Who's Your Team?

Terry in Crapchester · Thu Jul 20, 2006 6:32 pm

Jimmy Medalions wrote:College: Trojans
NFL: Green Bay
NBA: Lakers
MLB: Angels
NHL: WGAF

[Raydah James]WTF? You bang all the SoCal teams but you're a Packers fan? Explain.[/Raydah James]

socal · Post by **socal** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 6:50 pm

C'mon, Terry, get in character:

Terry in Crapchester wrote:[Raydah James]WTF? You bang your meat missle to all the SoCal teams but you're a FudgePackers fan? Explain.[/Raydah James]

Fixed.

:wink:

Jimmy Medalions · Post by **Jimmy Medalions** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 8:01 pm

Nice.

Been a Green Bay fan since I was about six. I can't explain why, it just happened.

Terry in Crapchester · Thu Jul 20, 2006 8:09 pm

Jimmy Medalions wrote:Nice.

Been a Green Bay fan since I was about six. I can't explain why, it just happened.

I'll give you props for that. IIRC, the Packers sucked big time when you were about six (and for a few years thereafter). Most little kids back winners, so props for sticking to your guns.

Jimmy Medalions · Post by **Jimmy Medalions** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 8:11 pm

History tends to repeat itself...I then became a Trojan fan in 1990.

Terry in Crapchester · Thu Jul 20, 2006 8:24 pm

Not a Trojan fan until you went there? Oh well, at least you missed the Tollner years.

Mike the Lab Rat · Post by **Mike the Lab Rat** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 8:27 pm

I think it's truly sad when someone wears the logo for a college team when they never went to the place, never lived near the place, have no relatives who went to the place, etc.

It's even sadder when the aforementioned loser speaks of the team as if they're a member of the team.

Yes, I've known those losers....(family of an ex-gf)

Terry in Crapchester · Thu Jul 20, 2006 9:01 pm

Mike the Lab Rat wrote:I think it's truly sad when someone wears the logo for a college team when they never went to the place, never lived near the place, have no relatives who went to the place, etc.

It's even sadder when the aforementioned loser speaks of the team as if they're a member of the team.

Yes, I've known those losers....(family of an ex-gf)

I have to disagree with, at least, the first paragraph. A very important part of Notre Dame's football tradition comes from its subway alumni.

Do the math. I've estimated that ND has only about 150,000 living alumni, using an approximation of 2,000 undergrad and 1,000 graduate degrees awarded per year times an average post-graduation life expectancy of 50 years. And if anything, those are probably generous estimates (although not ridiculously so), and they don't account for the possibility of one person having multiple degrees from Notre Dame, a phenomenon common enough to have earned its own phrase in ND gloss -- double- (or triple- or quadruple-, as the case may be, Domers. To the best of my knowledge, no person has ever earned more than four degrees from ND). There's no way Notre Dame gets a national TV contract if they only bring 150,000 fans to the table, not even if you throw immediate family members of those alumni into the mix.

Btw, I'm a Notre Dame alum, class of 1986.

Mike the Lab Rat · Post by **Mike the Lab Rat** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 9:45 pm

Terry in Crapchester wrote:I have to disagree with, at least, the first paragraph. A very important part of Notre Dame's football tradition comes from its subway alumni.

Hey, there's gold in them thar losers! I've got no gripe with institutions taking these idjits' dollars, hell, money is money. It's just plain goofy for someone to get so gung-ho over a school with which they have absolutely no ties that they wear the gear.

There's no way Notre Dame gets a national TV contract if they only bring 150,000 fans to the table, not even if you throw immediate family members of those alumni into the mix.

It's one thing to follow a college team (on TV) with which you have no ties - hell, I have to more or less do that, since SUNY Geneseo doesn't have a football team. It's another thing when you actually plunk down money for sweatshirts, jerseys, hats, or even frigging window decals when you have nothing to do with the campus other than catching their team on the tube. That's the idiocy I've seen an actual family get into for Penn St.

The colleges are entitled to the $$$ from these goobers, but it doesn't make the goobers any brighter or any less pathetic.

Terry in Crapchester · Thu Jul 20, 2006 9:48 pm

Mike the Lab Rat wrote:
Terry in Crapchester wrote:I have to disagree with, at least, the first paragraph. A very important part of Notre Dame's football tradition comes from its subway alumni.
Hey, there's gold in them thar losers! I've got no gripe with institutions taking these idjits' dollars, hell, money is money. It's just plain goofy for someone to get so gung-ho over a school with which they have absolutely no ties that they wear the gear.

In ND's case, it's more than just a little money at stake. In this day and age, ND probably would have had to drop to 1-AA without its subway alumni.

There's no way Notre Dame gets a national TV contract if they only bring 150,000 fans to the table, not even if you throw immediate family members of those alumni into the mix.
It's one thing to follow a college team (on TV) with which you have no ties - hell, I have to more or less do that, since SUNY Geneseo doesn't have a football team. It's another thing when you actually plunk down money for sweatshirts, jerseys, hats, or even frigging window decals when you have nothing to do with the campus other than catching their team on the tube. That's the idiocy I've seen an actual family get into for Penn St.

The colleges are entitled to the $$$ from these goobers, but it doesn't make the goobers any brighter or any less pathetic.

It's really no different from plunking down money to wear a pro team's gear, when you think about it. And you don't mention a beef with that.

One difference between pro and college sports is that the fan following among college teams is far more gung-ho than most pro teams see. The Bills seem to me to have the closest thing to a college-type fan following of NFL teams. Imho, that's due in no small part to the paucity of 1-A college football programs in the area, and the resultant fact that most people in this area did not graduate from a college with 1-A football.

Mike the Lab Rat · Post by **Mike the Lab Rat** » Fri Jul 21, 2006 1:12 am

Terry in Crapchester wrote:It's really no different from plunking down money to wear a pro team's gear, when you think about it.

Mmmmmm........nope, not even remotely the same thing.

When someone wears the gear from a college or university, the assumption is made (usually correctly) that the individual wearing the gear either went to that place or is related/married to someone who did.

When someone wears pro sports gear, no one in their right mind assumes that the person wearing the gear is an actual athlete or official employee for that team.

So, no, they're not the same thing.

Wearing the logo from a school you're not academically related to is frigging pathetic. If you didn't go there or aren't related/married/friends with someone who did, you are sad.

As far as pro teams, even them most people have a legit reason for why the root for the teams they do, usually geography or family reasons (e.g., I root for the Islanders b/c I'm from downsate and b/c one of my early memories is hanging with my dad and watching them as a new franchise).

One difference between pro and college sports is that the fan following among college teams is far more gung-ho than most pro teams see.

Raiderfan is pretty rabid. So is Jetsfan. So is NY Rangersfan.

The Bills seem to me to have the closest thing to a college-type fan following of NFL teams. Imho, that's due in no small part to the paucity of 1-A college football programs in the area, and the resultant fact that most people in this area did not graduate from a college with 1-A football.

Probably correct.

Terry in Crapchester · Fri Jul 21, 2006 2:53 am

Mike the Lab Rat wrote:
Terry in Crapchester wrote:It's really no different from plunking down money to wear a pro team's gear, when you think about it.
Mmmmmm........nope, not even remotely the same thing.

When someone wears the gear from a college or university, the assumption is made (usually correctly) that the individual wearing the gear either went to that place or is related/married to someone who did.

When someone wears pro sports gear, no one in their right mind assumes that the person wearing the gear is an actual athlete or official employee for that team.

So, no, they're not the same thing.

I think you're generalizing if you assume that everyone who wears the gear of a particular college either went there or is related/married to someone who did. From the standpoint of a sports fan, whether it's pro or college gear you're advertising your support for your team. The only difference is that the colleges have an existence independent from their sports teams, whereas the pro teams, obviously, do not.

Wearing the logo from a school you're not academically related to is frigging pathetic. If you didn't go there or aren't related/married/friends with someone who did, you are sad.

We disagree on this point, and a lot of that has to do with the college team I root for. Notre Dame is not some huge landgrant university with 50,000+ undergrads and 1 million living alumni. In today's landscape, where money drives everything, Notre Dame could not continue to survive at the 1-A level without its subway alumni.

As far as pro teams, even them most people have a legit reason for why the root for the teams they do, usually geography or family reasons (e.g., I root for the Islanders b/c I'm from downsate and b/c one of my early memories is hanging with my dad and watching them as a new franchise).

So do most college fans.

We had a discussion about this in the college football forum. In my case, I became a Notre Dame fan long before I went to school there. That had something to do with growing up Catholic, and also something to do with the fact that the only 1-A college team even remotely geographically close to me (Syracuse) was godawful right around the time I started following sports. Bottom line is that I probably would not have gone to Notre Dame had I not been a fan. That's not to say that the only reason I went there was because I liked the football team, but rather, that my going there wa far from a preordained conclusion. I lived 500 miles away from the campus, no one in my family had ever gone there, and it's doubtful that I would have been motivated to research the school, or make the sacrifices necessary to go there, had I not been a fan of the football team.

One difference between pro and college sports is that the fan following among college teams is far more gung-ho than most pro teams see.
Raiderfan is pretty rabid. So is Jetsfan. So is NY Rangersfan.

Perhaps, but not even comparable to most college fans. If you disagree, check out the college football forum sometime.

Th · Post by Th » Fri Jul 21, 2006 9:28 pm

NFL - Patriots

MLB - Diamondbacks

NHL - Bruins

NBA - Not remotely interested

NCAAF - Tennessee Volunteers

Cross Traffic · Post by **Cross Traffic** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 5:16 am

NHL-Kings
ECHL-Idaho Steelheads
MLB-Angels, Dodgers
NFL-Chargers
NCAAF-Boise State, UCLA

Mister Bushice · Post by **Mister Bushice** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 6:59 am

Mike the Lab Rat wrote:
Terry in Crapchester wrote:It's really no different from plunking down money to wear a pro team's gear, when you think about it.
Mmmmmm........nope, not even remotely the same thing.

When someone wears the gear from a college or university, the assumption is made (usually correctly) that the individual wearing the gear either went to that place or is related/married to someone who did.

When someone wears pro sports gear, no one in their right mind assumes that the person wearing the gear is an actual athlete or official employee for that team.

So, no, they're not the same thing.

I disagree. Following a college team is no different than following a pro team. For example if you live in so cal, all you hear are USC and UCLA games on the radio and you see them on TV. It would be very easy to become a fan of a college team if you watched, listened to or went to the games without attending the University, especially if that team had a very charismatic coach or player during that time. Loyalty for a sports fan is easily built, and there's nothing more enjoyable to a real fan than following a favorite college player on to the pro level and seeing them do well there.

Then you have the Dad factor. My Father is a BIG lifelong ND fan, always has been. Why? I don't know. Maybe his father, maybe the tradition, the history, the great past achievements, or maybe he caught a game on the radio during WWII and got hooked. He never went there, neither did anyone in the family, although I think he would have been thrilled if one of us had wanted to go. But why does that matter at all?

I sat with him every Saturday during CFB season as a kid and watched or listened with him, and became a fan as well. I don't see how that differs from how I became a 49ers fan, since that happened in the same way.

Diogenes · Post by **Diogenes** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 9:01 am

poptart wrote:THE BADEST TEAM IN SPORTS NOW AND YOU, HEARD IT HERE FIRST WILL BE THE ARIZONA CARDINALS. #13 IS KURT WARNER YEAH THAT,S RIGHT!!!!1! YOU HEARD ME ALLRIGHT. HE HAS A SEASON UNDERNEETH HIS BELTS NOW IN ARIZONA AND WILL BE THE NFL COMEBACK MAN OF THE YEAR THIS YEAR. HE PLAYS THE POSITION LIKE IT SHOULD BE PLAYED STANDING UP TALL IN THE POCKET AND NOT RUNNING AROUND LIKE A GIRLIE QUARTNERBACK. YOU HEARD OF THE OTHER 13 DAN MARINO DIDN,T YOU? YEAH, I SEE YOUR HEAD NODDING. GOOD DOG. HAHA KURTN WANRER IS DAN MARINO LITE/. HE STILL HAS HIS BIG ARM AND I SEE THE ARIZONA CARDINALS GOING A REAL LONG WAY. I,M OFF TO 2 A DAY PRACTICE NOW BECAUSE SUMMER DRILLS HAVE BEGAN IN THE CALIFORNIA LEAGE. SO YOU FINGER TOY MADDEN GAY LOSER BOYS CAN DIDDLE AROUND WHILE I PRACTICE THE REAL GAME., ,POUND BEERS AT NIGHT, AND BANG YOUNG COEDS IN THE NIGHT TOO. IT,S GOOD TO BE A FOOTBALL PLAYER. AND GOOD TOO. GOOD NIGHT NOW GIRLS. BAHWAWAHAHAHHAHH

T13 is out !!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!1!!!!!

What the fuck did I say?????

Diogenes wrote:NFL- Cardinals (and stay off of my fucking bandwagon).

I guess I'll make an exception for Raider fans- they have to root for somebody after week three....

Mike the Lab Rat · Post by **Mike the Lab Rat** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 1:21 pm

Mister Bushice wrote:I disagree. Following a college team is no different than following a pro team. For example if you live in so cal, all you hear are USC and UCLA games on the radio and you see them on TV. It would be very easy to become a fan of a college team if you watched, listened to or went to the games without attending the University, especially if that team had a very charismatic coach or player during that time.

If you read my first post on the topic, I specifically said:

MtLR wrote: I think it's truly sad when someone wears the logo for a college team when they never went to the place, never lived near the place, have no relatives who went to the place, etc.

Sorry, but I completely disagree with you and Terry. Someone bopping around Rochester with a Penn State sweatshirt is going to create the impression that they went to the place (or that someone close to them did/does). To claim otherwise is just plain silly. The vast majority of folks wearing collegiate gear WENT to the place whose gear they're wearing. I wear Geneseo stuff and sometimes U of Roch stuff (since I'm technically an alum of them also), but I'd never wear Syracuse stuff, since I didn't go there and don't want to give the false impression I did.

And like I said, NO it is not the same as wearing a pro logo, since it is almost never assumed that folks wearing the logo play for or work for the team. No one is going to think, even for a second, that any of the folks sporting Bills' gear in Geneseo actually IS or WAS an employee of 1 Bills Drive. From the end of July 'til mid-August it gets sketchier, since the Bills' training camp is in a suburb of Rochester, so you might actually run into a Bills' employee as you hit a fast food joint...

Rationalize it all you want and spend your money as you see fit, but when it comes down to the bottom line, the fact remains that wearing collegiate gear is telling the world that you went to the place.

ElvisMonster · Post by **ElvisMonster** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 2:19 pm

NFL: Go Pack Go!

Everything else is a distant second...

MLB: Cards (Wasn't much of an MLB fan until I moved to the 636. This place makes it easy to be a Redbirds fan.)

NBA: Spurs (Had never paid attention to the NBA until I was living in SA back in '94. Won some tickets to my very first NBA game. Rodman was on the Spurs. Freakshow off the court, but dude was all over the place on the court! Dude made me a Spurs fan...even though I don't start really paying attention anymore until the playoffs. Maybe "fan" is too strong of a word.)

Don't really follow anything else closely enough to have any loyalties.

Terry in Crapchester · Sat Jul 22, 2006 7:52 pm

Diogenes wrote:NFL- Cardinals (and stay off of my fucking bandwagon).

No need to worry there. Usually, a NFL team has to demonstrate, at a minimum, the ability to win more than three games in a season on a consistent basis before they acquire anything remotely resembling a "bandwagon."

jtr · Post by **jtr** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 7:56 pm

NBA: Clippers, Lakers, Celtics
NHL: Bruins
MLB: Red Sox, Dodgers
NFL: Patriots

Raydah James · Post by **Raydah James** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:04 pm

jtr wrote:NBA: Clippers, Lakers, Celtics
NHL: Bruins
MLB: Red Sox, Dodgers
NFL: Patriots

Are you fucking kidding me, you chocodile mouthfucking tard?

What, no raiders/cheifs fan or cowboys/redskins/eagles fan thrown in for good measure?

Kill yourself, you cookie dough bleeding douche.

jtr · Post by **jtr** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:12 pm

Dude I was born in Boston and lived in Texas and now California, I can't help being loyal to more than one team.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:14 pm

Raydah James wrote: Kill yourself, you cookie dough bleeding douche.

So, I take it I'm no longer the Superlative Bandwagoner anymore?

I figured I'd let Stay-Puft's post stand on its own...I mean, was I going to type something that made him look dumber?

I'm suprised he didn't list Texas and Oklahoma as his two favorite CFB teams.

MgoBlue-LightSpecial · Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:16 pm

Mike the Lab Rat wrote:Rationalize it all you want and spend your money as you see fit, but when it comes down to the bottom line, the fact remains that wearing collegiate gear is telling the world that you went to the place.

That must depend where you live, I guess. KMart, Walmart, Sam's Club, etc., carry and sell college gear just as much as pro gear. Shit, you can even go into a local Meijer around here and find some shit from other Big Ten teams like IU and Penn St. College sports are big business, and its teams' gear are marketed just like pro teams.

Major state colleges tend represent the state as a whole, as well as its alums, of course. When I see someone in a Michigan or an MSU shirt, I definitely don't assume they went there. You see these shirts, sweatshirts, hats, etc., just as commonly as you see Red Wings, Tigers, Lions, and Pistons stuff. I guess around here, MSU and UofM football/basketball are akin to pro teams.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:20 pm

jtr wrote:I can't help being loyal to more than one team.

Well, you could...if you resisited the temptation to be a gravy-training zoomdweezle.

But your overwhelming need to "fit in," and "look cool"(only in YOUR eyes, bud), draws you to the glamor-team-du-jour like it was a plate of lard-dipped onion rings.

Let me guess -- you're rooting for both Israel AND Hezbollah, Joofro?

Do you tan one side of your face, and let the rosacia run roughshod over the other side?

"Well, I've always liked the Christians, but I have Italian relatives, so I pull for the lions, as well."

Raydah James · Post by **Raydah James** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:20 pm

Dinsdale wrote:
Raydah James wrote: Kill yourself, you cookie dough bleeding douche.

So, I take it I'm no longer the Superlative Bandwagoner anymore?

Yeah, congrats Dins-the biggest tard on the entire fucking internet somehow out douched you teamwise.

Props for that, I guess.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:22 pm

Raydah James wrote:
Congrats on moving on up, I guess.

Yeah, I'm kinda upwardly mobile like that.

Mister Bushice · Post by **Mister Bushice** » Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:39 pm

MgoBlue-LightSpecial wrote:
Mike the Lab Rat wrote:Rationalize it all you want and spend your money as you see fit, but when it comes down to the bottom line, the fact remains that wearing collegiate gear is telling the world that you went to the place.
That must depend where you live, I guess. KMart, Walmart, Sam's Club, etc., carry and sell college gear just as much as pro gear. Shit, you can even go into a local Meijer around here and find some shit from other Big Ten teams like IU and Penn St. College sports are big business, and its teams' gear are marketed just like pro teams.

Yep, same in Cali. And when I see someone sporting a ND football jersey coat hat, I don't assume they went there, I assume they are a fan of the team.

Perhaps the point MtLR is making is one of college loyalty. You go there, wear their gear.
However I didn't go to a Div 1 college nor did I attend one that had a football team of any note, and I never once gave it a second thought. On Saturday the radio/TV was on the ND game, period.

Probably the same reason I didn't attend ND. I wouldn't pick my college based on the success of the football program if I was going there for specific academic reasons.

Besides, why should it matter? It's sports, not education. Two different things.

Terry in Crapchester · Sun Jul 23, 2006 4:20 pm

Mister Bushice wrote:
MgoBlue-LightSpecial wrote:
Mike the Lab Rat wrote:Rationalize it all you want and spend your money as you see fit, but when it comes down to the bottom line, the fact remains that wearing collegiate gear is telling the world that you went to the place.
That must depend where you live, I guess. KMart, Walmart, Sam's Club, etc., carry and sell college gear just as much as pro gear. Shit, you can even go into a local Meijer around here and find some shit from other Big Ten teams like IU and Penn St. College sports are big business, and its teams' gear are marketed just like pro teams.
Yep, same in Cali. And when I see someone sporting a ND football jersey coat hat, I don't assume they went there, I assume they are a fan of the team.

Perhaps the point MtLR is making is one of college loyalty. You go there, wear their gear.
However I didn't go to a Div 1 college nor did I attend one that had a football team of any note, and I never once gave it a second thought. On Saturday the radio/TV was on the ND game, period.

Probably the same reason I didn't attend ND. I wouldn't pick my college based on the success of the football program if I was going there for specific academic reasons.

Besides, why should it matter? It's sports, not education. Two different things.

Like I said, I didn't pick ND strictly because I was a fan of its football team. Rather, being a fan of the football team gave me the motivation to do the research on the school, figure out that's where I wanted to go, apply, get accepted, then make the sacrifices necessary to go there and graduate.

Although I don't agree with it, I suppose I see MtLR's point to a certain extent, but I would submit that it's geographically specific. In this area, pro sports have a much more significant following than do college teams. That's not true throughout the country, however. Speaking to the SoCal teams, I remember that the Raiduhs and the Lambs could never sell out the Mausoleum, but USC could. Even when the program was down, USC still sold out for UCLA and Notre Dame. Of course, in the South, where there weren't nearly as many pro teams until relatively recently, it's even more lopsided in favor of college teams in that regard.

As to college gear specifically, true story: when I first started living with my girlfriend (now my wife), she decided to throw me a pretty big birthday party since my birthday fell not long after we started living together, and as yet we had no kids together (although she had a daughter from a previous marriage). Her mother bought me a Michigan sweatshirt as a gift. I'm pretty sure it wasn't a gag, I remember her asking about the school colors, and I think when she went to the store she either got confused or didn't see any Notre Dame gear, so she went with the closest color scheme she could find (ND and Michigan have somewhat similar color schemes, although Michigan calls theirs maize and blue). I still wear that sweatshirt from time to time during the cooler part of the year, both to be nice to her and because it's one of the more comfortable items of clothing I own, but I don't try to claim to be a Michigan fan, and anyone who suggests that I do is quite clearly grasping at straws.