Question to the board- why are other fan bases so immature

I watched the ISU - WVU, and parts of the KSU- UT game...there is talent in the Big X12 both on the bench ( coaches) and on the court (players) but honestly it is unfortunate KU was not on its game earlier in the league, because honestly, Hawks typically have the best coach and best talent in the league. I know these are 18-22 year olds and they are prone to inconsistency and losses happen. However, it is irksome that the fan bases of OSU, ISU and WVU got to enjoy at the expense of KU. These folks have no apperciation of basketball, history and forget about class/respect. I have had the experience of watching KU play at several road Big 8, 12 games. Not saying that I am a saint, but I'll acknowledge a great performance by the opponent while lamenting what KU did not do rights. However I can't say that about he other 9 fanbases in the league, see grapes on Saturday. It's not just the drunken frat boys, it is little kids, seniors and grand mothers acting like the spoiled children. Question to the board, why is there a lack of respect from other fans? In football I had a ton of respect for NU, OU in the old Big 8 and Big 12

Konza- I get the underdog mentality. KU often takes it on when playing UK, Puke or UNC. However, as much as I dislike puke and coach alphabet, you respect him and his program's accomplishment. I don't know, success ( fair and just) should be emulated not reviled.


I want to beat the grapes in all sports including football. However HC BIll Snyder is outstanding and more often than not his teams pummel our beloved Hawks. However, I have the utmost respect for him and his program. Grape fans don't deserve him to be honest, Coach Snyder has more respect in his little pinky that the entire collective grape fanbase..Same for the Clones, Coach Hoiberg, but then they trot out old Max. I could go on, but I think this is what frustrates me about today's sports fans

I agree with Konza. The level of disdain for the KU dominance is strong. I live in OU/OSU country and I have two employees from K-State, several more from Texas. While I try very hard to be gracious (partly because it is my style and partly because I am the boss and need to be) they have a difficult time complimenting KU. Although I will say there is pretty universal respect for Bill Self just not KU. I hear constantly how KU gets ALL the calls at home and away. My take is there is a concession that KU is just at a level consistently that others wish they could be at occasionally. I can sense some real dislike for KU by some and others it is more just normal run of the mill jealousy more so than hatred. I can tell you that OSU fans are generally disgusted with their own coach. The Texas fans that I know closely are not really basketball fans too much but football fans. OU is clearly a football school and the culture here is dominated with football. There are some big time basketball fans but they are nothing like KU fans. They don't even understand the KU brand and intensity of the fan base. I guess my assessment is the same as Konza. Americans in general like the underdog and KU is the antithesis of the underdog. We are the elite of the elite. We have dominated the BIg 12 like no one else has dominated their conference. We have always been the number one target of everyone we play but now all the other teams want to see us fall off our perch with a white hot jealousy/disgust/disdain/frustration. And while I do honk the KU an base on average is a purer breed and classier group, we also have our factions. I loathed the Much Fizzou shirts and I still cringe when I hear any opposing player booed (other than Marcus Smart) (okay, just kidding even Marcus Smart). That rarely happens though. I also agree with LKF. I grew up watching OU/Nebraska football rivalry and to this day think it was the the best rivalry ever in college football. I loved watching them and always admired Tom Osborn and Barry Switzer. I think Bill Snyder is maybe the classiest coach in college football and to this day I strongly admire the OU football tradition and fan base. Maybe breaking with some even on this board, I strongly root for K-State during football season (except against KU of course).

I have a few thoughts on this.

First and foremost, I always want to be careful pinning an individual's (or small group of individuals') behaviour on the larger group. I just had this discussion with somebody else who was pointing out some of the insane reactions to a particular political candidate's not-good result in a recent primary. This person was pointing out seriously insane tweets...threats of suicide, threats of violence, and just general meltdowns because their candidate lost. While these people are out there, I pointed out that EVERY candidate (feel free to substitute in the word "team") has zealots who simply can't accept the imperfections and failures of who they support, and lash out at the competitors instead of looking in the mirror honestly. Just like many of us don't want to be associated with the "Muck Fuzzo" shirts, I'm sure that there are fans at the other schools who don't want to be associated with the extreme ends of their fanbase. Also, speaking for myself anyway, as someone who no longer lives in the area, this board represents the largest cross-section of KU fans with whom I interact, and THIS BOARD has done a great job (kudos to Dave and the mods) of promoting civility and class. Can't say that for other social media outlets.

Second, I think KU basketball is a fairly unique thing. Think about the number of true "basketball schools" and it's a short list. Most big colleges are football oriented and basketball takes 2nd place. There really isn't another "basketball school" in the Big 12, nor has there been for a long time. So many of these other schools' "basketball fans" are really just "school sports fans" who likely see basketball as something fun to watch after football is over. To them, as more "casual" fans, college basketball is all about yelling at the opponent and hoping for an excuse to storm the court. Heck, just look at attendance in some of these places. We have 16,300 fans in the barn when TCU comes to play, but if you watch some of these other "minor" games it seems like the stadium might be a nice quiet place to study. Being so basketball-focused is a unique thing (how many of us tuned into watching KU play games in Korea? Would Texas fans have watched their guys play hoops at weird times of day as football was ramping up?).

Third, KU has a strong history of "class" within its fanbase. It's unfathomable for most KU fans to even consider storming the court. We had people stick around to give Buddy Hield a standing ovation. Our fans seem to take as much (or more) pride in being well-versed, mostly polite, and INTELLIGENT in their bashing of the other team. While the Antlers were busy hurling personal insults at our guys, our fans stitched together a giant poster of John Steurt Curry's "Bleeding Kansas" mural to taunt Missouri's pro-slavery background and Quantrill's raid on Lawrence. This tradition of class is ingrained in KU fans from day one, and it's closely woven into the fabric of the unique history that KU plays in the game.

Bottom line, when I see KSU trying to "create" some kind of identity (renaming their stadium "the octagon of doom", etc.) it just lacks the authenticity of KU's traditions and history.

I will say this: I hated Duke for a long time, and it's probably for similar reasons why other Big 12 teams hate KU. I was sick of Duke getting all the media attention they got, which led to more recruits, which led to a perceived arrogance of their fans. While I still feel this way, I can't really take a pot shot at the actual Duke program which has had a ton of success under Coach K. So I get it, but head to head, I still say we have the best, most intelligent, and classiest fans in the league and possibly in the country.

Just looking at the league, I'd divide the other fan bases into two groups:
1.) the "indifferent": TCU, OSU (this year), Tech, Baylor and at times Texas all seem to have trouble drawing fans to the games. They might fill up the joint when KU, OU, or WVU show up, but if you watch other games, there looks like there are plenty of seats available.
2.) the "angry": These fans DO care about hoops, but are likely especially frustrated with KU and our consistent success. WVU and OU clearly have what it takes to be contenders, and can't seem to get KU to get out of their way. KSU is a special case in that they DON"T have what it takes to consistently content for championships, but somehow think that sharing the same state with us SHOULD make them contenders. They seem most angry to me.

I'd put ISU in a class by themselves as being the closest program that has the most in common with KU. They're a basketball-oriented school, their fan base is dedicated, their home court is a big advantage, and with a few exceptions, their fans don't seem so "angry" all the time. Kudos to ISU for NOT storming the court when they beat us this year in Ames. That's a sign of a team who's trying to instil a culture of class.

Not being local, I'm more likely to encounter a leprechaun riding a unicorn than a K-State hoops fan out here. Still, that's pretty harsh, and based on the comments in the press regarding promoting storming the court, and foul language aimed at Greene by one of their players, I wonder if the vitriol has increased in recent years.

It's certainly on full display when we play in Manhattan, and even looking at last year's court storming, it appeared to be less of a "we're so happy we won" moment and more of a "we beat you" moment. Look at the face of the fan who ran into Traylor, or the fans' need to swarm OUR guys and coach rather than celebrate their own guys is pretty telling.

For years, Mizzou was our focus of anger, and KSU was kind of the annoying kid brother of the situation. Now with Mizzou gone, is KSU slowly rising into the "most hated" status in the conference? If so, it seems to be propagated by the KSU side of things, as I really don't give them much thought for the rest of the year.

Anyway, if the net result is that KSU actually generates enough bad blood that our fans actually begin to react the way they have historically, it could wind up being pretty entertaining since it's really a fairly lopsided rivalry.

Quick side note: I was home for a golf outing last May and one of the guys running it is a Mizzou fan. I showed up with my Jayhawk-logo'ed FootJoys on, and the guy immediately tore into me. Understand, one of the guys has a kid on the Mizzou golf team, and even HE wasn't all that fired up. Nevertheless, the guy who went "full rant" mode accused KU of resorting to Calipari-esque recruiting methods and filling the team with a bunch of non-student one-and-done pros. The guy was really unhinged, and looking at the history of Tiger hoops, (cough...lack of institutional control..cough) it was actually kind of disturbing.

The hate is out there, and it appears to be very real.

Every year, I post the same rant....here I go again....

I am in southern CA.....so I am a huge distance from "God's Country." Many on my staff and my co-workers don't have a clue abut all of my Rock Chalk paraphernalia adorning my office. They are too busy chirping about USC v UCLA.

Anyway, I hear nothing, nothing UNTIL KU loses for the "last time" in the season.....then the whole world converges to talk smack.

I ignore them.....but it gets old.

As for KSU, in my opinion they are just annoying.....they are not a rival. You have to win more than 4 or 5 years in a 20 year time span (don't jump on the inaccuracy of my statistics.....making a point only) to have a rivalry. Just like on the football side....no rivalry. We aren't competitive.

In response to NotO's story about the Mizzou fan unhinged, I was on a plane and a lady sat next to me. As the plane was taxiing she noticed the small Jayhawk on my shirt, she started yelling for the flight attendant wanting to switch seats on the completely full flight. The flight attended the asked what the problem was. She pointed to my shirt and said "I can't sit next to that." She was not allowed to move. She turned her head and did not turn it back the entire flight. That was fine with me.

RC