To the Editor:
In the September 24 issue of The Poly, the featured top-ten list gave the number ten reason “Why it must be getting close to hockey season” as: “The football team is undefeated. No one cares.”
I am currently on the football team and have been for the past three years, and when I, along with my teammates, read this, we felt betrayed, hurt, and most of all: angry. In response to this, I am attaching a writing that was circulated among the football team last year. I urge you to read this document as it truly explains and puts into perspective why we, along with the other teams here at RPI, play sports and dedicate a large amount of our time to an activity that we love and will value for the rest of our lives. I thank you for your time.
“Why We Play”
It’s not about getting a scholarship, getting drafted, or making SportsCenter. It’s a deep need in us that comes from the heart. We need to practice, to play, to lift, to hustle, to sweat. We do it all for our teammates and for the student in our calculus class that we don’t even know. We don’t practice with a future NFL running back; we practice with a future architect. We don’t lift weights with a future Olympic wrestler; we lift with a future doctor. We don’t run with a future Wimbledon champion; we run with a future CEO. It’s a bigger part of us than our friends and family can understand. Sometimes we play for 2,000 fans; sometimes 25. But we still play hard. You cheer for us because you know us. You know more than just our names. Like all of you, we are students first. We don’t sign autographs. But we do sign graduate school applications, GMAT exams, and student body petitions. When we miss a kick or fumble, we don’t let down an entire state. We only let down our teammates, coaches, and fans but the hurt is still the same. We train hard, lift, throw, run, kick, tackle, and lift some more, and in the morning we go to class. And in that class we are nothing more than students. It’s about pride—in ourselves, in our school. It’s about our love and passion for the game. And when it’s over, when we walk off that field for the last time, our hearts crumble. Those tears are real. But deep down inside, we are very proud of ourselves. We will forever be what few can claim ... college athletes.”
Eduardo A. Garcia
ITEC/STS ’04
