>      Mike wrote:
>
>      Please note I'm not taking shots at RPI or their fans, just trying to
>      give a different perspective from an unbiased observer of the scene.
>      I believe that this feeling RPI followers seem to have, that their
>      team often loses to inferior teams, is peculiar to them - rather than
>      there being a problem peculiar to the team.  I don't hear it from
>      followers of other teams, at least not nearly as often.  RPI followers
>      might
>      need to consider whether they expect and/or demand too much from their
>      team - something I have believed has been going on in the Capital
>      District for years, ever since I was there - and whether those demands
>      create pressure that is inevitably going to affect RPI in ways it
>      doesn't affect other teams.
 
  I couldn't agree more. I've been living in the Capital District for almost
  10 years and following NC$$ hockey for about the past 7 or 8. This area
  is very gung-ho over RPI. Not that that's bad, but as Mike said, when you
  expect/demand a lot from your team, it shows in their play. At the beginning
  of last season, almost every sportscaster in the Schenectady-Albany-Troy
  area was picking RPI to win everything -- hands down. They all said this on
  their 6:00 newscast the night of RPI's opener. RPI then proceeded to lose
  to Merrimack. (Remember that one, Mike? :) )
 
  I think Dave has an excellent point regarding the schools who throw all
  their energies into onr sport (ala Notre Dame, UNC, Indiana hoops, etc.).
  It seems to be the same thing happening with RPI. I won't get into a
  discussion about how fans should act at a hockey game (yes, it's hockey!),
  but almost every fan around me at the Union-RPI game on Saturday were
  EXPECTING RPI to win the game. It actually appalled me when I heard a
  group of fans yell "Happy Birthday, Union!!!" after Union scored two
  goals to tie the game. (I'm not saying that ALL RPI fans act like that,
  so no flames, please!) Now, I started following these teams right after
  RPI's NC$$ championship in '85, so maybe that's just it. Even so, it
  really doesn't make much sense to EXPECT your team to win all the time.
  There's a big difference between EXPECTING your team to win all
  the time and WANTING your team to win all the time.
 
  Just my 2 pennies.....
 
 
 
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+ Andy Weise                                     [log in to unmask]   +
= SUNY Potsdam '93           Let's Go Tech!!     [log in to unmask]  =
+ Union College '95?         Let's Go U!!                                 +
=                                                                         =
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