Comments on: Be loud, be proud, be positive

By: jlawrence01

jlawrence01 — Sat, 03 Mar 2007 18:00:03 +0000

If your going to take the two minutes to have a student read a statement telling people to be a good sport, then take the time to quiet down unruly fans at the site.

I don’t expect that everyone agrees with every official’s call. However when fans get loudly abusive toward game officials as certain Carroll College fans did at the Midwest Conference Women’s tournament last week, school officials need to quiet those folks down.

BTW, I haven’t seen too many of the students go “over the line” in the past three or four years. Generally, it the players’ parents that get under control – and generally only a few schools.

By: SUNYAC1

SUNYAC1 — Sat, 03 Mar 2007 05:42:25 +0000

at SUNYAC championship game in Brockport, the A-Hole chant started (after a bad call ?) and within seconds the Athletic Director was over in front of the vocal students and stopped it immediately.

The person causing the outburst was pointed out and was dealt with, WITHOUT further incident.

It’s up to the host school for any game to control it’s own crowd.

By: SUNYAC1

SUNYAC1 — Sat, 03 Mar 2007 05:35:02 +0000

quote by U of R fans as they left dejected after their team lost to Plattsbugh State 61-60. ” That’s all right… That’s Okay, all you fools will be working for US one day “.

Obviously future Enron-type executive material talking.

Too bad U of R fans are not as classy as their coach.

By: Hoops Fan

Hoops Fan — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 18:29:15 +0000

I always try to rag on and root for everyone equally, home team, visiting team and officials. I’m a spectator at the game and I like giving my opinion. I try to avoid sweeping generalizations and comment on the course of play.

I’m at the game to enjoy the game, but part of being there is being involved. My ragging comments usually involve things like “pass the ball more” or “look to the post” and usually specific things I think the refs are missing.

The generic “you sucks” don’t do anyone any good.

I also try to be equally positive with the “good calls” and “nice passes.” We can root for our favorites without totally ignoring the beauty of the game from all participants.

Then again, you always have the good natured ribbing, like reading loudly from physics textbooks while the MIT guys are shooting FTs. That’s always fun.

By: HopeConvert

HopeConvert — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 02:59:20 +0000

Possibly the referees “make the game possible.” But I think an argument can be made that their very existence leads to a host of intractable problems. I’ve always thought it would be interesting to experiment with games without refs – let the players call fouls on themselves. It’s possible the game could be better off for it. In the meantime, fans should stay off their backs, unless they have conclusive evidence that the refs are actually on the take. Cheer for your team, and leave it at that.

By: Mark_Reichert

Mark_Reichert — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 21:53:56 +0000

I wasn’t saying it should be the natural order of things, just the behavior I’ve seen most. Perhaps I should talk to the coaches for how to instill the proper crowd behavior.

As for the refs, all they owe me is doing their jobs properly. I’d prefer they favor no team over favoring my one.

By: SeanGOP

SeanGOP — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 21:40:50 +0000

The most rude fans can be found at children’s little league games.

I think D3 fans are most likely the most respectful due to the high caliber of student they attract. D3 has no monopoly on good fans, I just think they are the most respectful.

And as I said earlier, GO AUGIE!!!

By: JoeHakes

JoeHakes — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 20:16:41 +0000

Mark,

It is not the “natural order of things” to boo the refs and rag the other team. Order involves a cooperative spirit that allows us to respect other people (teams) while we love our own. Your last sentence seems to imply that the officials owe you something. The game is about the players, not the fans.

By: Mark_Reichert

Mark_Reichert — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 18:42:58 +0000

It is possible to both positively cheer for your team and be someone who rags the other team and boos the refs when you think they’ve blown. As for the amatuer status, this behavior happens just as much at high school games if not more so. I was under the impression it was the natural order of things.

Besides I’m the model of decorum compared to the University of Chicago fans I was sitting next to on Feb. 24.

As for the refs, I know I’m more understanding if I know exactly why the foul was called and if I have confidence they are using the exact same standard for both teams.

By: David Collinge

David Collinge — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 16:17:45 +0000

I agree completely with Pat, and thank him for bringing up this important issue.

Being positive extends to how you view the game. It sometimes seems to me that the cheerleaders are the only people in the gym who are actually cheering FOR someone; everyone else is either booing (or cursing at) the other team, or haranguing the referees, or (usually) both. This is not limited to the students, either. I often think that referees must love the game more than any of the rest of us, since they get constant abuse and rarely, if ever, get thanked for making our game possible. Referees aren’t perfect, but few of us are, and they are at least giving their best effort in a crucial and thankless task (despite what all you conspiracy theorists believe.) This weekend, cheer hard for your team in a loud, proud, and positive way, and cut the refs some slack.