After spending another Saturday at a long football game, I’ve decided to use my column this week to voice my outrage at the appalling behavior of many of my fellow students. Coming to the games isn’t fun anymore when you have to put up with people smoking, screaming obscenities and just being generally inconsiderate.
It’s tough enough watching us go from winning in the first half to a crushing defeat in the fourth quarter without dealing with the morons behind you screaming slurs involving the female anatomy at the opponents.
I don’t know about the rest of you, but I find it downright offensive. There are lots of other phrases and words that can be yelled without being disgusting. It’s not like anyone on the field can hear you anyway, so why bother screaming at them? All you end up doing is annoying the people near you.
And don’t get me started on smoking in the stadium. It’s so foul, and there is nowhere to escape it. It’s so inconsiderate to light up around a bunch of people not smoking and expect them to deal with it. Sorry, but we know the hazards of smoking and secondhand smoke. Some have chosen not to do it, so don’t force it on us. If you want to smoke, you’re more than welcome to leave the stadium to do so.
To the people who have a smoker near them: Tell him or her to put it out! Don’t let him or her get away with polluting our air. There are already 50,000 or more screaming fans inhaling and exhaling in the same space, do we really want smoke added to that?
Not only is it rude and disgusting, it is also illegal. The stadium rules state, “Smoking is not allowed in the seating area, portals accessing the seating area or in the restrooms at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field.” This rule needs to be enforced more thoroughly. I’ve yet to see anyone kicked out for smoking, and I think it’s about time smokers are removed.
While I don’t have a problem with cowbells (they are a MSU tradition, after all), I do have a problem with people who abuse them. Banging your cowbell on the bleachers or purposefully ringing it in someone else’s ear is simply unacceptable. You’re already at risk for getting in trouble for taking them into the stadium illegally. Why get people angry at you who can then get you in more trouble? The cowbells are plenty loud on their own without the reverberating clang from the bleachers hitting your head like a ton of bricks.
Not to mention the story I heard about an angry fan at the Houston game Saturday. Apparently he thought it would be nice revenge to throw his cowbell at one of the Houston players when they won. He missed, but he hit a woman on the leg. I don’t know how badly she was hurt, but she could have been seriously injured. What if he had hit the intended player and given him a concussion? Cowbells are heavy and blunt. They are definitely not something you should throw when you’re angry.
People also need to stop throwing their drinks when they’re really happy or mad at a play. No one appreciates getting sprayed with droplets of sticky soda or beer and then feeling gross for the rest of the game. Why do people do that anyway? I really don’t get it. You spend $3 on a drink and reusable cup just to chuck it at somebody? There appears to be no logic in this, and I’d venture to guess not much thought goes into these actions.
I am so frustrated by these behaviors. They are rude, inconsiderate and unsportsmanlike. There is no reason for doing them. No one agrees with you when you participate in these actions, I promise. We’re all seriously aggravated. So next time, before choosing to engage in any of these behaviors, how about actually thinking about other fans first?
Hannah Kaase is a senior majoring in animal and dairy science. She can be contacted at [email protected].