The spawning of Internet fan message boards ushered in breakthroughs in communications for sports fans which could never have been imagined a decade ago. Like all evolving media tools, however, the positive is often challenged by the negative.
Louisville currently has two primary fan message outlets, the local extensions of the Rivals and Scout networks. They are great sources for news, discussion, speculation and second-guessing about University of Louisville athletics — so important to many people, young and old, in the community.
The visitors to these sites have more in common than differences. Yet there’s an unhealthy undercurrent that exists, with a number of posters on one site acting as if the operators and visitors to the other site are analogous to fans of an arch rival. You know, making the kind of comments that angry young men often make, blatant stuff, thankfully and mercifully filtered for the crappiest of language.
One might interpret that an improvement from the recent past when fans who dared to be supportive or attempting to be objective about the former person coaching U of L football were labeled as “Kragthorpe apologists.” Fans berating fellow fans, page after page, day after day.
But that would be wrong. Steve Kragthorpe is simply gone. Attention turns elsewhere.
These are likely the same ones who like to cast older fans against younger fans, or people who insist on standing throughout a game versus fans who stand up only when a game is on the line. Some have to prove they’re better fans, more knowledgeable, more supportive, but in reality making themselves more obnoxious, than other fans.
Unfortunately for some individuals, being a fan translates into being angry at someone, whether it’s someone from an opposing team or another person pulling for the very same team.
Doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.
The situation was handled poorly by BOTH sides. We, just like every other fan base have a portion of immature fans who take things much too seriously. The personal attacks against a coach are out of line no matter the circumstance. However, the lashing out at fans that came from the Athletic Department as well as the denigration of prior coaches and players only further enabled the immature fans and also infuriated many fans who personally knew those players and coaches. It was an awful PR blunder that the AD office hopefully learned from. The fan base has been significantly fractured by the former coach, but now that he is finally gone the healing can begin. Hopefully everyone can let bygones be bygones and come together to support the new coaches and players. They will need it if we expect to climb back to the lofty heights we experienced just 3 years ago.
I think that we let disappointment turn into the ugly.
WE are human and it happens. With Kragthorpe it was the football coach weakness – sadly…
Pitino was the moral segment – which in general people judge harshly on… – because it is moral. My husband stated, “it is really a family matter and none of our business.”
He is right.
When people think they can get under your skin like the fans of WVU they turn primitive to prove this. What not to do? That would be an example.
Steve was a nice human being and a good citizen, however, he was not a good head football coach. Nobody is perfect.
I no longer post on either Rivals or Scout. I haven’t in some time. I rarely even read the things over there at Rivals. Sonja still is active on Rivals because of UofL women’s hoops but she has stopped going over to Scout because of the attacks she received over there. She gets slammed on Rivals occasionally still, too.
She especially get slammed if she ventures over to the Notre Dame or UK boards. She does like the Rutgers women’s basketball site on Rivals and has made some good friends over there.
The bottom line is that if it is an open boards, i.e. no fee to participate, you open yourself up to any type of jack a$$ that wants to post there. The mods eventually get to the deletion sequence…but that varies from board to board as well.
Dedicated sites like this one, Cardinal Dominance, Hell in the Hall and ours, Cardinal Couple are my choice.
Too many conspiracy theorists, doomsdayers, wild fanatics, totally ignorant thread stealers and psychopaths elsewhere.
As the Beatles said:
“That is, I think I disagree.”
I read the message boards sometimes, but don’t post. I sincerely hope that coaches and future players don’t read there. Like you said, there are a core of very good, informative posters (much like yourself charlie), but there are a lot of whiners and complainers. And a lot of UK fans posting as fake UL fans, I believe.
Adam Neft posted on one of them yesterday trying to explain something that may or may not have been misunderstood on the afternoon underddogs. Posters just lit into him basically. Now, I admit I agree with some of them, it does seem that the show is too much UK love now, but I don’t think that was necessarily the time to say that.
Perfect analogy, Rick. The junk sputtered by some of these guys reminds me of why I quit being a UK fan. I’m really disappointed that we have some of the same kind of people. But fans are fans, and that’s the reason coaches and athletic directors have to maintain a healthy distance in a lot of cases.
Angry man:
WHADDAYOU WANT?
Man:
Well, Well, I was told outside that…
Angry man:
DON’T GIVE ME THAT, YOU SNOTTY-FACED HEAP OF PARROT DROPPINGS!
Man:
What?
Angry man:
SHUT YOUR FESTERING GOB, YOU TWIT! YOUR TYPE MAKES ME PUKE! YOU VACUOUS TOFFEE-NOSED MALODOROUS PERVERT!
Man:
Yes, but I came here for an argument!!\
Angry man:
OH! Oh! I’m sorry! This is abuse!
Monty Python- “The Argument Clinic”
Thanks for this Charlie. It needs to be said. Seems to be a symptom what is happening in politics too. Too much incivility. Arrogance. Intolerance. Extremism. I was not a Kragthorpe fan, but the discussions about him too much went deep into ugliness. These are still just games, even if they raise our passions. Can’t we all just get along?
Allowing stuff like this to go unchecked is a direct reflection on the local franchise holder, in addition to the losers who can’t control themselves. I refuse to go to ITV because of the constant animosity. Some of these guys have pencil brains and no sense of decency.