Despite the fact that it’s the beginning of week nine and the smell of roses is quickly disappearing from campus, today started out pretty well — until I heard the Trojans fight song blaring out of someone’s head phones on my way to class. Who even does that? Needless to say the wounds are reopened, and I need to vent.

In 2007, I stood dumbfounded next to the student section in the Coliseum, clutching a miniature Traveler, the Trojan horse, as the Stanford band and fans ecstatically cheered after The Biggest Upset Ever on the opposite side of the stadium.

This year, I stood dumbfounded opposite the student section, clutching my little stuffed tree, as the game-winning field goal sailed through the posts and USC students stormed the field. It’s not exactly fun ending up on the losing side both times. It hurt just as bad this time, but my 20-year-old self is able to grasp the consequences of the loss a lot better than my 13-year-old self.

I am a college football fan through and through, and I can appreciate the closeness and excitement of the game — even though I wish the Card had done a couple things more effectively to pull off a win. USC played a good game and that can’t be taken away from them.

Every student deserves to have that epic moment of storming the field after a huge win. Nerd Nation had its chance after the Oregon win, and USC got its chance Saturday night.

I have to say though that I prefer not having to pay almost $200 as a student each season to watch Stanford football and I appreciated the fact that Stanford has a student population a quarter of that of USC, which made storming the field a lot more fun than frenzied.

This brings me to the next topic of this weekend for which the wounds will literally not heal for a while: the extent of the injuries sustained during USC’s storming of the field.

The media has very much been downplaying the injuries, and we should be thankful that this was not a topic of discussion relevant to Stanford after the Oregon win. One report claimed that the worst injury sustained was an injured ankle and all claimed that none of the 10 reported injuries was life threatening. This is where the reporters should have fact checked or withheld information they were uncertain about.

One of my best friends from high school was among those trampled in the chaos. She and her friends had anticipated storming the field if the Trojans were finally able to pull off a win against the Cardinal — just as every other USC student envisioned their night ending. Who can fault them that wish?

My friend is in the ICU with two broken ribs and a collapsed lung and is with us today due to some divine intervention. So don’t always believe that what is reported is entirely accurate. But also, don’t blame the students for getting rowdy and wanting to celebrate a great win. I was disgusted by the comments left on a BleacherReport brief criticizing the students for acting in such a manner and claiming that if you rush the field you are responsible for what happens.

First of all, that is disrespectful to those injured and to people like me who know of someone injured. And second, did you not go to college? Life is short and you have to seize the exciting moments in life like tailgating with your friends at another school or storming the field after your team comes through with a win.

I don’t fault my friend for doing the same thing I did two weeks ago at Stanford Stadium. It’s just sad that reporters and others don’t respect what actually happened and why the students did it.

By hosting me last weekend, my friend taught me that game day isn’t about rivalries and hate — it’s about having fun and supporting your school. And so as I pray for her, I’ll remember her leading me through the tailgates, bombarding me with names — and yelling in my defense at anyone who tried to disrespect the Trees. Win or lose, that’s the true spirit of college football.

The Stanford Daily wishes Ashley’s friend a speedy recovery. Send good thoughts Ashley’s way at awesthem ‘at’ stanford.edu.