Commentary

“Just be really careful. Everybody is very pro soccer right now. If you attack it, people are going to be very angry.”

That was the response from my friend who plays on one of the Saint Louis University soccer teams when I mentioned my intention to write another column about soccer. It’s always so nice to get that kind of input from my friends about my column topics.

You see, Saturday night I did something I swore I would never do again. I went to the men’s soccer game. Hey, this is the NCAA soccer tournament and SLU has a legitimate shot at walking away National Champions. At least now I can say I got to see them play on their way to a championship.

Of course, my first experience at the game was at the gate when I was informed that my student ID was not good enough to get me into the game. A $3 cover charge was necessary.

So against my better judgments, I paid the admission fee and got into the game. Quite a shocking scene when I first entered. Where did all of these people come from? I mean, there were SLU students in the stands, but there were also high school students, grade-school kids, parents, grandparents and other people, just there to enjoy a soccer game. Crazy. Eventually, I made my way to a seat with some of my friends. I ended up spending the first half sitting next to my friend Andrew. Andrew happens to be a very vocal, very knowledgeable fan of SLU men’s soccer.

Andrew was commenting on how one guy was handling the ball too much and another guy was spending too much time on the ground. I took his word for it, but asked him why he was being so critical. Andrew said he was just worried because this was too similar to last year. Then he yelled at No. 5 on Loyola for crying too much. It was one of those moments where you can’t help but laugh, but you hope that no kids are around to hear what is coming out of Andrew’s mouth.

The biggest argument of the night came out of which Loyola we were playing. Saying you go to Loyola University is like saying you are from Springfield. There are like 17 Loyolas across the United States. One person was sure it was New Orleans, another said Los Angeles. It wasn’t until there was 15 minutes left in the game I was told it was Loyola of Maryland. I didn’t even realize Maryland had a Loyola.

When the first half finally ended, I decided it was time for a walk around the stadium. I was cold, hungry and seriously doubting my decision to come watch a soccer game when I could have been at home doing the dishes. A friend and I decided a trip to the concession stand was absolutely necessary. Another $3 spent, this time on a hot dog. Maybe it was because I hadn’t eaten all day or because I didn’t pay, but it was the best $3 hot dog I ever had.

OK, back to the stands, but this time I’m on the other side of the field, closer to the benches. By this point, I am losing feeling in my fingers, ears and basically my entire face. I am about five minutes away from giving up and going back home when Dipsy nailed his shot from eight yards out for the first goal of the game. Without even realizing what I was doing, I was up on my feet clapping and cheering. I would later rationalize this behavior by saying it was cold and I needed to move around. I mean, I couldn’t possibly have been brought to my feet by a soccer game, right?

At that moment, when the ball hit the back of the net and while Dipsy was celebrating his goal by trying to avoid his teammates, it was as if the entire crowd almost let out a collective sigh of relief. Suddenly, this game was no longer like last year. Suddenly, everyone believed we were going to win. Did I just say we? Oh man, what is happening to me?

A one-goal lead with almost an entire half left does not leave much breathing room. Fortunately for the Billikens, and for those of us who still needed to jump around a bit to stay warm, we weren’t sitting for long. Just two minutes later, Jason Cole’s flying header trickled just past the goal line to give SLU an almost insurmountable two-goal lead. I could be wrong, but I’m pretty sure that in the history of soccer no one has ever come back from a 2-goal deficit in the second half. However at that point, I knew I had to finish watching the game.

Thirty-five minutes, one Jack Jewsbury goal, one knocked out Loyola goalkeeper, and a few frozen fingers later, the game ended.

I can honestly say that by the end of the game, I was glad I had a chance to see it. There were about seven times throughout the game that I actually thought were very cool to see.

Does soccer have a new fan? Well, no. But at least now I know that if given a choice between having a root canal and watching soccer, I can say that the latter is more fun to experience and less painful to sit through.

I wish the men the best of luck this Friday against Stanford. I may never be a fan of soccer, but after Saturday night I can now say I am a fan of our team whether they like it or not.