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Bandwagon Fans - Blog Day Afternoon
Posted by Jeff (Wednesday September 10 2003 @ 10:58PM EDT)
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In the late 80s and early 90s, the Bays were bad, really bad. People frequently combined the records of Green Bay and Tampa Bay in a vain attempt to create a more competitive franchise. The result was Grampa Bay. The effort failed by virtue of elementary mathematics. One piece of crap plus another piece of crap equals one really big turd. Grampa Bay was still one of the worst teams in football. Grampa North performed so poorly in Green Bay, that he had to host three games a year in Milwaukee in order to encourage attendance. Despite its recent success, Grampa South still boasts the NFL's all-time worst winning percentage. [.384] Cometary impact killed the dinosaurs but it would have spared fans of Grampa. They simply did not exist.
If all you know is failure, then change is good. In the mid 1990s, fortunes turned for Old Man Bay. Grampa North acquired a fellow named Favre and by 1994 it was a consistently good football team. Grampa South became a defensive juggernaut. Both franchises won a Super Bowl. Suddenly Old Man Bay had a legion of "loyal" fans. Grampa North stopped playing games in County Stadium, Milwaukee. Suddenly fans were willing to drive one-hundred and ten miles north up I-43. Grampa South moved into a pirate ship and fans actually filled the stadium.
If you dig deep inside the closet of a Grampa fan, then you're sure to find a Joe Montana jersey on a hanger in the back. The 49ers had a legion of "loyal" fans throughout the 1980s. A large fan base shifted from Dallas to San Francisco soon after Montana hit Clark in the back of the end zone. By the mid-nineties, the 49ers had lost a lot luster and fans needed to jump another train. Brett Favre's number 4 became the biggest selling jersey in the country.
The trend of jumping someone else's train appears to be a predominately NFC phenomenon. While Grampa Bay experienced an explosion of new fans, the same cannot be said of recent AFC Super Bowl winners. It took two championships until Tom Brady's jersey finally cracked the top-ten. Of the ten best selling jerseys last year, eight represented teams that compete in the NFC.
Bandwagon fans lead a lonely life. They cannot possibly have friends to hold them accountable. If I showed up one Sunday in a new Grampa Bay jersey, my friends would give me so much crap that I'd be forced to seek therapy the following Monday. Switching loyalties is not simple. After five years of talking smack about the Niners, you just can't start hyping the Giants. The neighbors are going to spot you in the driveway swapping out that Cowboys license plate for a new one that announces your allegiance to the Rams. "Hey, what happened to all your Troy Aikman bobble head dolls?"
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With some frequency I've introduced articles with a little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants. Chuckles the Clown died dressed like a peanut. He wore that costume and an elephant tried to peel him. Chuckles performed this feat the Mary Tyler Moore Show. That sitcom aired in the 1970s before the Darwin Awards. By virtue of a cruel twist of fate, Chuckles failed to recieve post-mortem recognition for his effort to strengthen the herd.
Anyway, I've noticed that people frequently hit this site from Google as a result of searches for song lyrics. So as not to disappoint, I've made it a practice to include the full lyric sheet in order to satisfy the quest of those who seek the lyric grail. Unfortunately, "Jumping Someone Else's Train" doesn't read well. If you landed here with that as your quest, then click here.
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By Apnar (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 08:53AM EDT)
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Bandwagon fans who are at least true "fans" of the sport, while irritating and annoying, are not nearly as obscene as those "fans" who decide to become loyalists of Team A in Sport B when they have little or no knowledge of Sport B or Team A in the first place. For example:
Me: Hey Don, Nice Montreal Canadiens jersey
Don: Yea they are great.
Me: I didn't even know you watched hockey.
Don: Oh yea, and btw, the Canadiens are much better than the Flyers. (Insert some comment about statistics here that really makes no sense)
This occurred for some time until my friends and I realized that Don had no idea about hockey or the team he "supported" and we cared enough to humiliate him. We had no idea it would be this easy.
Us: Hey Don, can you even name any players on the Canadiens?
Don: Sure they have the best goalie in the league. Patrick Roy.
Us: Rolling with laughter after his pronunciation of Roy (yep you guessed it, just like saying Roy Rogers)
I also like the people with multiple layers of bumper stickers on their cars, displaying their love for their new found team while the previous 4 layers are waiting like fossil remains below the surface
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By kevin the one-armed boy (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 09:32AM EDT)
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It's not ok to become a fan unless you know a lot about the sport?
You go on to make the point that said fan shouldn't espouse stupid opinions about the sport which is valid but I don't think it's 'obscene' to branch out and start rooting for a team in a sport you want to get to know. BTW, the Flyers do suck (bear in mind I know absolutely nothing about hockey except they skate and use sticks). I base this opinion solely on the years I spent listening to WIP during my old commute. Philly Fans who call WIP=idiots=team sucks. Twisted, wrong logic but fun nonetheless.
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By kevin the one-armed boy (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 09:34AM EDT)
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And someday I'll remember to indent my posts on Jeff's blog. My response was for Apnar.
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By Jeff (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 09:50AM EDT)
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I'm not sure who's worse, Iggles fans or Lyers fans.
Monday after an Iggles victory:
Superbowl, baby! The Iggles are going all the way...
Monday after an Iggles lost:
This team completely sucks! They are not going to win another game this year. I don't know why I even bother....
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By Funkman (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 10:06AM EDT)
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I always think the Eagles suck, but I'll still cheer for them every sunday. And then complain about what they did the next did regardless of win or loss.
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By SingleTrainofThought (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 09:58AM EDT)
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Perhaps rooting for just the particular athlete instead of a team would be more suitable. That way when that player inevitably moves to another team (and he most likely will for more $$$), you can still in clear conscience root for new player on the new team w/o being lamblasted by your friends.
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By Jeff (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 10:01AM EDT)
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Clearly you've never met my friends....
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By krazy (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 10:57AM EDT)
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Dear SToT, Your an ass! There is no way in hell you can start rooting for the Kansas City Chiefs just because Joe Montana starts playing there. Your friends should and will lamblast you! Steeler fans did not start rooting for what ever team Franco Harris went to to close out his career. Football has been and always will be the name on the front of the Jersey not the name on the back of it!
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By Funkman (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 11:06AM EDT)
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OTOH, in the future, I am sure there will be a lot of Kobe Bryant fans cheering for the county jail team.
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By Jeff (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 11:19AM EDT)
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You county jail guys are all a bunch of bandwagon jumpers. I've been a State Pen fan since I was knee-high to a grasshopper.
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By SingleTrainofThought (Friday September 12 2003 @ 03:00PM EDT)
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Krazy,
It was a suggestion. Don't take it so personally.
I'd much rather play/participate in a sport then spend so much time agonizing over which team to root for or live vicariously through some player. You want to root for a team? Root for the one you play on. To all of you who _only_ watch/tailgate, etc.: Get a life! Sports are much more enjoyable when participating in one then watching.
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By Jeff (Saturday September 13 2003 @ 01:46PM EDT)
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The problem with Krazy's statement -- aside from its grammatical errors -- is its accuracy. You can't possibly be an ass by virtue of the fact that you read this blog. ;-)
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By kevin the one-armed boy (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 11:17AM EDT)
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Since we're ranting sports today here's the funniest thing I've ever read. Some PSU football player took issue with Nebraska's Richie Incognito in pre-game trash talking resulting in the following blurb from U of Nebraska.
"The Nebraska sports information staff would not make Incognito available Wednesday to address Bronson's statements, and coach Frank Solich said he had no comment."
Apparently he is incognito and I am easily amused.
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By Cher (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 02:35PM EDT)
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So Krazy, I never had an interest in football until I went to a Jets game and adopted Gang Green. Sure, this allegiance makes it easier for me to live in my own house from August through December, but does that make me a bandwagon fan as well?
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By Mark (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 03:00PM EDT)
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Cher,
you are not a bandwagon jumper - you have however affiliated yourself with the Jets for life.....unless your team is sold in which case you will loath that team and anyone associated with them.
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By Jeff (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 02:52PM EDT)
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SERIES HISTORY: Dolphins vs. Jets
Regular season: Jets lead 38-35-1
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By Matt (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 03:49PM EDT)
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I don't understand the entire "favorite team" thing at all. I can see wanting to watch a good team, or watch a team because a certain player exhibits skills that are impressive. But by how does one come by a favorite team that persists even after coaches and players change?
I do a few recreational sports: softball, soccer, and snowboarding. I don't have a "favorite" team amongst any of them. There are great players, like Beckam, who are impressive to watch. But if I am watching one of those sports, I care very little who wins; I am watching it because I also DO it, instead of only sitting on my butt watching other people do it.
I never really watched NFL games on TV until the last couple of years; the pace is just too slow with all the clock-stopping. Now I do cheer for certain players or teams - the ones that are going to win me money! So my favorite depends on where I've bet my dollar. That I understand. But if there is no money involved, why do people care who wins a game in which they have no personal involvement?
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By Cher (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 03:57PM EDT)
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I don't know exactly, but it's like a disease. Your team is like family, and you hate your enemies with a special passion reserved just for them. I'd be happy to see Dave Wannstedt's dog die if I thought it would shake his confidence in Sunday's game plan.
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By Anonymous (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 04:09PM EDT)
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ROTFLMAO!!!
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By Matt (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 04:44PM EDT)
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It is almost like a religion, then....
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By Funkman (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 06:44PM EDT)
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I think cult is a little closer.
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By Jeff (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 04:08PM EDT)
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Football is too slow? It is not uncommon for a soccer game to end 1-0. Something exciting happens in that sport maybe once a season.
A lot happens in football between plays. The offensive coordinator assesses down, distance and position; he charts it against the trends. He calls a play to the sideline. Position coaches send in the proper personnel for the called play. The QB calls that play in the huddle. He steps to the line and reads the defense. If he doesn't like the read, he audibles another play. Meanwhile, the center reads the defensive allignment and calls the blocking assignments right before the snap. To further his assessment of the defense, the quarterback may send personnel in motion to determine the type of coverage he faces. This entire procedure must occur in 45 seconds.
From a fan perspective, this transaction is FAR more interesting at the stadium where you can see the entire field. I like to read defenses prior the snap as a sort of football geek hobby. The most interesting defense to watch belongs to the New England Patriots. They might do the same thing many times, but they'll execute with very diverse pre-snap looks.
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By Spaniard (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 04:32PM EDT)
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Anytime a 60 minute game can take 4 hours to play, I call that slow. The entire procedure you describe does just take 45 seconds, but the problem is that there are way too many of those 45 second time intervals that add up to 4 hours. I'm not saying I don't like football, but I'm with Matt on this one, it just takes too long to play an entire game. 3 time outs per team, 2 minute warning, I don't know how many TV timeouts. It's all too much stopping and not enough playing.
Soccer slow? I can see how you may find it boring because sometimes no scoring occurs - OK, that happens many times. But it's not slow. When you sit down to a soccer game, you know that it's over in 105 minutes (for you uninitiated - 2 45 minute halves plus a 15 minute halftime). I can deal with that. Granted, I've sat through some unbelievably boring games and wished that I didn't. On the flip side, I've sat through some games where there is so much at stake that the tension and excitement are beyond any other sport.
If you understand the game, like you do football, you know what to look for and find enjoyment. Same for me with soccer. Now, you want to talk a sport where I have no idea why there are even fans? BASEBALL!
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By Matt (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 04:43PM EDT)
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By too slow I am doing a purely mathematical calculation - a 3.5 hour football game with only 1 hour of game time. The game moves at a slow pace. Sure, they are BUSY, but you can only see some of it if you are in the stadium. If you are watching from home on TV, then you spend more time watching the same 6 commericals than you actually see of the sport.
Soccer may be low scoring, but it isn't slow. There are 45 minute halves, and they are played without stopping the clock, except for injuries. Spaniard's comments are spot-on. You don't like soccer not because it is slow, but because you don't understand it enough to notice what is going on. That low score could be a very exciting game, as both teams' defenses are probably top notch.
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By Spaniard (Monday September 22 2003 @ 03:25PM EDT)
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I agree. MLS is very boring to me. I thought we were talking real soccer leagues.
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By Funkman (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 06:46PM EDT)
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Chess is slow too. But the preparation and planning is just as important as the move too.
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By Anonymous (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 05:01PM EDT)
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You mean more fat Americans agree with you.
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By Jeff (Thursday September 11 2003 @ 05:42PM EDT)
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I don't recall a "Viewers by Paunch Size" category, but with audiences that small, it's safe to assume that many fat Americans also agree with me....
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Enlighten me, Marge
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The most formidable weapon against errors of any kind is reason.
-- Thomas Paine
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We Did Our Job!
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