For those of you who have been disconnected from the world for the past week, here’s what you missed…
The Philadelphia Eagles are in the Super Bowl.
Super Bowl Sunday has become an unofficial holiday in the United States, where millions of people, football fans who care about the outcome of the game and those who just want the food and funny commercials, gather at local bars, restaurants and most of all, watch parties at the houses of friends or family.
Around these parts, the big game hasn’t meant anything for the last 13 years.
Until now.
With the Birds in the Bowl, increased amounts of fans are expected to pack local bars and homes. With an Eagles win being the spark to the gunpowder, local fans and businesses are preparing for the possible chaos that may ensue.
“We do expect more calls for service related to parties on and off campus,” said Reed Layton, Senior Director of Rowan Public Safety. “Both departments (Public Safety and Glassboro P.D.) will have additional personnel on.”
Despite the increase in security, Chickie’s and Pete’s, the Philadelphia sports bar on Rowan Boulevard, is preparing for the largest crowd they have had in their short time there.
“We had a good crowd for last year’s game but I’m expecting this year to exceed that tremendously,” said Bob Morrison, General Manager of Chickie’s & Pete’s. “Everybody will have their Eagles gear on, we’ll have a DJ, giveaways and it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
Chickie’s & Pete’s will have a private security team on hand to make sure things stay calm, as well as Glassboro Police and Rowan Public Safety patrolling the area of Rowan Boulevard frequently to ensure safety.
“This will be one of the areas of concern, along with several others,” Layton said.
“I don’t expect anything to get out of hand,” Morrison said. “Most of the people that come here for the games are always well behaved.”
After the Eagles won the conference championship last week, large mobs of people gathering in the streets was a familiar scene all across the region. For some fans, those large scale celebrations is something they are hoping to be a part of.
“I’m going into South Philly to watch the game,” said Joe DiBari, sophomore. When asked if he was going into the city to join in on the possible post-game madness, DiBari said, “Most definitely.”
For students, the pre-game festivities begin in the Chamberlain Student Center in the early afternoon, culminating with a live stream of the game in the pit at 6:30 p.m.
“We’ll have a Madden 18 tournament in the game room around 2 p.m. and will end before the start of the game,” said Tim Penk, who supervises the game room and is also a die-hard Eagles fan.
“I’ll end up watching the game wherever I get invited to,” Penk said. “I’ll probably end up joining the impromptu celebrations if they win.”
Every student who is an Eagles fan on Rowan’s campus has never seen the team win a championship. In fact, their parents have probably never witnessed the spectacle either due to the 57 year title drought.
If the upset occurs, fans across Glassboro will want to make it a night they will never forget. It is just important that they do so in a safe manner.
Or else Crisco will become a hot commodity on the light poles around campus.
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