I love college football, and that is never going to change. It's my favorite sport to watch and the football Cats are my favorite sports team. But, I have to admit that this last month has been a complete turn off to me. It's mostly been due to Tennessee fans, but many of our fans as well.
I already knew it, but it has further proven to me that people take this shit WAY too seriously. It's a game played by college kids that no doubt put their heart and soul into it, but it's still just a game at the end of the day. However, it seems most people don't understand that. From what I see, in victory and defeat, it brings the worst out of so many people.
Yes, the Internet is a huge part of the problem, and I know a lot of the fans are different in person, but that's not an excuse to me. All this chest pumping and trash talk about a game that 99% of these people have never played at the collegiate level and have zero personal connection to the teams that are playing other than they like the team. It's just lost on me I guess. I have gotten caught up in it too from time to time, but as I've gotten older (I'm 34 now), that is less and less these days. And I always feel like an ass afterwards. Perspective I guess.
There's really no major point to this post. Just woke up and started typing. And I know that the crazy fandoms are part of what makes college football great. I totally get that. But there's a line, and it seems to be crossed more and more often these days.
A lot of people, our fans included, need to take a step back from all this and realize that it is just a game. Trust me, I'm a die hard fan. I live almost 350 miles away from Ryan Field and have season tickets (I make it in for most games, but it's getting harder with a two year old and another one due next month). When the Cats lose, it sucks. But I like to give myself five minutes after the game to have a pity party then move on. If a Cats loss ruins your week or weekend, I truly feel sorry for you. There are more important things in life. Sports is there for entertainment. I get WAY more joy out of a Cats win than I do feeling bad about a loss. What's the point? I'd rather focus on the fact that this team made the last four months a shit ton of fun and played beyond my expectations. Sure, it ended with a thud yesterday, but I'm not throwing four months of joy out the window for a bad loss just due to a matter of recency.
This is a real rambler, a total puppy dogs and ice cream post, and probably a little too dramatic for a freakin' sports message board on a Saturday morning. But I already typed the whole thing so I'm just going to hit "create thread" now.
I already knew it, but it has further proven to me that people take this shit WAY too seriously. It's a game played by college kids that no doubt put their heart and soul into it, but it's still just a game at the end of the day. However, it seems most people don't understand that. From what I see, in victory and defeat, it brings the worst out of so many people.
Yes, the Internet is a huge part of the problem, and I know a lot of the fans are different in person, but that's not an excuse to me. All this chest pumping and trash talk about a game that 99% of these people have never played at the collegiate level and have zero personal connection to the teams that are playing other than they like the team. It's just lost on me I guess. I have gotten caught up in it too from time to time, but as I've gotten older (I'm 34 now), that is less and less these days. And I always feel like an ass afterwards. Perspective I guess.
There's really no major point to this post. Just woke up and started typing. And I know that the crazy fandoms are part of what makes college football great. I totally get that. But there's a line, and it seems to be crossed more and more often these days.
A lot of people, our fans included, need to take a step back from all this and realize that it is just a game. Trust me, I'm a die hard fan. I live almost 350 miles away from Ryan Field and have season tickets (I make it in for most games, but it's getting harder with a two year old and another one due next month). When the Cats lose, it sucks. But I like to give myself five minutes after the game to have a pity party then move on. If a Cats loss ruins your week or weekend, I truly feel sorry for you. There are more important things in life. Sports is there for entertainment. I get WAY more joy out of a Cats win than I do feeling bad about a loss. What's the point? I'd rather focus on the fact that this team made the last four months a shit ton of fun and played beyond my expectations. Sure, it ended with a thud yesterday, but I'm not throwing four months of joy out the window for a bad loss just due to a matter of recency.
This is a real rambler, a total puppy dogs and ice cream post, and probably a little too dramatic for a freakin' sports message board on a Saturday morning. But I already typed the whole thing so I'm just going to hit "create thread" now.
