Tags
Yesterday on Finebaum a caller asked “why is Auburn such a big deal…it’s not a state university…and there’s nothing there.” This was a Bama fan. He went on to say that “it shouldn’t be anymore than a Troy.” It became obvious to me as the call went on that this person has serious issues and is likely mentally ill…like many of the Finebaum callers. The ignorance of people absolutely baffles me, but that’s for a whole different blog altogether. I could probably write an entire blog about the insanity of the Paul Finebaum show and why it appeals, for some reason, to the masses. From a psychological standpoint. But…anyway, moving on, this caller got me thinking about Alabama and Auburn and the relationship between the two teams, the fans, etc. I thought he sounded ridiculous and that he was simply attacking Auburn’s credibility because of our loss last week…which alot of irrational Bama fans ARE doing. I came to the conclusion that I do, in fact, appreciate Auburn. I couldn’t come up with a single reason why I should HATE auburn as many Bama fans do. I was just simply raised a Bama fan and that’s the way it is. But my dad, from whom I received much of my football fan-ness, is a very rational Bama fan and never did any trash talking of Auburn. And, furthermore, I don’t see the point in trying to come up with reasons to hate a team simply because they are our rival. My dad would be one of those that says “I’ll root for Auburn if they aren’t playing Bama.” As I got older I started to disagree with him on that point. I want to win the west. Duh. I want Auburn to do just well enough so that our win over them looks “good.” I want them to do well…just as long as we do better. There are Bama fans that would be happy if Auburn lost every game. I’m not one of them. I think Auburn being a good football program brings credibility to our conference and our state. I think it makes our rivalry better. I think it motivates everyone. Now….in the past I’ve dated some obnoxious Auburn fans and I probably would have never written this blog then. But I think dating Eric has made me look at these things a little differently. He is respectful, very respectful, of me and the fact that I’m a Bama fan. He talks shit I’m sure, but not in my presence. And he’s able to give credit to our team when a player does well or a good play is called, etc.
Back to Finebaum (for just one second) …I am constantly embarrassed by the idiocy of the callers. They sound ridiculous. And from the producer’s standpoint…the more ridiculous the better, I think. But I listen. I don’t know why. I prefer the Roundtable during the day but in the afternoons (if I’m not too busy) I can’t help but listen in…just to see how ridiculous it is. But I’m embarrassed by how ignorant southerners sound in general on the show. The vast majority of Alabama and Auburn fans ARE rational people…but they aren’t calling Finebaum…they are working their jobs and not sitting around every afternoon glued to the radio. I think, though, that perhaps the one positive aspect to Finebaum’s syndication is the fact that people in other places in the country are seeing (well…hearing) how intense our rivalry with Auburn really is. I like that. But I also don’t see how Finebaum’s show is given any credibility, as a syndicated sports show, by letting semi-drunk, redneck, Bama and Auburn fans carry on and on with no valid point. Maybe, though, that’s the reason it’s successful…in a weird, sick kinda way. I listen…and I’m a rational football fan. It’s like a train wreck I guess and now it’s a big syndicated-satellite-radio-party of a train wreck.
Back to Bama and Auburn. While collecting my thoughts for this blog, I asked Eric this question: “Would you say you really HATE Alabama?” He said YES!…then he explained. He talked about being an Auburn fan as a kid and how he looked at it like good vs. evil…”we are good, they are bad.” But as he got older he became more rational and began to “hate” Alabama for better reasons. I won’t quote him directly but some of his points were centered around these issues:
1) the fact that “back in the day” the rich kids went to bama, they thought they were better and they looked down on Auburn.
2) Auburn is the perpetual underdog to Bama, Bama receives more attention for being the “state school.”
3) Bama fans (collectively) tend to be arrogant and think they should win simply because they are Alabama.
4) most Auburn fans actually went to Auburn and most of the Bama fans he knows didn’t go to Alabama.
5) Auburn fans are more like a “family” and the fan base of Bama is not as tightly connected.
I, of course, disagree with alot of these points BUT…I didn’t go to Alabama and I wouldn’t say I am an avid supporter of the University, other than in the arena of the football program. You won’t find me following Alabama baseball or gymnastics. Sorry. I grew up a fan of Alabama football. I did not want to go to Bama for undergrad and I thank the lord that I went to Montevallo. For numerous reasons. I appreciate Montevallo for all the ways it is UNlike Alabama. It’s small, it has a community feel, everyone knows everyone, the focus is on academics, etc. I can understand Eric’s description of the “Auburn family” (from the view of a student) because I can relate to that due to the fact that I feel like part of the “Montevallo family.” I have always felt these things, football “fandom” and education, were mutually exclusive. I never planned to attend the University of Alabama, don’t regret that I didn’t, but absolutely LOVE and ADORE it’s football program. Does that make me less of a fan??? Do you think people have a better appreciation for a school’s football program if they were a student of that school? I plan on attending Alabama for my PhD…will I then be a “better” Bama fan? Who knows. If someone asked me why I love Alabama football I would say, tradition, pride, the class of the fans…and the fact that we are one of the best college football programs that ever was! That’s enough right! I’d like to hear from y’all…Bama and Auburns fans, students and non-students…I’d like your opinions. Do we really NEED to hate each other to make the rivalry what it is??? Can Auburn fans respect and appreciate Bama and vice versa??? Do all Bama fans really look down on Auburn??? Do you have to be a student of a school to really value it??? Can we really come up with valid reasons to hate the other??? When I take a good, hard look at it, I think I would have to admit (as most Bama fans would) that we do think we are better…we do take alot of pride in our “WINNING TRADITION” (Eric hates that phrase)…and you can’t argue with the fact that Alabama IS one of the best college football programs in history. Arrogant? Maybe! 😉
And before this point comes up…I’m not getting soft on Auburn. I just got to thinking about alot of this because dating such a rational Auburn fan has gotten to me I guess. He loves Auburn SOOOO much and I respect that…AND he’s a respectful fan and there’s something to be said about that. If we hadn’t lost to SC I probably would be rooting for the hogs today…I know I would be…BUT I need Auburn to do well (til they play us)…I need freaking LSU to do well…I need SC to do well…I now have to think about the wins and losses of everyone else…much more than if we just bulldozed our way through our schedule like we did last year. okay enough of that. comment away! I bet this stirs up more controversy than my education blog. ha!
All Things Me 
Finebaum is popular for the same reason Fox & MSNBC are popular: they pull in the crazies, appeal to our sensibilities of watching trainwrecks, and remind us "thank GOD i’m not like that."to the other end, those of us who know we would never be caught dead calling in and shake our heads at those who do are the same people who Jon Stewart appeals to with the ‘Rally to Restore Sanity’: the 80% of us who have s**t to do. we’re still at work when the show starts. we’re on the road home halfway through the program, thinking about dinner and gym and spending time with family.i quit listening (to Finebaum and Montgomery local sports) because it just started to get embarrassing and i didn’t want my vehicle antenna contributing to any sort of positive ratings for any of the shows’ numbers. nowadays, i stick with NPR in the morning (at home), ESPN Radio via XM in the car, and NPR on the way home from work. and i feel so. much. BETTER.moving on: you probably saw my tweet explosion a few weeks ago about ‘rules for AU fans’ and how dumb i thought it is. basically it came down to 1) HATE ALABAMA AND WISH THEM DEATH and 2) never be critical of the Tigers.dumb. both of them. and it wasn’t how i was raised.my parents are both ardent Bama fans. i’m a vociferous Auburn fan, and that’s thanks in no small part to my grandfather; he took me to a game when i was five or six years old and i was hooked. my ‘rents being Bama fans, i learned most everything i knew about being a fan from him. i can never remember a time i heard him speak ill of Bama outside of the Iron Bowl (not that he praised them for any reason, but he certainly never cheered against them) and if Auburn deserved to be yelled at, he did it. everyone’s teams do stupid things. i yell at the Red Sox all the freaking time and i get worked up when Auburn does dumb things on the field. i am, by virtue of Red Sox fandom, a pessimist when it comes to sports. i’m not a believer that "OMG IF I DON’T CHEER THE LOUDEST THEY’LL LOSE." and when they win, it’s that much better because they overcame what i sometimes see as unwinnable situations. and if they lose… meh. i learned a few years back to not get so tied into games after i (drunkenly) punched a hole in a wall during an AU v. LSU game. how dumb is that?all this to say: i agree with you. war eagle!!
Let me first start by saying you beat me to this blog. I have been appalled by the comments I have seen on Facebook from both sides. Its football for crying out loud! In the grand scheme of things it means nothing! You know I love football as much as the next person, but to put ugly, degrading comments about a bunch of 18, 19, 20, 21 year old kids is ridiculous! But to answer your questions:1. No we don’t need to hate each other! Auburn and Georgia have a non-hate rivalary!2 & 3. Yes we can appreciate each other. But I think Auburn fans are tired of the fact that we are looked down on my Bama fans. This being one of the reasons I went back to my roots. I personally witnessed Alabama fans come into our store that have never darkened our doorstep just to say Roll Tide because they had won that year. Talk about ridiculous! And this "Barners" crap! Yes, Auburn is an Ag school! And thank God for it! How do you think you get food on your table and clothes on your back? A farmer! And Auburn University works hard to help these farmers. I am the only person in my family to graduate from college that didn’t graduate from Auburn School of Agriculture. I am SO proud of my Dad and Brother and all that they do to help the farmers of this state and country! 4. No you don’t have to be a student or graduate to truly love a school. Like you, I only ever wanted to go to Montevallo. I love Auburn for many reasons and just because I didn’t go to school there doesn’t make them invalid.5. If you hate someone because of the football team they pull for you need to grow up!!!!
Auburn and what it means can’t be put into words. I’ve tried to do it several times, and words never do it justice. It’s just one of those things you have to experience. Thankfully, I was fortunate enough to experience it.
Love the blog! and well, sorry, you know I have always been one of those "obnoxious" fans. I mean, I did coin the term "honk if you sacked brodie." I was raised by the most obnoxious of auburn fans. My mother’s dream was to attend Auburn. Her mother was evil and only let her brothers go while my mom attended a local business college. So that’s why her heart is in it so much, and well, at least she got to live through me a bit…That being said, I’ve dated Auburn and well, obviously married to Alabama. Which although it was easier rooting for the same team, it’s fun to be a house divided. Because really, to me, that’s all football is-fun. I think this state especially has taken football to a whole new level. It affects how they feel they next day, the next week, heck even all year. If you get a chance, you should read "God and Football" by Chad Gibbs. He is a very talented, funny writer, and finds humor in how much people base their lives in football, himself included. It made ryan a little mad, because this author was a die-hard Bama fan who had a "come to Jesus" in Auburn and fell in love with the school. But either way, he spent last football season visiting each SEC school for a home game and wrote about his experiences. Very entertaining!Anyway, not sure if I have a point. But I was an Auburn fan before attending auburn, so where your degree from means nothing in fandom status. But I would like to remind everyone that Ryan’s degree is from Auburn. WDE!