I really resent all of the negativity on this board. I LOVE NU! The school changed my life. It helped me mature from a small-town hick from a working class family into a somewhat mature and sophisticated young man capable of a professional career in a major metropolitan area. I met my wife at NU. Most of my best friends were frat brothers or classmates at NU. I root for the football team because I love the school. I attend the games because I care about the outcome, I reconnect with frat brothers, their wives, and their kids. I respect the coaches and the young men who play the game. I believe they are all doing it the right way. Some of you seem not to care an iota about the school and what it stands for. All you care about is football. NU is a great academic institution that happens to field a Division IA football program. Winning 10 games is icing on the cake. But to some of you,10 wins is not enough if they are not "pretty". You want championships and if you do not get them, you want heads to roll. You can take your polls and rants and stick them where they can't hurt anyone but you. I am sick of all of you, all of you. Just go away. I will love NU after you're gone.
NU fans vs football fans
- Thread starter Aging Booster
- Start date
Well this was weird and uncalled for.
It's just a rant. Don't take it personally.
I love NU too, even when we suck or get roasted by UT and all that orange stuff.
I love NU too, even when we suck or get roasted by UT and all that orange stuff.
Pretty much everyone here does. We have way, way fewer non-alum fans than other schools. Most of us have attended, those who haven't have fallen in love with what the school stands for...not it's wild success on the football field. But, this is a football board, so obviously people are going to prioritize talking/caring about what happens with the football team. Seems like a little bit of misplaced anger.
The fact that you think you are better now that you are not from a working class family makes me sick. I hope you had too much to drink before you posted.
I'm one of the (too) few non-alum diehards that we do have. If we could somehow come up with as modest an increase as maybe 1500 or 2000 more like that at the basketball games, and, say, six to eight thousand more routinely attending the football games, the atmosphere at our home games would take a significant step in the right direction. Winning, of course, would probably be the shortest path to that destination, but - as a number of posters have pointed out - a number of non-alums who identify as Northwestern fans do so for reasons that often transcend wins and losses. That's certainly true for me. There are, I've got to believe, thousands of people throughout the Chicago area who might respect and appreciate the things that Northwestern stands for; the Athletic Department needs to find a way to connect with more of them.
WTF?
There are a lot of ways to interpret what he wrote. I think you chose the most negative one. I interpreted it as him saying that NU helped transform his perspective, career, and ambition into something that he probably did not imagine growing up. I don't see any classism in his statement, but maybe I am just a Pollyanna.
As an alum, I don't believe this is true of me or the great majority of my fellow alums here. But this is a football board, not a place for us to extol the virtues of our institution (which, indeed, we do a *lot* more than I am sure you will see on many other school boards). Your rant is a bit misguided, IMO.
I'm plenty sophisticated. I grew up shooting skeet and trap at the finest Country Club in Chicago. Let him speak for himself.
Dear Aging Booster,
Even More Aging Booster here. WTH? As a fellow Aging Booster, I'd think you'd give greater value to the Aging Booster perspective, which is that NU strives for excellence. Not just on defense, but on offense also. Oh, and also in the classroom. So many times this season I have said to myself (since I am aging and talk to myself a lot), how in the heck does the defense do it, how do they keep fighting, in the face of an offense producing three and outs at the rate that people who are much less aging than you and I, produce sperm? Seriously, what was to like about that? I'm not negative, but I no longer want to watch any part of Wildcat football embarrassing themselves on a weekly basis (some weeks more so than others). 10-3 is absolutely terrific, but on half a team? Win or lose, talented or not, I want to see every coach and every player giving the effort that Justin Jackson gives on every play.
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I really resent all of the Board Police BS on this board. I LOVE NU! The school changed my life. It helped me mature from someone who used cans and bongs to someone who now vapes (it's healthier) and capable of making an apple from the fruit basket of a 5 star hotel into a practical smoking implement within one minute. I met my wife away from NU. Only some of my best friends were Greek at all, or even classmates at NU because I've had a much broader life that doesn't shut out the rest of the world. I root for the football team because I love the school. It certainly isn't for the championships. I attend the games when I can, which is often difficult living an ocean away, but when I do I go with and reconnect with classmates and friends who still have the same season tickets that we bought and maintain in a block. I respect the coaches and the young men who play the game, but believe their performance is open to criticism. I believe they are all doing it the right way except when they drop the ball, miss a tackle, or otherwise do it the wrong way on the field. Some of you seem not to care an iota about what other fans think. All you care about is your own opinion and that anyone who thinks differently is somehow worse than you. NU is a great academic institution that happens to field a Division IA football program. Winning 10 games is not mutually exclusive to being a great academic institution. But to some of you, wins and losses aren't important. Improvement to you is unimportant. You don't want championships and especially if it means heads need to roll. You can take your sanctimonious rants and stick them where they can't hurt anyone but you. I am sick of all of you, all of you. Just go away. I will love NU after you're gone.
I apologize for some of my phrasing - I can see that it could be subject to unintended interpretations. The point is that I come here for two reasons: (1) to gain information about the 'Cats, and (2) to share my enthusiasm for the program with other fans. Most of what I see, instead, is complaints against the coaches and players, suggestions that the splendid new facility will not be built, and attacks on opposing teams' fans. I am frustrated because I do not understand the motivations for these expressions. What can they accomplish? Yesterday, I just had to give voice to that frustration.
I understand your sentiment but think it is off base. Most who frequent these boards share the same love for NU that you have. I personally love the team in large part because Fitz and the university believe excellence on and off the football field can be achieved while acting within the rules and maintaining the highest ethical standards. Fitz himself has said that NU's goal is to win a National Championship and I truly believe that can happen without bending the rules or taking short cuts. For too long this program has been the victim of mediocre expectations. Fitz as a player and coach has helped change that culture and dared everyone involved with the program to raise the bar. The bar has been raised and therefore 10 wins no longer can be viewed as "gravy" when we all see and believe in the potential for more without compromising our values. When people express frustration and provide reasoned criticism on the board, what you are seeing is the byproduct of the raised expectations and hopes that Fitz and the administration have promulgated. I see no harm in that.
I didn't go to NU. Prior to the last few years I knew exactly two people who did go there and wasn't close with either of them whatsoever. Why should I give a shit about the school? I've only stepped foot on the campus about 4 times total.
You say that like its a bad thing. Didn't the university launch a major marketing campaign not long ago aimed at people like me?
I'm all for high APRs, graduation rates, and doing it the "right" way, but have zero emotional connection to the university. That connection lies with the football team
I'm all for high APRs, graduation rates, and doing it the "right" way, but have zero emotional connection to the university. That connection lies with the football team
I understand what your are saying, and as an aging booster myself, I agree with your sentiments. I sometime will not look at this board for days when I see nothing what I consider absurd conversations, especially when it is just a couple of people p*ssing over each other. I also stopped reading the boards before the bowl game because I couldn't stand a lot of the tripe posted by some of the idiot Tennessee fans (although some posted really interesting stuff.
However, one of the the things that I learned at Northwestern is how to accept diversity of opinion. As for the state of the program, I think Fitz is exactly the leader that we need. However, looking at the underperformance of the offense over the past several seasons, I do think it is time that the top brass look at what could be contributors to the problem - coaching, play design and/or calling, recruiting, player development - to learn where the problems lie. Let's face it, college football is now a big business, so I would expect the president and athletic director to approach the problem as a business would.
The Cats' performance this year exceeded my rather meagre expectations, but ten wins do not mean that portions of the program should not be examined and, yes, criticised. As a Northwestern alum, you just simply have to choose what you want to read on the board and skip over the tripe that can sometime abound.
I didn't realize you were living in Amsterdam.
Thanks for that and I apologize for overreacting and misinterpreting. I work with a lot of working class people and they are being screwed by the economy and leadership. They work hard and are the backbone of America but live on the edge of ruin because of low wages and poor opportunity for advancement. Meanwhile, the superrich (and I doubt that includes anyone on the board) have prospered greatly and become very powerful while wage disparity has gotten out of hand, this has become a sore spot of injustice for me.
I have to learn not to hit reply when I'm posting out of emotion.
There definitely is a culture clash but it isn't unintended. NU reaches out and even markets itself as "Chicago's team". This marketing is exclusive to football.
The following is the All Turk School of Personality Fan Status Chart
1. Stepford Fan. i.e., everything is always fine. NU degree, bleed purple, "My life for NU".
2. Pollyanna. Everything is not fine but I'm afraid to say anything for an assortment of reasons, including status and credibility issues.
3. Wine and Cheeser: Give money and support the program, NU Alum, may hit a bowl game but doesn't know player names other than maybe the QB.
4. Balanced. Give money to the program, free to speak mind, very very smart football fans.
5. Chicago Slob fan. roots for the cats, speaks mind, doesn't give a dime outside of possible ST. But loves the program and the greater Football cultures, i.e., tailgating, etc.
6. Occasional fan. May hit a game a year, doesn't know many player names, still internalizing the program and could advance upward in fan status charts.
7. Shills. Well, you know who you are.
The following is the All Turk School of Personality Fan Status Chart
1. Stepford Fan. i.e., everything is always fine. NU degree, bleed purple, "My life for NU".
2. Pollyanna. Everything is not fine but I'm afraid to say anything for an assortment of reasons, including status and credibility issues.
3. Wine and Cheeser: Give money and support the program, NU Alum, may hit a bowl game but doesn't know player names other than maybe the QB.
4. Balanced. Give money to the program, free to speak mind, very very smart football fans.
5. Chicago Slob fan. roots for the cats, speaks mind, doesn't give a dime outside of possible ST. But loves the program and the greater Football cultures, i.e., tailgating, etc.
6. Occasional fan. May hit a game a year, doesn't know many player names, still internalizing the program and could advance upward in fan status charts.
7. Shills. Well, you know who you are.
Well - condider me a Stepford fan who the coaches know by face if not name, who gives substantially to the program, who was one of the original founders of the Gridiron Network, who goes to every game, and who knows the players by name and number. How does that disrupt your thinking. Please try not to categorize me and others. Seriously, our goals are not different - just the means of obtaining them. I do not see how tearing down the administration ("they will not build it"), the coaches, or the players helps us at all. In fact, I think it hurts a little. Potential fans to Dyche may read the board, as well a HS students considering attending here. Why tear down what you profess to love? Why engage in sophomoric arguments with fans from visiting teams that make everyone look stupid? I just do not "get it".
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Oh, no thinking involved. I think we all fit somewhere along that scale. To be sure, the stepford fans are the 5 stars, the rocks of the program. The "Ushers in the Church" sorta speak. We need more of them.
I sincerely want to thank you for supporting the Cats. We need more fans like you. As a fan, you have as much right to post your opinions here as any alum of the university. Pure football fans who couldn't care less for the university are fine in my book. Of course many people root for NU because it is one of the few Power 5 that makes a sincere effort to have its student athletes excel both on the field and in the classroom. But at the end of the day, it's the team on the football field that draws the fan.
Dacat, thank you. But one thing, I really don't thing wrassler is a troll. Kinda an odd ball, but I wouldn't label him a troll whatsoever
Chicago Slob Fan here. A non-alum who loves the Cats and has been following them since I was 10 years old - that makes 53 years a fan.
Love the team, I select a favorite player every year, watch every game, home and away and I try to go to at least one game a year. (This past year, Iowa - OUCH).
I agree that it's wrong to belittle a player who tries his best, whose parents might be in the stands or reading this board. It's not wrong to state "Steve goofed in dropping the ball just before crossing the goal line". It is wrong to call Steve a loser, or a choker, or a quitter, or an idiot.
Coaches are a different matter. They are paid to get this team some wins. If someone calls the OC a goof for calling three straight passes after the running game has picked up 35 yards in three plays, that's not a horrible thing.
Love the team, I select a favorite player every year, watch every game, home and away and I try to go to at least one game a year. (This past year, Iowa - OUCH).
I agree that it's wrong to belittle a player who tries his best, whose parents might be in the stands or reading this board. It's not wrong to state "Steve goofed in dropping the ball just before crossing the goal line". It is wrong to call Steve a loser, or a choker, or a quitter, or an idiot.
Coaches are a different matter. They are paid to get this team some wins. If someone calls the OC a goof for calling three straight passes after the running game has picked up 35 yards in three plays, that's not a horrible thing.
I'm probably a 5 as well. Unless we can come up with some more categories.
I am a big fan of this perspective. I do not see NU as ever becoming a football team with a university attached as so many other schools have become. BUT, a percentage of the fan base being focused solely on the football team and that percentage providing an income stream to the athletic department will increase the pressure to win. And more winning will increase that percentage of the fan base. And a larger such fan base will increase pressure for better facilities. Which will increase that percentage of the fan base. Etc etc
Will we ever become a fan base that cares so little about the reputation of the university that we mail feces to ESPN and threaten teen-age girls? No. But a little more focused pressure on consistent winning is not a bad thing.
Wait, am I a Pollyanna or a Shill? I believe that you have referred to me as a Pollyanna in the past, but just want to confirm my status.
You don't think other schools, including the most successful programs, have fans that critique the crap out of coaches and players? We are cottony soft compared to all others. There is not a single school which is successful in the Power 5 that has a fan base that is strictly rah-rah, non-critical, Pop Warner like. If anything, the amount of expectation and criticism correlates sharply with the success of the program. This doesn't seem to hurt other programs. If there are players that get turned off by this, then frankly they probably wouldn't survive in any other Power 5 program and are better in the MAC or outside of Division I. I highly doubt there is a single prospective HS student that bases his decision on this message board. If they do consider football/athletics at all, it would strictly be the W-L's. Just like the potential fans who aren't alums. Win, and everything will be fine.
As far as tearing down what we profess to love - you must tear down in order to rebuild. If it's broke, it doesn't make sense to try to fix it with extension cords and duct tape. Pierce the boil, to let the pus out and allow it to heal. Better to start over. The offense is starting to like we may be in need of a reboot. The WR unit for sure is already there. At least invest in an effing automatic tennis ball machine, for Pete's sake! Now, you could argue, nothing we do here will matter and the admin and coaches ignore this board. While I think there may be some truth to that, there are indications that they are aware of the sentiments of the fan base, and there is reasonable basis to believe that fan base sentiment may have a small influence on them. Even if there is not, the value comes from letting the fanbase let off their steam and think we may make a difference. At least for me, that's necessary to maintain sanity and remain engaged when you have to stomach the failings of our putrid passing offense and sit through debacles like Tennessee. Otherwise, I couldn't stand it and would just walk away from it all.
And finally, we engage in sophomoric arguments from fans with visiting teams that make everyone look stupid, because that's one of the purposes of these message boards, like it or not. It's either that or engage in sophomoric arguments (like this one) from fans of our own team that still make everyone look stupid.
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By definition you would know if you were a shill. So, Pollyanna, I guess. Pollyannas are nice, don't be sad.
i dont have any idea about your giving of support but you seem both passionate and knowledgeable. The scale seems to slide so while im not finally sure about you, im sure i spent time in each category, including stepford and shill, to have fun or maybe humor that some could say is poor taste.
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