Over the years of sports fandom, I've witnessed some of the most inhospitable treatment of people for the mere fact that they support the opposing team. When the Capitals host the Flyers, many Philadelphia fans descend on the nation's capital and bring their bad sportsmanship with them, and they often display it even their team wins. In the days prior to Caps home game sellout crowds, you could hardly get five steps down F Street without a Flyer fan saying something offensive directly at you. Hokie fans and fans of other Big East schools alike have endured batteries tossed at them during games against WVU. Even though I miss that rivalry very much, I don't miss hearing the stories about fans choosing not to go to Morgantown for fear of an altercation. These examples of course exist amongst many others. They by no means stand alone.
In contrast, I'm very proud of the way Hokies treat fans of the visiting opposition. The Virginia Tech athletic department has orchestrated a media campaign called Hokie Respect. The overall message embodies welcoming opposing fans to Blacksburg, VA and wishing them a good stay and pleasant visit. It doesn't mean that we hold back in expressing our hope that the Orange and Maroon beat the pants off the opposition, but Hokie Respect aims to keep all interaction as pleasant and good natured.
I attended the game against Nebraska, and seeing how we don't have many opportunities to interact with Big 12 fans, I took it upon myself to wander through my tailgating lot and intermingle with some 'Husker fans. They treated me as polite and nice as anybody could imagine. They offered food, drinks, conversation, and even live music, and they couldn't have been more happy to have come anywhere but Blacksburg, VA to watch a football game. I enjoy sports fandom much more when we can have our passions for our favorite teams, but all the while keeping things decent, amicable, and fun for everyone.
After hosting Nebraska in Week 3 of the season, some Cornhusker fans took the trouble to write Virginia Tech's athletic department to express how much they enjoyed the trip, save for the game's outcome. I've listed a few of my favorite excerpts from letters written.
"Absolutely HATED the outcome of the game, but it doesn’t diminish the reception that Tech provided to the Husker fan base!"
"Don't give me anymore beer. I can't handle another Tech fan inviting me to join their tailgate."
"I’ve never been treated better or made to feel more welcome by a town, a school and its fan base than what I encountered at Tech."
"We parked in a guy’s yard and my wife asked where the nearest restroom could be found. He said, 'Oh, just go in the house. Top of the stairs.' And then he just walked away."
"Hokie fans are a class act. Nebraska fans are also well known for treating visiting fans well in Lincoln. Many Hokie fans mentioned their experience in Lincoln last year, and hoped that we would be treated the same way in Blacksburg. We were."
You can read a few letters in their entirety here: http://www.hokiesports.com/football/recaps/20090924aab.html
Not to suggest that readers of this blog haven't done otherwise and even more, I hope the next time you're at a home game you'll say, "Welcome to Blacksburg," to some opposing fans as you make your way from your tailgating lot to Lane Stadium. Let's keep Hokie Respect going strong.
3 comments:
I've always supported treating fans as competitors - with the same respect they afford you. I'm not going to pal around with strangers rooting for the opposing team because I want to beat them, but I'm always going to say "Good luck today" to fans that deserve it.
The list of fans that don't are Notre Dame fans, Virginia fans, Florida State fans, Miami fans and West Virginia fans. Those schools don't respect the Hokies or Hokie fans and as far as I'm concerned they haven't earned our respect in return.
Now these are all generalities of course and I'm sure there are some fans of those schools I'd get along with just fine. But on the balance, I've been treated like such garbage by fans of those schools either at their stadium or ours (ok so VT hasn't played Notre Dame in football, but but words can't express my hatred for the football program at that institution).
Nebraska fans treated Hokies very well when the game was in Lincoln and I'm all in favor of reciprocating in kind. Hell I went to the game with 3 Nebraska fans and it was a blast with respectful competition the entire time. But you'll catch me saying "Good luck" or "Good game" to a UVa fan right about the time they catch the Lock Ness monster. Hokie Respect if a good campaign but it comes with strings attached in my book.
I agree with MadJay's list save for one and I'd add one. Florida State fans were tremendous at the National Championship in 2000. They praised then Junior Michael Vick and were impressed by the team's performance despite the loss.
I would add Syracuse to the list of fans that have never shown any Orange Respect.
Like this post a lot, save for the Flyer fan bashing. Fan-based efforts to promote goodwill like we saw before during and after Nebraska will work better than any Jim Weaver-initiated program ever could (not a knock on the Hokies Respect campaign, but it's true).
As for bashing Flyer fans, it is unfortunate that there is a portion of Philly fans that consistently feels it necessary to be jerks, but there was a huge chip on our collective shoulder's that should get smaller since the Phillies broke through last year. Also, DC is so close and Caps tickets are/were so plentiful (and the Caps were traditionally pretty bad) so it was easy for Flyer fans to come down here thinking they own the place. Caps tickets won't be so plentiful this year, so I expect you'll get better visiting clientele.
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