Like most of the country on February 4, many Haverford students found themselves glued to their screens as they watched the Super Bowl. This year’s game was especially exciting for Eagles fans on campus, who saw the team defeat the Patriots 41-33, and went into Philadelphia to take part in the celebrations.
This was the first time that the Eagles had ever won the Super Bowl.
In its annual tradition, Fords Against Boredom (FAB) started off the night by hosting a Super Bowl Party for students on campus. As usual, the group provided snacks and a place to watch the game in the Coop, and this year there was lots of energy in the room, said Annika Ulrich ‘18, who is involved in FAB.
“I think there was definitely more excitement than I would have imagined otherwise,” Ulrich said. “I felt like a majority of the people that came to this screening were Eagles fans so you could really hear that.”
For other students, the celebration continued right after the game ended. Russell Nicholson ‘18 put together a group of students, who ventured into Philadelphia to celebrate the Eagles’ victory in the team’s hometown. Nicholson said the celebration began at the Ardmore train station, where they had gathered to go into the city.
“One guy came around in his car in the station with his son in the passenger seat, opened up the car window, reached across, and was popping bottles of champagne out in our direction,” he said. “We knew from that point it was going to be a great night.”
Nicholson said the excitement continued on the train, where fans were packed in and chanted throughout the ride. Eventually, he said, they made it to Philly.
“There were fireworks going off very regularly, very close proximity,” he said. “There were just people dragging signs with them.”
Nicholson said it was a memorable night.
“I’ll just never forget what a really happy community feels like to be in,” he said. “Celebrating around something we all have in common. It didn’t matter what region of the Philly area people were coming from – couldn’t tell because we were all wearing green and all our voices were shot. And we were just really loving each moment.”
Other students shared this feeling. Isfar Munir ‘18 and Josh Fried ‘18 went to the Eagles parade on February 8, and brought their stories and excitement back to campus.
“We started initially with just fighting the crowds to get to a spot,” said Munir. “Once you’re in the city, all the roads are just clogged with people.”
Fried said they found a place to watch the parade from Broad Street, where they got a great view of the celebration.
“I’m not from Philly, I wouldn’t consider myself an expert Eagles person,” said Fried. “But just to see the players on top of the buses and to see the crowd cheering boisterously was a really cool thing to see. And also it was cool to see Nick Foles and the chanting for that.”
He added: “You brave the cold for two hours, stand outside and watch the players go through, see the enthusiastic fans. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so I’m thankful to go to school right by a city where I was able to experience that. Unforgettable.”
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