March Madness makes me jealous of other schools

For any sports fan, March Madness is the highlight for the year. There is definitely true for me and maybe even more so.

I think I have said this before but March Madness for me is like Christmas and my birthday all rolled together. So the last couple weeks for me have been good ones for me. Well, for the most part except that my bracket picks this year were not the best compared to year's past (Louisville, you let me down!).

But as much as I enjoy March Madness I can't help envy the students who get to cheer for their schools in the Big Dance.

I can just imagine myself as one of those students getting to go to big stadiums and cheering my heart out for my school. I would paint myself in schools colors and wear my team jersey. Then I would stand up the whole game and jump up and down and yell the signature team cheers.

And even if I couldn't go to the games, I could get a bunch of friends together and watch the game on ESPN.

But at a small Division III school I don't get that luxury. At some of the KSC basketball games, the fans can really get into it but sometimes I feel like there is still something missing. I felt that especially this year when I went to the basketball games. It didn't feel like there was as much energy in the fans as in past seasons.

For example, I remember going to the men's LEC championship game my freshman year. I had a friend come to visit me that weekend and I convinced her to go to the game. Even though KSC lost it was one of the most exciting and energetic games I've been too. I was proud to be a KSC athletic fan that day and even my friend was impressed too.

Another good example would be the men's basketball game versus UMass-Dartmouth last year.

In an exciting overtime thriller, the Owls beat the previously unbeaten, and at the time second ranked, Corsairs. I don't think I've ever heard the gym as loud as I did that game. I even took video on my cell phone so I could remember the momentous occasion. I actually still have those videos on my phone too. Ask me about it and I'll show you.

Yet, even as good as that games were it still doesn't measure up to the feel of a Duke-UNC game at Cameron Indoor Stadium. But then again I'm not sure anything can compare to that.

Although I'm jealous of other students at bigger schools with bigger sports programs, I wouldn't change that I picked KSC as my school to attend. For one, I will be a lot happier when I get my student loans bills compared to someone who attended Duke University.

But also I like the athletic program at KSC. I consider myself very lucky to have watched the sports teams I have for the last four years. KSC sports teams, for the most part, are very competitive in their leagues and they are always fun to watch. Some athletics fans at Divisions III schools or even higher divisions are not as lucky.

So all in all, I'm content to continue watching the tournament from my couch and hoping that my bracket isn't completely demolished.



Jen Chick can be contacted at sports@keeneequinox.com.