The Gauntlet: True Fans vs Bandwagoners

Over the past few days, I have caught a lot of slack for writing about the Oakland Raiders. In between all the bashing, I found myself getting a new-found amount of respect for them. Why you ask?

Because the true fans stepped up and defended their team. This got me thinking about one thing and one thing only: What truly determines a real fan? So I pose this question first off to myself, and I believe that I found the answer: Loyalty, Pride, and Respect.

Loyalty

Through the good times and the bad times, true fans have had to deal with their teams. The Raiders haven't seen success since their Super Bowl run in 2003, yet the true fans are as die hard now as they were then. The Rams haven't seen real success since their Super Bowl run of 2001, yet I still remain true to my team.

I have been a Rams fan since the day I was born. I lived in Los Angeles when I first saw the LA Rams and LA Raiders battle it out. When I was two, I saw the Florida Gators lock it up with the Florida State Seminoles, and I was immediately hooked by the frenzy of Gator Country (aka "The Swamp").

When you think of loyalty, you see many fans that may have not been seen had their respective teams not won the championship. Would we see so many Patriots fans if they had not defeated the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI? Would we see so many Red Sox fans if the curse was not broken in 2004?

To make it even worse, there are those bandwagon fans who know nothing about the teams, but root for them just because they were the team at that occasion. I, for one, hate those kind of fans. Even when the Raiders, Rams, Red Sox, Broncos, Patriots, and even the Gators were on the short end of the stick, the real fans stuck by their teams. That's loyalty in my book.

Pride

Pride is a word that is thrown around a lot recently. There were those who said that I had no pride because I called out an army of Raider fans. But contrary to their beliefs, I do have pride in my teams.

Even when the Rams were having dismal seasons, which they have had a lot of them, I was still sporting my Rams jerseys, my hats, my flags, my team colors every single week. At first, I thought it was a bunch of anal fans looking to make me look like an ass. But as the days went on, and the mountain of insults grew, I realized just how much pride the Black Hole had for their team. I found myself respecting them more than I despised them.

As far as nations go, I honestly could care less. I know that there might be a Rams Nation out there, or a Gator Nation, or a Red Sox Nation. But ever since the day I was born, there was always a Raider Nation. 

Oakland Raider fans do have pride in their team...just as I have pride in all of mine. But there are some bandwagon Raider fans out there, who truly don't belong to their infamous "Nation." They know that and who they are. Some might be in denial simply because they choose not to associate with them, but there are those who still show pride in their beloved team and truly bleed Silver and Black.

Respect

When the smoke clears, win or lose, it's all about respect. The Raiders have not had good seasons, let alone great ones. Like the Rams, they've had mediocre seasons filled with decent games and games they would like to forget.

This piece is mainly a show of respect for Oakland, not a way to kiss their ass. Anyone who knows me or has read my writings knows that I like to shake foundations and create controversy. I was one of the few who defended the sell of Michael Vick jerseys even after we all knew what he did. I was one of the few who defended teams that didn't have anyone speak on their behalf.

This site was created to give true fans like myself and the Raider Nation a voice. Though I enjoy the compliments, I enjoy the insults more. Regardless, I know when it is time to quit kicking a dead dog, and now is that time.

But the fact is this: I am a real fan, and I prove that every time I wake up in the morning and fall asleep at night. Through 3-13 seasons with the Rams, bowl losses with the Gators, NIT embarrassments against the Minutemen, and not even making the postseason with the Cardinals, I have been true to my teams and my colors. 

I will not stop writing about other teams, because it wouldn't make me a sports writer. It would just make me a bias has been. But in the interest of fairness, this last portion is the basis of this entire article.

Throwing Out The Gauntlet

I have been a sports fanatic all my life, and in that time, I have found my teams and stuck with them. Like the Raider Nation, I have pride in my teams. Like Oakland, the Rams have a lot of work to do to get back to the top. Like me, the Raider Nation shows its true colors whether they're provoked or not.

For those "bandwagon" fans, you need to step up and show pride in victory and defeat. Enjoy the times that you do have to watch your team(s) go nuts as well as stumble. No true team is always gonna be perfect, so if you are a real fan, show it every day.

For those true fans, I applaud you. I applaud the team spirit that you show every single time your team steps out of the tunnel, out of the dugout, onto the ice, and onto the court. I applaud the loyalty, pride, and respect that you have for them. And when the smoke clears, I applaud the fact that you still defend them, even in defeat.

So I challenge every true fan to continue defending your team. I challenge every bandwagon fan to step up or step off. Even if you're team is in the cellar, sport those colors. I challenge everyone who has ever found themselves frothing at the mouth at the sight of their team to continue doing that.

I know this doesn't make up for poking the Raider Nation Bear, but as everyone has found out over the past year and a half, "America Loves Controversy."  And I love seeing things outside the box.

So which bandwagon fan will accept the challenge? Which true sports fan will continue to show their pride in the face of embarrassment? Who will show their true colors and who will step off? Only time will tell. Let this the closing of one door and the opening of another.