I went to Dekalb for my first WIU and NIU football game in years. The last time I saw the game the Leathernecks got annihilated and I did minimal tailgating. This time, I left with more than a hangover but a genuine group of friends and better memories.
My Veteran's Club and friends traveled as a pack in the early hours of Saturday to watch our football team hopefully win another game for the season. There were several cars of us and some of our alumni met up there. We were running behind schedule because that is college. When we got up there we met up with some of the NIU Veterans who were going to walk with us to the game. Our group ended up splitting up so my group didn't have an NIU student in it. It was rough for my group because we were walking a really long way to get to the stadium from the house. By the time we arrived I had sweat down my back but a smile on my face because I was reunited with our coolers of cold beers and many people. Most of the people were NIU students but to my surprise, more Western students were there than I anticipated. The NIU club had the best hospitality I have seen in the longest time. They had so much food for us. After our group filled our bellies with burgers, brats, and beers, I walked around to get a feel for the atmosphere. Many people trash talked, but to my delight, I found out that they hadn't won a football game all season.
When we got into the game we sat as a group and took many photos to prove our pride. We shouted at the top of our lungs and chanted "lets go Western" what felt like 100 times. We scored touchdown after touchdown. After the first half we were moderately confident that we would win. The second half had so many of us panicking and nervous because they scored and scored. In the last few minutes of the football game they were less than a touchdown behind us with possession of the ball. I felt like then I blinked my eyes or took a selfie then we had the ball again. The game finally came to an end and we won. We were jumping for joy because we continued our winning streak and were able to experience the moment that we won the game against NIU a bigger school than us and not a win to their name this year.
We took a much quicker route to the house after one more round of photos to celebrate our win. Our spirits were high as an American Bald Eagle. That is when our clubs became much closer. We spent time together as a large group and got.. you guessed it more photos! We bonded over a brother/sisterhood of our military experiences and had some pizza before spending a unforgettable night of fun and dancing together. We ended up at IHOP to end/begin our day then made it back in time to get some rest before the long, tedious three hour drive back to Macomb. That day I will never forget. That day I expereinced college.
