I remember that while living in Albany in 1987, the
fans and press were extremely demanding in their
expectations.  The local (Gannett, I assume)
rag, the Albany Times Union, treated any loss as an
unforgiveable letdown and any win as a return to
national championship form.  Everything was
magnified to absurd proportions.
 
Now, I don't think there's anything in the Troy water
that makes RPI fans any different from the rest of
us, so I assume the circumstance of their then recent
national championship had a lot to do with this
attitude.  This was probably exascerbated by two
things: (1) the team declined to mediocrity almost
immediately after winning their title, and (2) Troy is
a one-team town, and they're it. (Aside: was Troy a
big hockey town before the title?  I dunno.)
 
I'd be interested in whether other teams which fit this
profile have had a similar "post-title syndrome".  The
recent national champions don't seem to fit the
profile, except perhaps Bowling Green.  MSU
seemed to go downhill soon after their title, but that
is definitely not a one-team town.  Colgate and
SLU had hard times on the heels of title game losses,
but there is a big difference between runner-up and
actually winning the title in the fans' psyche; just
ask the Bills.
 
Greg
Malden, MA
Let's Go Red!