Virginia Tech vs. FSU: Why Fan Support Is So Important in College Athletics

It was a cold and precipitous night in Charlotte, North Carolina for the ACC Championship game between the Virginia Tech Hokies and the Florida State Seminoles.

Not exactly the kind of evening the promoters of the ACC Championship game were hoping for, I am sure. Also, evidently, not exactly the weather forecast that Florida State fans were hoping for either.

You see, the game was sold out but the majority of the tickets sales went to VT fans. And though the weather kept a few thousand from entering the stadium that night, of the 60,000 some odd that did cowboy up, three-fourths of them were Hokie fans.

But was it actually the weather that kept the FSU faithful away? I’d argue that, rain or shine, it’s the fact that they don’t travel well as a fanbase.

I can say that for a few reasons. I have been to a few Florida State football games in my time, and with the exception of the 1999 National Championship game, Florida State fans tend to root for their team more in spirit than in person.

In an attempt to not make this a column about knocking FSU supporters or supporters, of any specific school, for that matter, I will try to keep my comments more general from here on out, but I wanted to set the stage with the above example in order to show a lack of fan support and attendance.

I just do not understand how a university can have a big-time sports program and not garner the support that it deserves.

Your players and coaches, who bring millions of dollars to your school as well as national recognition which, in turn, bolsters your athletic and academic programs and thus makes a diploma from your institution a valuable commodity, are out on the field everyday working their tails off to succeed for you.

They are on the field in the 33-degree cold with sleet raining down on them. They are on the field in unbelievable heat and humidity sprinting on what little gas they have left.

They are representing you and your school and, for the most part, student athletes do it with pride and dignity. Why is it then that a person who is a fan or student cannot find the time to support these athletes for a couple hours a week? I’m confused.

Why is it that VT fans ended up buying most of the FSU allotment of tickets to Bank of America Stadium?

Sure, you can make the argument that Tech is only a couple hours away from Charlotte and Tallahassee is a much further drive, but I’m not buying it.

I’m not buying it because when the ACC Championship games were held in Florida, the exact same thing happened. Tech brought it and the other guys did not.

It just seems to me that you should support your institution. Maybe I believe this because I am a sports nut, have been raised a sports nut and live and breath sports. It is quite possible that I do not understand people who do not understand and share my passion for sports.

I will chalk it up to individual differences, some prefer sports and some do not. And that’s fine—but like them or not, you should support the sports programs because they effect every aspect of your college campus.

So get off the couch or out of the library or wherever it is you are on an beautiful autumnal Saturday afternoon and head on over to your local stadium to watch your team play for a couple of hours. Who knows, you may actually enjoy yourself, and even if you do not, those student athletes need and appreciate your support.

I am very lucky to have attended a university that travels well. A school that supports their teams like no other I have seen.

Yes, I am biased to Virginia Tech, but I am also realistic.

We needed help in the past with our basketball program but we have picked up the slack and we show up in Cassell Coliseum in force these days. We still have farther to go, however. All schools can improve in some way.

Everyone should support their basketball team like the Cameron Crazies support the Duke Blue Devils and everyone should support their school’s football team like Virginia Tech supports their Hokies.

Plenty of schools exist whose students and fanbase show their support through and through—it is definitely not limited to the two schools I named above (no need to send hate letters).

So let’s get all NCAA students and fans to support their student athletes while they help to make the colleges they play for a better place for all to attend.

It truly does make the game much more fun for the players, the fans and the students. It makes for not just a game, but also a memorable experience.