Rutgers Treasure Hunter: the stuff you find in the attic!

This Friday is Rutgers’ opening game. At home. And if you needed another reason to wear scarlet, it’s College Colors Day, as in @collegecolors.

In anticipation of this momentous occasion, we bring back our occasional post, the Rutgers Treasure Hunter (that’s me). I know a lot of you have stuff that is RU-related, whether it’s hats, or shirts, or programs, banners, flags, barbecue grills. It’s all good. I’ve shared with you some of my stuff over the last few years and I offer a few new items now.

Last season, Chris Ash decided we would only have one home and one away uniform, unlike some schools from the Pacific Northwest or from near the Beltway of D.C. And I wondered what they were going to do with the old stuff, especially since we were going from Swooshville to Three Stripe City.

Well, I’ll tell you what they did. They sold it in a two day sale in the Bubble last April. And I was there to grab up a few things that, clearly, I didn’t need but absolutely had to have. Was I alone? No, I was not...and they sold out.

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What did I get? Glad you asked.

Let’s start with the infamous “salmon” jerseys. Up close they are not as orange/pink/cooked shrimp/salmon color as they appear from the stands.

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And of all the numbers I could have chosen, you ask why I took 72. Easy....it was my number when I played Lightweight Football “on the banks”. I’m just a sentimental fool.

My favorite buy that day, though, was this:

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The best, unnecessary $50 I ever spent. There were other choices: white, matte black, red. But the battle scarred chrome just looked best among the lot. And, by the way, up close and personal the matte black is, well, meh. Oh, and I had to sign a release saying that if I wore the helmet and did something stupid, like play football in it, Rutgers was not liable.

As for other things to psych you up for Friday.....

We just celebrated RU’s 250th Anniversary in 2016 (2016 - 1766 = 250). But there was also a celebration for the bicentennial of the University. I actually remember somewhere getting bookcovers for the 200th that I used on textbooks in 1966. Imagine that....textbooks. How quaint. But for the bicentennial, there was a commemorative post mark that the New Brunswick post office used on Nov. 10, 1966. Voila!

I do not recall any such celebration for the 250th....you missed out on that one, guys.

But this is football season, and one of Rutgers’ greatest players, as well as one of its most notable graduates, was honored with a stamp in 2004. The Paul Robeson stamp, issued in Princeton (his home town), shows on the commemorative envelope “Robey” along with two football teammates, William Feitner and Joseph Breckley.

And finally, since this is the Birthplace of College Football, let’s celebrate the centennial of the game. The United States Post Office issued the centennial stamp honoring the game in New Brunswick the day before the actual centennial game between Rutgers and Princeton (which I attended!).

Okay, we’ve strolled down memory lane. Or maybe it was Landing Lane. But, it’s GAME WEEK and Rutgers opens its 123rd year of playing this silly game. Crank up the barbie, chill the adult beverages, break out the scarlet shirts and hats and sweaters and whatever else you have.

Friday, September 1 is game day.