These two words are all that is necessary to get the point across to opponents that hit the hardwood of the Humphrey Coliseum. This chant is a powerful verbal message from the fans that is pounded into the heads and hearts of visiting teams by the tenacious Mississippi State Bulldogs. In the past, State fans have looked at basketball season as “filler” that occupies the time between a bowl game and the first pitch. They might fire up the RVs for one weekend, just to make sure that they still work, but where is the continuous support? Sure, in the 1995-96 season the fair-weather fans made it inside The Hump. Some even cheered. Since then, there has been a drought. The true fans still showed up, but over time cheered less. Despite having a team that has been to the post-season in two of the last three years, State fans have remained unsatisfied. Many sit on their hands or leave early to beat the rush. Loyalty is too strong of a commitment to describe the behavior of these “fans.”
MSU head coach Rick Stansbury wanted to change this. He knew where to start. Last November, at the spawn of this season, he helped organize students into Rick’s Rowdies, a student organization that is growing to love his basketball team.
The Rowdies have around 120 members so far in this inaugural season and would love to see that number skyrocket. MSU student Nathan Moore said that he wants every student to know that the Rowdies are open for membership. “We just want to help get everyone involved in supporting this team,” Moore said.
The minute that the doors of The Hump open is the moment that the Rowdies start heading in. Members get to the game usually an hour to an hour-and-a-half before game time.
Why? They cheer on their ‘Dawgs during the team pregame, and rattle the opposing players who miss shots in warm-ups. The Rowdies also get in the heads of the opposing team. Prior to the Tennessee game on Jan. 16, in order to remind the Vols of their sub .500 record, Rowdies chanted, “Six wins, eight losses.” State put number nine on UT that night in an overtime triumph.
Senior walk-on Brandon Carr said, “The fans have been fabulous this year. It is awesome when they give the visiting teams heck.”
Several Rowdies paint up for the games, while others bring their emotion and energy to The Hump every night. Moore said if students were not yet ready to join, they could still easily show support and get involved by wearing maroon. “We love it when the rest of the student section gets loud,” he said.
Many students had wanted to get crazy for basketball games, but they did not know that it would be accepted. The young spirit group has been accepted, welcomed and appreciated. Stansbury credits the Rowdies with making The Hump such a tough road trip for teams this year. “They are a big reason we are 10-1 at home this season. The Rowdies bring more excitement to the game for all fans. That excitement raises the energy level of The Hump, and feeds our players.”
Bulldog senior Marckell Patterson added, “The crowd really helped us pull through against Kentucky this season. They show up night in and night out. Against Alabama they helped us set the tone early. Now the atmosphere of every game is like playing Ole Miss.”
Sophomore center Mario Austin talked about the advantage of good fan support. “The Rowdies and the rest of the crowd help us play with more intensity. It is really cool to have the support of people that I see in my classes.”
Sure it is easy for fans to cheer when their team wins, but the Rowdies remained faithful to the Bulldogs during the loss to Georgia. Even when the outcome was obvious, I still heard encouragement coming from the section. Junior point guard Derrick Zimmerman said the Georgia game was not the team’s best effort. Zimmerman added, “We have a lot of motivation to not ever be outworked in front of our fans again. We have done some great things here so far, and part of that is because of the crowd.”
Following that game, the Rowdies and their Bulldogs came back stronger than ever to hang a 14-point loss on the SEC leading Crimson Tide. It is impossible to ignore the spirit and pride that coexists between the fans and players. Members of the Rowdies gathered to show their support before the team left for Baton Rouge on Tuesday. As the group proudly cheered, the players waved in appreciation. This bond that is forming between the players and students goes beyond wins and losses and is a union that can grow for many years. It is not too late to partake in this.
When Auburn comes to Starkville on Saturday, the ‘Dawgs will be looking to sweep the Tigers for the first time since that fated ’95-96 team that made it to the Final Four.. This Saturday is a chance to show Auburn that The Hump is “our house.