowd.
Then came the noon games when it was a chore to pull myself out of bed on a Saturday morning and drag myself down to the stadium. I started leaving the games earlier and earlier.
And now, as a disenfranchised third-year, I am not so proud to admit that I do not like football. So call me out on Twitter and jeer at me on the street. I’ll still say it’s only a game and a boring one at that.
I’d much rather spend my Saturday afternoon watching soccer, golf, tennis, or any number of other far more entertaining sports.
Try as I might, I just don’t understand the hype, or how many individuals’ jobs, careers, lives center around this sport. Not to mention the millions of dollars spent annually by the Ohio State athletic department. It all seems so excessive.
My confused frustration climaxes on Beat Michigan Week. For seven whole days, football and all of its hype and jargon are unavoidable. It’s like everyone is part of some club that denied my membership, made apparent in every crossed out “M” on campus.
Everyone’s profile picture changes to a photo of them and their friends displaying their best O-H-I-O. Every other tweet gets a #BeatMichiganWeek. The Ohio Union even has a beat Michigan craft night.
Don’t get me wrong, I am proud to be a Buckeye and most days I like OSU. I just can’t buy into devoting so much time and energy into watching 22 guys romp around a field running into each other.
And I do actually give a damn for the whole state of Michigan.
17 comments
Pretty hard-headed to compare not liking coffee to not caring about arguably the biggest deal there is in a community, which football is to OSU."
I was making a COMPARISON. Whining about football at Ohio State is like whining about coffee - it's everywhere,lots of other people like it, no one says you have to, so suck it up and GET OVER IT!!!!
Just sayin'!
And I don't like coffee. It makes me sick that all these other people DO like coffee, though and try to shove it on me! Coffee this and coffee that! They even have it for free at my workplace! But I don't LIKE it!!!! Wah
is a member of the 
