What I really want to say to all the Virginia "fans" leaving the football game every week is something like this: "I hate you, I hate you, I hate you." Unfortunately, that is not entirely true - as what I feel toward those who leave is more like disappointment - nor is such a reaction helpful or mature.
But neither is deserting your team. Week after week, I watch in utter disgust as Virginia "fans" file out of Scott Stadium in droves. They leave when we are losing. They leave when we are winning. They leave if it is too hot, too cold or if it is perfect football weather. They come intending to stay for only an hour if we are doing well, if the game is close and a cool breeze blows their sundresses or ties ever so slightly, but not so much that their hair will be messed up in pictures, yet still warm enough that they do not need their jackets, and only as long as we score on every drive but still keep it close enough to be interesting. University students are an insatiable crowd. Nothing satisfies the apathetic masses - and not just because the football team is struggling this year. If it is really the losses that are driving people away, then who can explain the mass exodus at the Richmond game? Or, even more so, the VMI game?
Students just do not care. We are given an enormous privilege to watch Division I football in one of the most beautiful stadiums in the United States - for free. We do not have to fight or pay for tickets like students do at Virginia Tech. We do not even have to request them like at other schools; we just have to go. It takes little to no effort apart from the walk to the stadium. We have a big-time band, a big-time venue and big-time technology. We have food vendors aplenty and even free water when it gets too hot. We have cheerleaders and a dance team and three twirlers - including the Saber Twins who can toss flaming batons to each other without skipping a beat. We have NFL talent (Ras-I Dowling, anyone?) on our team and we do have the capability to win. We have a new coach who tries his best to reach out to the student community and connect with us. We have fireworks and a man on a real horse and - as someone who has been to games at nearly all the schools in the ACC, I can say this - one of the most exciting team entrances onto the field of any school. We have "The Adventures of Cavman," for goodness sake. We have everything a fan base could hope for.
Except for the wins, you may say. But what sort of a fan are you if you can only be there for your team when they are doing exceptionally well? I woud say Virginia fans are the globally hated bandwagon fans, but to say that they are only there when we are winning is a gross understatement. A large majority are just apathetic. Very few people truly appreciate the phenomenal opportunity they are presented. Season tickets run upwards of $250 each and we get in entirely for free, aside from what is taken from tuition and fees. There is no excuse to not be there for your team, regardless of record. It seems absurd to me to get all dressed up and ready to come to the game knowing that you are going to leave early. What is the point of that? The games are more than just a social event. They are a chance to give back, to make your school look good and to support the student athletes who work hard day in and day out doing their best to give you an exciting game to watch.
I can understand not being the biggest fan of the game of football. But if you come, you should stay. Watch Hoo Vision. Watch the cheerleaders and dance team. Go "window shopping" and scope out other girls' sundresses that you would like to buy, or find the two guys dressed up as Thomas Jefferson in the crowd. But do not leave. Your presence in the crowd is more valuable than you know. How do you think it feels to the players on the field - your classmates, roommates and peers - to see you all desert them after the first quarter? Why do they deserve that disrespect from you? They do not go out there intending to lose. They play their best for you, and you should stay and support your team. For your four years in college, this is your one and only team. Man up. Stay the whole time. Be there for them when we are losing and when we are winning. There is a reason University students have the reputation they do. Do you really want to contribute to that by leaving early every game?
For those of you who do stay to the last rendition of the "Good Ol Song," I applaud you. You are the true Cavalier fans. You are the student body of which University can be proud. When the Cavaliers turn it around and have a winning season (which we all know will happen), you will be one of the few who can say they are and have been a true Virginia fan. Anyone who leaves the games early and then claims to be a Wahoo fan is a liar - which, as we all know, is against the honor code. Team loyalty is like marriage. For better or for worse, you are there for your team, and that is something truly admirable. The rest of you need to step up and show some spirit for your school.\n\nLauren Bicknell is a third-year College student.
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