In case you have missed it, ESPN's College GameDay program is in Brookings this weekend to cover the Dakota Marker game between SDSU and NDSU. College GameDay is a nationally television program that airs on Saturday mornings in various college towns throughout the United States. On this program, analysts make predictions about the day's games, share feel good stories, and break down the teams playing in the location they are airing from. Most stops include big time schools like Nebraska, Iowa, LSU...but this weekend they are stopping in Brookings, South Dakota. It is a big thing for a little town with a little school, but a little school that this little town backs with a BIG support.
The Dakota Marker is a game between SDSU and NDSU over a rock and bragging rights for the year. It has seen NDSU winning the rock 9 times and SDSU winning 6 times. This game is a little bigger than a rock. It is a good old rivalry game. It causes people to draw lines in the sand with friends and with families. People are passionate about their team and want to see them win.
The thing that is great about games and events like that is that it often brings people out of the woodwork to connect with other fans. People you went to school with, family members, neighbors...people that may not normally come to an event like this show up. Not necessarily for the game, but for the camaraderie, excitement, and the food that these types of events bring. You all know I bleed blue. I love my Jacks. We are season ticket holders and tailgaters. For us, it is about all those things. Football weekends are some of the best weekends we have.
This weekend, of course, is even bigger. The rivalry for us spills into family. There are some people who are related to my husband that are fans of NDSU. While some of them attended SDSU, they cheer for the Bison (or the HORRIBLE school down South). They have gone to more NDSU games than SDSU games supporting family. We give each other bad times. They give me white elephants gifts that contain NDSU shirts. We talk smack to each other on Twitter. We are all proud of the school we support and want to see them win. Despite all that, I know that this weekend, our tailgating spot will be filled with people in blue and gold and green and gold. We will laugh. We will give each other a bad time. We will take a picture together. And when the game is done, one side will get the honor of gloating. While we have those differences in who we think the best football team is, we put that aside to come together and just BE with one another.
Not everyone here is going to agree with you. Not every parent is going to agree with you. You are not going to agree with every parent. You are not going to always agree with me. Even though there are times that we may be sitting on opposite sides, we need to come together. We have to put aside differences and work together for the good of the kids. Sometimes we may just agree to disagree. If we hold a grudge and push people out because they don't agree with us, we loose out. We loose out on relationships, memories, and most of all making it about the people for who are are here: the kids. When we draw lines in the sand, no one wins.
Enjoy your weekend of football. If you are going to cheer, cheer for the Jacks.
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