Just in Time for the Super Bowl: Four Easy Steps to Becoming a Bandwagon Hopper

Every true fan absolutely hates a bandwagon hopper.

You've stuck with your team through the good times and the bad. Regardless of how long the bad times were, and how brief the good ones seemed to be.

The last thing you want to see as a real fan, are those pretenders donning your teams jersey, acting like the organizations number one admirer—they stick out like a bad haircut.

But for all you so called "fans" who deny hopping on the bandwagon, here's some advice to help you blend in a little better. If you follow these four easy steps I can't guarantee you'll be seen as a true fan, but I can promise you'll shed the dreaded bandwagon label.

1. Do your research, but not too much

Every fan knows the key stats (goals, points, touchdowns, tackles) for the important players on his/hers team.

Stats are a good thing to know, but there is definitely a fine line with how much you should know. Be careful, if you show too much knowledge you'll draw attention to yourself and not in a good way. There's one simple thing to remember in order to stay within the "fine line" of stats. You're a fan of the team, not its coach. There is no need to know every possible stat out there.

*Exception: If there's a player or coach closing in on an all-time or franchise record, you better know every possible stat*

     2.  Scouting Report/Background Check

This is one of the most important steps to remember. If you're able to master the scouting report, you'll get yourself out of most arguments, debates, and trivia battles with an actual fan. Before you go and root for any team, you must complete the scouting report.

Learn the key names of people in the organization. The general manager, owner, and coaching staff are names you can mention in any conversation.

You must also find out about any coaching or management changes in the last few years. Legendary coaches, owners, or any other front personnel are also good to know. The more knowledge you have about the team off the field, the more you seem like a true fan.

    3.  Current Events

You can't be out of the loop if you are a true fan. When trying to disguise yourself as a bandwagon hopper, the Internet is your best friend. There are two things you must do:

• Visit the teams website at least two times a day
• Use Google "news" section to check all stories about your chosen team

Knowing the roster also applies to current events.

Familiarize yourself with at least five players, outside of the captains. If any rookies are on the team, it's important to know when they were drafted (year, round, and pick).

Trade rumors, speculation, standings, prospects should all be kept up with, as these things become second nature to fans. Keeping up to date with news, will distance you from other bandwagon fans.

   4.  Participate in a history lesson, it's good for you

A team's history is the pride and joy of every fan, it's something they pride themselves in knowing. Luckily for you, everything you need/should know can easily be found on Wikipedia. With one easy search you can be considered a historian. All you have to do is retain the majority of what you read. 

A team's entire history isn't something you have to memorize or prepare to recite. You only need to remember specific things to complete your bandwagon disguise.

The number of titles a team has won is something a fan will never forget, and mention any chance they get. A team's Wikipedia page should definitely be one of your bookmarks, and reading it a few times a week wouldn't be a bad idea either.

The fan that's dubbed as the "history guy", never has his loyalty questioned or doubted. Become that fan.

It's that time of the season when the bandwagon tends to fill-up, especially with the Super Bowl just around the corner. You don't want to be that person at the Super Bowl party that doesn't know what's going on, so whether you're hoping on the bandwagon or trying to spot those fake fans, following these steps will definitely get the job done.