Forget Chess, I Want My Hockey

FUNNY, the staff didn't seem to think Harvard was a "jock school" last year.

"The NCAA should spend its time publicizing what a group of student-athletes did one Saturday night in April," the staff gushed, firmly reserving its place on the hockey bandwagon. "Maybe that would help bring back the Collegiate in National Collegiate Athletic Association." (April 11, 1989)

This year, the staff has discovered new priorities. Hockey? A goon's sport. They care much more about Harvard's more intellectual squads.

Remarkably, this turn-around in attitude had coincided with the hockey team's lousy season. Sure, these academically responsible editors may have mercilessly besieged their hockey reporters all season long with righteous snivelling to the tune of, "What the hell is wrong with the hockey team? I thought you said we were going to be good!"

But all along, they were really rooting for Harvard to "kick some intellectual butt." That's why they paraded the Calculators', Bidders', Checkmaters' and Talkers' national championships so prominently at the bottom of page 7, after burying the Icemens' NCAA title story under a six-column front page banner headline.

Perhaps if the staff had schlepped up to Potsdam, N.Y., to watch the hockey team lose twice in the North Country or spent their Thanksgiving vacations in Durham, N.C., watching Duke nip our men's basketball team by 76 points, they wouldn't brush off this year's athletic disappointments so cavalierly.

Sure, I wish the math team the best of luck. And I'll believe the staff cares about its success when I see them dress up like bunnies to taunt opposing integrators.

Until then, I'll hope our spring teams produce some results Harvard students can get excited about. Because the winter was lame.