It is widely accepted that it takes a great amount of skill to win a sporting event on the road. But why? Aren’t players still simply playing the game they know and love? And for some, the game they have been playing their whole lives? Isn’t a hockey rink still a hockey rink, baseball diamond still a baseball diamond, a basketball court still a …ok, you get the idea.
While the environment surrounding the game changes from host to host, the game is still the same. Sure, in sports such as football, there are different fields and in baseball, there are obvious variables such as the field, mound and dimensions of a ballpark. It takes a great amount of skill to win at a high level of competition, but no team is complete without its fans.
I am in no way trying to take away from the athletes themselves. They are the focus of attention and the ones who make things happen. However, fans can sometimes be the factor that tips the scales in a game, giving their favorite players the extra kick they need to go out and win when things look bleak. Sure there are some people who feel some sense of joy when their local team makes it to the Super Bowl or World Series, simply because their city is represented. I’m not talking about those fans, I’m sure they are nice people, just not the kind of fans who impact the game. I’m talking about the fans that bleed their team’s colors, 24-7-365.
There is a certain unity to being a fan. It is truly amazing that hundreds of thousands of strangers can all put so much stock into one thing, their favorite team. In anticipation of a great moment, it is the spectators that can inject that extra ounce of adrenaline when needed. The player cannot help but let his body take over and kick the football the extra few yards through the uprights, or reach back for those extra few miles per hour on his fastball.
Imagine Yankee Stadium: the most beloved cathedral in all of sports, a roaring crowd of 55,000 on their feet looking for a Roger Clemens fastball to get out of a jam (for those Red Sox fans, just play the same scenario substituting in Fenway’s 35,000-plus cheering for that Pedro fella).
Looking back at this past Fall Classic, it seems as though fans made the difference yet again. The Angels were facing elimination in Game 6 and were even down 5-0 in the seventh inning of that game. That’s when their fans kicked in the extra juice and motivated them to come back and eventually take the series in seven. Now I’m not saying that every team should hand out thunder sticks or have a ‘Rally-Monkey.’ Personally, I can’t stand either. What I am saying is that fans can make a huge impact on the game.
One needs to look no further than our very own Terriers. It was only two nights ago that the Icedogs proved the naysayers wrong by pulling off a remarkable underdog (no pun intended) win against the Boston College Eagles. It was not just our hockey team that showed up ready for a big game. Terrier fans made their appearance well known and did not let up. That sea of yellow t-shirts across the arena was mighty quiet through most of the game, stunned by an early Justin Maiser goal. Even though BU held the lead throughout, the ‘Superfans’ did nothing special to muster up their team’s hopes and get their players back into the game. The Icedogs rode the wave of scarlet and white created from the upper level to the rink-side seats, and the Terriers were able to reaffirm their Beanpot dominance with yet another championship.
Billions of dollars are spent each year by fans attending sporting events. As long as a fan truly has a love for the game, there is no way that a person can leave a sporting event disappointed, well, unless you paid to see the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Detroit Lions, L.A. Clippers or Chicago Cubs. My point is that as long as you love the game, nothing else matters. Fans are what make sports exciting. A Bruins game would certainly be quite different if the FleetCenter was cleared out for a game (which on occasion is the way it seems). There is nothing like giving your friends a high five or a hug after your team has come through in a clutch moment. While unfortunately I may not be appearing at any stadiums this summer in the starting lineup, I will certainly be there for my favorite teams as a fan.
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