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Volume CXXXII, Number 20 |
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Bandwagon fans need to go
ERIK SPRAGUE
COLUMNIST
Currently there are much more important matters to get all riled up over, but one sports issue that has gotten increasingly annoying over the past several years is that of bandwagon fans. For those who are not exactly sure what a bandwagon fan is and/or if they would qualify as one, a band wagon fan is a fan-or at least a self-proclaimed fan-whose decision to watch and support a particular sports team is based primarily on the given team's success.
One recent example of a bandwagon fan I encountered is my roommate, who shall remain nameless so as to allow him to keep his dignity. His origins reside in Fort Worth, Texas. About two weeks ago, he made a concerted effort to root for the University of Texas men's basketball team in its Sweet 16 match-up with UConn.
He invited upwards of ten people to come over and watch the game with him in our apartment. As the game proceeded, he vigorously rooted on "his" team, dressed in a Texas state flag that he wore as a cape. Immediately after the game ended, in which Texas emerged victorious, he stepped up on a table in our common room and began to sing a University of Texas school song in a loud, ringing voice.
While normally such passion would be commendable, in this case, it was hardly sincere. In fact, this was one of the select few University of Texas men's basketball games he watched all season. And moreover, he didn't even watch its Elite Eight match-up with Michigan State two days later.
The fact is my roommate was not being a "real" fan that day. He hadn't witnessed the ups and downs Texas went through over the course of the season. Thus, unlike "real" Texas men's basketball fans, he had little or no emotional stake in whether Texas won or lost. In fact, he didn't give it a second thought when Texas lost to Syracuse in the Final Four two days later. All he did was show up for the last hurrah, and in doing so, cemented his stature as simply another annoying bandwagon fan.
I realize that many do not consider sports very important in relation to their daily lives, and that they look at sports as merely another form of entertainment. This is understandable, but there are many others out there that put a lot of time and money into watching and supporting their favorite sports teams.
These people watch most, if not all, of their teams' games. They don't just watch their teams when it fits their schedules or when their teams are winning. In fact, almost the exact opposite is true. They accommodate their teams' schedules so that it fits in their everyday lives-with work being the sole exception. Additionally, whether or not their teams are successful does not dictate their level of support.
If you indeed qualify as a bandwagon fan, this obviously does not make you a bad person. But please don't attempt to convey the impression that you are a "real" fan because doing so belittles sports by placing it on a par with mere entertainment. And, for many of us, it is so much more.
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