You’ve heard it a thousand times: Have school spirit. Cheer for your team if they win or lose. Wear school colors.
And usually all of that just goes in one ear and out the other. Pep rallies and school spirit apparel, we say, were for high school.
And that may be true. But at college pep rallies, we win money and iPads and plane rides. At college football games we tailgate (who doesn’t want free good food?) and dress up.
It’s about time that we figured out how much fun football season could be.
At the first home game, some people even said that it felt like we were at a “real school” playing “real football” and having a “real tailgate.”
And it was kind of true.
On game days for Division I teams, I see my friends who attend schools like Mizzou and Alabama posting pictures decked out in school colors, at tailgates and supporting their school no matter what.
This was the first time that I had ever seen Harding kids do the same. What made it a “real” football game was just the fact that people actually cared and made an effort to be involved.
So for once, I think it has gotten through the heads of much of the student population that we should indeed have school spirit.
At long last, weactually care about our Bison football team.
Now that we have finally reached this monumental point, we have to maintain it. Not just for football season, though, and not just when the team is undefeated.
Of course, it’s much more fun to support a winning team. Losing stinks. But it doesn’t make it any better when the fans give up on the team after a loss.
This weekend the Bisons will play what is probably their most difficult game of the season against No. 12 ranked Henderson State. If we win this game, it will be a huge accomplishment and move us up from our already No. 23 ranking.
The problem? If the Bisons lose that game, I think they will also lose their fans.
Supporting an undefeated team is just so much more fun.
But so is playing a sport when you have people screaming and cheering throughout the entire game.
So let’s remember this season that, win or lose, we need to keep supporting our athletes.
Basketball season is just around the corner, starting on Monday with Midnight Madness.
But for now, my focus is on tomorrow’s big game.
Be there.
