The Game

Here is my account of The Game. . . .

Tailgating. A large area surrounding Yale's stadium (which is quite far away from campus, BTW) is reserved for tailgate parties. Harvard students have one section, Yale students another, and graduate/professional/alumni organizations another. At first, I thought it strange that the school would feel the need to separate the various groups. As it turns out, the set-up made a lot of sense. Harvard students were a relatively calm group. A few of their trucks had club music playing and half-naked students dancing around in wigs. But these mini-raves paled in comparison to what was happening in the Yale student section. I can't really explain it - the place was a madhouse; and the images I have could never do it justice. Let's just say that Yale students know how to party. Then, there was the grown-up section, which had a lot of people but was considerably less "energetic" than either student section.

The Game. I don't remember when I've seen such a lousy game of football. Interceptions, fumbles, and sacks. And yet, I never saw a flag on the field! Blatantly illegal maneuvers went unnoticed. It's like my mom was refereeing the game. The half-time shows were crap, with Harvard's band a serious embarrassment. Why do all of the "red" schools have such shitty bands? Think about it: Harvard, Stanford, USC, . . . At least Yale's band made some kind of effort to be entertaining. What's worse, the Yale student section was on the shady side of the stadium, so we were all freezing our a**es off. I suppose we could have just moved to the other side, where more than half the seats were empty! LOL.

The Post-Game Parties. Non-existent. I did walk by one of the residential colleges after the game to hear Britney's "Toxic" blaring from one of the windows and sounds of a party inside; but I think everyone was too liquored-up to be of any use that night. Strange, given the restrictions the Yale administration placed on alcohol consumption at the game this year. ;)

It's clear to me that The Game has almost nothing to do with football. My recommendation to future students is to skip the game entirely and spend your time at the tailgate parties. You'd be amazed at the drunken, bawdy mischief engaged in by this country's future leaders. And you're guaranteed a good time.

P.S. Even though Yale was poised to win when I left in the middle of the third quarter, Yale lost to Harvard. BUT ALL WAS NOT LOST, as my alma mater won its big game that day!