True Sports Fans

Sometimes, I think I take sports a little too seriously. The very fact that a win or a loss can ruin a weekend (see Notre Dame) might be a sign that I'm overreacting. Maybe I'm the crazy one who needs to get less emotionally involved, care less, and subscribe the normal reactions of everyone else. But the more I think about it, the more I wish there were others like me.

You see, I've got this problem. I've identified some elitist, arrogant being within me that demands that other fans act the way I do. Maybe that's the reason why I end up talking trash to ignorant fans in our section when I really should just put on the ear muffs and keep cheering our Bruins on. Maybe that's the reason why I'm hurt when I see that 1/3 the Rose Bowl has emptied with a quarter left to play and a two touchdown defecit. Maybe that's the reason why I refuse to believe the coaching change that everyone wants is fair, or that it'll solve any of the problems.

I understand that everyone with an opinion is entitled to express it. And I take almost all opinions different than mine into consideration and either engage in healthy debate, or just don't respond. But when certain fans insist on continuously stating ignorant arguments, I've got a problem with that. All I ask is that you think. And here are some examples from this past week's game

1) At the end of the first half, UCLA was up by a point and after a nifty Aaron Perez punt, had the Cougars deep in their own territory with a minute left. After burning a timeout, hoping to get the ball back, the Bruins gave up a big pass play which spurred the Cougars onto an eventual field goal try. Now, the uninformed fan behind me berated the coaches for playing a prevent defense. Do you honestly think we would try to play a prevent defense after taking a timeout to try to get the ball back? Does this honestly make any sense at all? We want the ball back as soon as possible - we think they're going to run the ball, we can force a punt and get the ball back with good field position and some time left. There is absolutely no reasoning for a prevent defense if we're going to take a timeout.
2) UCLA fails to convert on a 4th and 1 in which Pat Cowan missed a tough throw and didn't see a wide open Marcus Everett 15 yards behind the Cougar defense. The play call was designed to take a chance deep down the field because Everett was supposed to be able to sneak out for a huge play. Now, aforementioned uninformed fan berates the coaches again for a horrible play call. Did he even see the play? The play was designed to get Everett open deep for a huge play, and it happened. Cowan didn't execute the play for whatever reason, but the design worked perfectly. If Cowan sees Everett and throws a 50 yard TD pass, is he telling me it's a bad play call? No.

All you gotta do is think.

Next, another issue that I have with LA fans in particular is their general tardiness to games, and early departures from games. It's ridiculous that Dodgers games fill up in the 3rd inning and that the Rose Bowl clears with 8 minutes left in a two TD game. Did these "fans" see our 5 come from behind victories last year? Granted it's different personnel, but the beauty of sports is that anything can happen. Do you think those people who left early from the UCLA-Gonzaga are kicking themselves for missing the most beautiful moment in UCLA sports in the past 10 years? Why would you ever, EVER leave a game early if it's still even remotely possible your team can win?

That's sports. If you're going to enjoy the celebration of triumph, you'd better be able to accept the bitterness of defeat. You can't have one without the other. No team always enjoys success, so what are you going to do, dump your team if they struggle? I don't want to hear it. I know you're going to cheer when we're winning, so you'd better have thick enough skin to sit there and watch us lose too. You wouldn't want to be a bandwagon fan, would you?

Lastly, there are a lot of Karl Dorrell bashers out there. And right now, I honestly don't know any more. I don't think he's getting a fair shake - he has done an admirable job with the program, and 10 wins in a season is an accomplishment, no matter the fashion. Likewise, this is a young team, and all the overreactions of defeats to Notre Dame are horrible, since he did a great job of putting us in a winning situation at the end.

The truth is that when you are a fan, you always support your squad. I've seen a lot of coaches much, MUCH worse than Karl Dorrell (Tom Holmoe, Garry St. Jean, etc.) To write this season off as a loss would be a copout, an excuse to stop supporting our players and coaches. Think about it: these are college athletes, not getting paid to entertain us, the fans. That's pretty unfair to criticize them and fail to give them our support when all we do is reap the pleasures of success. And as long as the coaches are members of the UCLA community, we stand behind them as well. We support them in their quest for victory because we are all unified in our pursuit for victory.

I fully expect to see attendance down, fans calling for Dorrell's head, and general dour behavior. And I will fully resent every person who fails to support UCLA athletics through thick and thin.

I've got a problem.