One of the most famous Yale traditions is the annual Harvard-Yale football game. This game not only serves as the last football game of the season but it is also the game against our biggest rival and it happens right before we leave for Thanksgiving break. This makes the game and the weekend surrounding it a major school-wide event that brings out a ton of school spirit and is one of my personal favorite Yale traditions. Each year, the game alternates between being hosted at Harvard and at Yale so now, as a sophomore, I have experienced both and can compare the experiences.
My friends and I last year at the Yale Bowl when the game was hosted at Yale.
My first year, the game was hosted at Yale. There are tons of perks to having the game hosted at Yale, namely that ticketing and travel logistics are much easier when the event happens in the Yale Bowl. This also ensures that a larger portion of the student body can attend which makes it feel like a real community effort. Hosting the game at Yale also means that Yale student groups host all of the social events; during Harvard-Yale weekend there are often mixers between analogous extracurricular groups at each school among other, typical football-esque events like tailgates. I personally had a great time last year being able to spend the day with my friends and just be with the whole Yale community even though Yale did not win the game last year.
This year, the game was hosted by Harvard, meaning thousands of Yalies boarded buses and trains to Cambridge to watch the Bulldogs defeat the Crimson. While transportation and ticketing does get a bit tricky when the game is away, there are still several perks to holding the game at Harvard. One is that it gives Yale students a fun opportunity to visit another school and meet new people, typically through the mixer events I mentioned earlier. Even if students don’t go to the game, there are also lots of opportunities to explore the Boston area which is rich in art galleries, museums, and restaurants. All in all, even though not having the game on our home turf can be daunting at first, there are tons of opportunities to have a fun weekend and it is genuinely a super fun experience for tons of Yale students.
