Sunday, September 22, 2013

Utah beats BYU

I’m not a big sports fanatic, and frankly I find it annoying that the reputations of the two biggest Universities in Utah generally rely on their ability to get a funny shaped ball over a goal line.

You never see headlines like “U of U Ranks #1 in Math Publications” or “BYU Takes Psychology Title”.  There are no Sociology Booster Clubs or tailgate parties in front of the Theater Department on the nights of big plays.

It’s kind of pathetic the billions and billions of dollars we’ll dump into a bunch of guys chasing a ball around (I’m not talking just Universities or football here), but we bitch and moan about a couple extra bucks to have clean air, decent roads, good education and universal healthcare.

Sorry U of U, but winning a football game does not make you the better institution of higher learning.  And BYU, your loss does not diminish your ability to supply a quality education.

All that said, as someone who has spent many years studying at the University of Utah, I’m still glad they won.

 

6 comments:

Lisa Shafer said...

Wow. I could not have said this any better myself. Well done.
But now I wanna go to a theatre tailgate party.... ;)
Oh, and one other reason I like it when the U wins these games: U fans don't automatically assume that God is on their side at a football game; BYU fans tend to do that. I really loathe it when BYU fans take winning a stupid game as an endorsement of their own (faith) testimonies, that somehow the Mormon church is more true if BYU beats Utah. The Utes (thank heaven) are more likely to attribute a Utah win to skill and/or luck and are, therefore, less nauseating to deal with after a win.
Go Utes!

Lisa Shafer said...

I'd also like to mention that my other alma mater, the University of Edinburgh, does not have a football team. When they're in the news, it's usually about some medical or scientific event. For example, Dolly the Sheep was cloned there. And, more recently, JK Rowling donated a huge sum of money so the university could work toward a cure or at least better treatment for MS.
MUCH better than a stupid game.

Max Sartin said...

We should do that sometime, just for fun. Pick a play up at the U we want to see and then have a tailgate party in the parking lot before the play. It'll probably be just you and me and the tailgate, but it would be kind of an oddball, fun thing to do.

Lisa Shafer said...

Oh, I bet we could get some other teachers to join in..... ;) I wonder what's playing next. Hmm....
Or maybe we should just wait until they do some Shakespeare, and we'll get people. :D

Lisa Shafer said...

Looks like it's a mystery play. This could be fun. Let's consider doing this with a tailgate. :)

Lisa Shafer said...

Sorry. Here's the link: http://www.pioneertheatre.org/