Dear Fans who sit around us at WVU games,
I appreciate your dedication, and enthusiasm for the West Virginia Mountaineers. Die-hard fans are very special to collegiate athletics in general. But there are a few things I would like to say as this season has winded down - because you are both ignorant and annoying.
1) 'Dead Ball' is not a penalty - In the USF game I heard someone behind me complain about the ref because the "dead ball shoulda been on them." 'Dead Ball' is a point in time. It means between plays...when nothing is going on...in particular with the ball... hence the name.
2) If you weigh over 350 lbs. please a) do not wear shorts that are 8 inches above the knee and/or b) sit with your legs wide open and lean over as far as you can. It is not attractive, and I think I might vomit thinking about it...
3) No one on the field can hear you... you are on the 2nd level just below the press box. Do not yell at the ref to "get off the ball." He cannot hear you. If the opposing team drops back to pass, do not yell "PAASSSSS!" The players on the field will not respond. Finally, you are way too cranky and annoyed if you are yelling at the cheerleaders to "start a cheer." Trust me, I have yelled at the TV when I know no one can hear me, but it is reactionary, a once in a while thing. You people seem to yell at someone to do something every single play as if they can hear you.
Once in a while that is reactionary = okay; every play because you think the cheerleaders - on the opposite side of the field - are going to turn and say "that guy in section 217 thinks we should start a cheer. Ready?! OKAY!" = crazy.
4) Sometimes the opposing team executes what they are trying to do. On a kickoff return against Rutgers, WVU returner ran past the 20 and was hit by a Rutgers defender. When he was hit he stopped and tried to make a move. The people behind me yelled at the returner "DON'T STOP!" Unfortunately the laws of physics contradict the feasibility of him running right through someone.
5) When you have to sit on bleachers, you should be respectful of space. We have 4 seats, and at the USF game the order was my mother, Ryan, me then Rachael (my wife). Beside Rach was this woman who repeatedly elbowed Rach because she was so close. When fans beside my mother left I asked everyone to scoot down to give Rach some breathing room, and the damn woman crept her ass down close to Rach again and started with the elbows.
6) "SGIT DA BAW!"( = 'Get the ball') - The defense will attempt to do this without you telling them to do so. Please stop doing it on every single defensive play. Turnovers happen few times a game, maybe 1 per side on average in a 3+ hour game. Cheering for a turnover every play is like eagerly scouring the ground for loose change everywhere you walk.
7) You don't know the game as well as you think you do. Most games we attend you question a timeout, a call, a play, a route, a tackle, etc. Most of the time you are wrong, and other times you are just making statements with the benefit of hindsight ("DAMMIT! We should have thrown it there"). If I were ever to hire someone to coach games that have already happened, you would top my list.
8) The refs aren't against us. Refs make bad calls. Sometimes we are the benefactor of them, sometime we are the victim of them, but I can say with some confidence that the refs are not conspiring to bump WV off. But there may be a conspiracy among our section against you.
9) Speaking of the refs and rules - each year the NCAA may make rule changes. You may want to brush up on those so you don't look like more of an idiot by bitching about something that would have been proper to bitch about under the old rules, but that you have no grounds to bitch about under the new rules.
10) Yelling at people to cheer (especially me) makes me want to cheer less. You have a 'cheer' obsession. As a ticket holder, I have the right to not cheer if I want to not cheer. I don't tell anyone to sit down, or try to prevent them from cheering - so I expect that you give me the same respect. I am not a 'rah-rah' guy. I don't overly cheer. I don't overly boo. I take in the game and will occasionally cheer. Screw you if you think I have some sort of obligation to cheer because I am sitting there, and screw you for making asinine comments like "I blame this game on the crowd."
I thought I would just point those things out for you. I think in the long run that it will make you a more tolerable for me and other people around you. I hope that you will read this as we move forward into the 2007-2008 season and modify your behavior accordingly. Because the next time I get blamed for a loss after the QB throws an interception, I may not be so cordial about my feelings.
Sincerely,
tz
