Fan revolts out of control, one wanted to fight UGA player
Braves fans littered Turner Field with beer bottles after bad call. (Curtis Compton/AJC)
The Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defines fan as: 1) an enthusiastic devotee (as of a sport or a performing art) usually as a spectator; 2): an ardent admirer or enthusiast (as of a celebrity or a pursuit).
As with anything, definitions can often be broadened. The boundaries of this definition just seemingly shouldn’t stretch to home fans cheering when their quarterback crumbles to the ground with a concussion. Or throwing bottles and garbage on a baseball field, endangering other fans and players, in protest of an umpire’s call. Or egging and toilet-papering a home known to be rented by five college players out of disgust, merely because the team lost a football game. Or effectively challenging one student-athlete to a fight on Twitter.
Yes. One “fan” actually did that last week to Georgia’s Christian Robinson.
“There were all these people saying stuff about me on Twitter, it got personal,” Robinson, a senior linebacker, said about the aftermath of last week’s loss at South Carolina. “I had to start blocking people Sunday. I think I blocked about 30. One guy really started coming at me. I’m like, ‘Why are you talking to me like?’ Then he started giving me an address, saying, ‘Yeah, come meet me,’ and I’m like, ‘Are you serious?’”
So this is what it has come to?
That there is a lunatic fringe in sports fandom is not a revelation. In ancient times, a chariot race at Hippodrome in the year 532 CE, organized to raise support for overthrowing the emperor, ignited a riot that led to the deaths of 10,000 to 30,000 fans. But at least there was the backdrop of political and social issues.
A house rented by Christian Robinson (45), Aaron Murray (11) and three other Georgia players was egged and toilet-papered after a loss. (AP)
Lost perspective has reached moronic proportions. Kansas City Chiefs fans cheered last week when Matt Cassel was concussed because their team stinks, and they wanted Brady Quinn in the game. Chiefs linemen Eric Winston responded appropriately, saying, “We are not gladiators” and called it “sickening. It’s 100 percent sickening. I’ve never been so embarrassed in my life to play football.”
Hundreds of Braves fans threw bottles and garbage after an umpire botched an infield fly rule call in the Wild Card playoff game
Fans cheered when Matt Cassel went down with a concussion, and one teammate called it "sickening." (AP)
against St. Louis. The next day, when Chipper Jones was asked why he didn’t respond to a plea by fans for a curtain call following the final game of his career, he said he wasn’t aware they wanted him out there, then joked, “I thought they were still throwing bottles.”
Then there is what happened in Athens. A house rented by five Georgia players was egged and toilet-papered following the Bulldogs’ 35-7 loss at South Carolina. The masses vented on social media, particularly Twitter, some taking personal attacks on players.
As if perspective hadn’t already been lost, the idiocy became magnified when it was learned that the father of quarterback Aaron Murray — one of the home’s tenants, with Robinson — had been diagnosed with thyroid cancer and was about to undergo surgery.
“People can hide behind [fake screen names], especially when alcohol is involved,” Robinson said. “I understand people get emotionally involved. But you hope they realize that there are bigger deals in life than Georgia football, especially when you see something like what happened to Aaron’s father.”
The Athens police department will begin making frequent checks of players’ homes during road games. It’s sad that it has come to this, especially on a college campus.
Sports sociologist Jay Coakley, author of “Sports in Society: Issues and Controversies,” believes a number of factors have combined to embolden sports fans more than ever, including: a growing belief that they can affect the outcomes of games with crowd noise, increased ticket prices that grow their sense of involvement; and the growing platforms for their opinions, including message boards, blog commenting and sports talk radio.
“There is a sense of entitlement, but it goes beyond that,” Coakley said from his home in Colorado Springs. “It’s also a sense that you can get away with it. I don’t want to blame it all on talk radio, but those narratives have become pretty extreme. The boundaries for what’s acceptable and what’s not have been pushed, even to the point of egging the home of your own quarterback.”
When asked for a solution, Coakley said it would help if athletes, particularly on college campuses, were less sheltered from the public and allowed to make an off-the-field connection with fans. He added, “It also would be nice if somebody in the stands stood up and said, ‘This is is not acceptable.’ Point people out. Maybe the message would start to get across.”
The Athens eggers have not been caught. Robinson laughed when asked what he would like to see happen to them if they ever were brought to justice.
“I think if they ever get caught, just the public knowing who did that would be worse punishment than anything else,” he said. “They would be complete social outcasts. That would be enough.”
By Jeff Schultz
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432 comments Add your comment
Larvell Blanks
October 12th, 2012
3:10 pm
I didn’t say there was anything wrong with CE. It’s just usually used by pointy-headed academics, so it looks odd in a sports column.
Bobo
October 12th, 2012
3:12 pm
Sorry Jeff, but you are DEAD WRONG about the Braves game. I agree that a huge line was crossed in someone challenging an athlete to a fight off the field. However, the shower of garbage is what I call “consequences” for an umpire that had no respect for the game. Rather than you self-righteous media types finding yet another thing to mock us ‘commoners’ about, why don’t you get off your judgmental high horse? The ump should have been fined and suspended from working any more games, but are they EVER held accountable for turning a season on a call? Sure, the Braves helped do themselves in with 3 errors, but personally, the fact that garbage DID come down on the field was more of a source of pride in a group that actually cares about their team, rather than the ‘embarrassment’ that the disgusting (words I can’t print) P.C. announcers alluded towards. Personally, I think if you can’t get a call right that is that obvious when you make 6 figures a year, maybe you deserve a D-cell battery bounced off your cranium.
really?!?!?`
October 12th, 2012
3:18 pm
Its just a game; ever heard the saying “live by the sword, die by the sword”? Well those idiots that think UGA is the best die inside everytime reality strikes and they lose. Anyone w/ ANY sports knowledge saw UGA was gonna get slapped by the gamecocks. Everyone knew it. Well almost everyone.
I don’t understand “grown” men and women acting like life starts w/ football. Really?! Get a flippin life, I dunno, play with your kids or vacuum the shag carpet in your trailer…. or get out of college and realize the first 21 years of life were a lie and life really hasnt started til you sack up and get a career and responsibilities and leave childinh ways behind.
Football can be fun, but fans ruin it most of the time….not players.
dawggirl
October 12th, 2012
3:19 pm
Thanks for the article, Jeff. I’m definitely in agreement. I’ve said enough on the subject matter Sunday night, so I’ll hold my tongue except to wish Aaron Murray’s father well.
The Grinch
October 12th, 2012
3:19 pm
A battery would have been a bit much, no? We’re disgruntled, not Neanderthals or Philly fans. “Common Era” is used by anyone who doesn’t want their education instantly judged by their world view being linked to Christianity.
Since Vince
October 12th, 2012
3:21 pm
I dont hold anything against the players. I fault the coaching staff. They recruit these guys and the kids buy into what they are coaching. The coaching is just horrible for big games as of late. Its ok to have high expectations and demand better.
Lee
October 12th, 2012
3:21 pm
Heck, I’ve had folks challenge me to a fight on an online blog – which is why I won’t use my full name or any other identifying information. Through the miracle of anonymity of the internet, everyone is a 6-5 250 lb former MMA fighter (just like me).
Idiots have always walked amongst us. It’s just that in years past, we didn’t carry cell phones with video capability nor could we go online and advertise our idiocy.
UGADawg83
October 12th, 2012
3:21 pm
I trust Christian Robinson, Murray and their housemates understand that these actions do not represent 99.99999999% of the UGA fan base. I seriously doubt the individuals that committed these acts ever matriculated a day at the University of Georgia.
dawgfan
October 12th, 2012
3:22 pm
The AJC is going to milk that egging and rolling story for all its worth. We’ll definitely be hearing about it for the rest of the season, if not on in to next year too. It could have been as small as one or two morons that did it, but Schultz and Techies will act like its the entire UGA fan base. Laughable.
I’ve still yet to hear a peep out of the AJC when Tech fans throw things on the field during football games. Its happened on mulitple occasions over the years. It got so bad during the 2007 Boston College game that they had to stop play to clean it up, but the AJC didn’t say a word about it. Odd don’t you think?
Guy Bailey
October 12th, 2012
3:24 pm
Gotti – I’m not but I feel like one for having to call Football ‘Soccer”…
Fools Gold
October 12th, 2012
3:29 pm
Its the same thing year after year for UGA football. Its just another year of Fools Gold with this coaching staff.
Matt"T"
October 12th, 2012
3:30 pm
I am as big a Tennessee/Atlanta fan as you will find, born and raised in Georgia, but a graduate of UT, and it breaks my heart to see this extreme behavior in our backyards. For us, social media alienated Aaron Foster during his tenure at UT since the team fell out of ranking while he played there, even though he was still an extremely gifted athlete who made a great contribution. We just wanted to win EVERY Saturday. When we didn’t, he got blasted on the boards to the point that I don’t think he is proud to call Tennessee his Alma Mater now for what went on with Fulmer’s firing his last season. Now I feel so badly for Murray, Robinson, and Chipper. Especially the college kids, who are just that-kids! They are going to associate these horrible actions with their time at UGA, and that says more about us as fans than it does then and in the end it hurts the game and the school’s recruiting. We haven’t been the same.
no dawg fan
October 12th, 2012
3:30 pm
I’ve thought for a long time that the DAWG fans were a bit over the line …. this doesn’t do anything to make me think differently ….
truth be known
October 12th, 2012
3:33 pm
I just come here(AJC) to get a good laugh each day……. or to get banned by Chip towers or Bill King.
cattledawgs
October 12th, 2012
3:34 pm
Why do u feel bad for chipper?
Matt"T"
October 12th, 2012
3:34 pm
“Love your children, like sports….”
Oats Willey
October 12th, 2012
3:37 pm
One guy really started coming at me. I’m like, ‘Why are you talking to me like?’ Then he started giving me an address, saying, ‘Yeah, come meet me,’ and I’m like, ‘Are you serious?’”
And I’m “like”, these are communication skills taught at UGA?
Is he a college student or a 13 year old girl obsessing over unicorns?
SSIgator
October 12th, 2012
3:37 pm
“A house rented by five Georgia players was egged and toilet-papered following the Bulldogs’ 35-7 loss at South Carolina”
_________________
Yeah, and Murray was throwing some of the eggs also, but he overthrew the house and hit the one next door instead.
Matt"T"
October 12th, 2012
3:38 pm
I feel bad for Chipper b/c that was his last game, ever! What a horrible note to end on with such a great career for The Braves. He had many opportunities to leave Atlanta, and he chose to go out here, and we decide to throw beer cans on the field of his last game because of one of the worst calls ever. Awful
clock stoppa
October 12th, 2012
3:39 pm
@truth be known
Bill King got you on lockdown too? Hahaha!
retired
October 12th, 2012
3:40 pm
agree with the writer that said this call (against Braves) would never have happened against home team in Philly or NYC . A search of worst sports calls on the net show an inordinate against the Braves (remember the Ron Gant take down) and for teams like the Yankees (see the Fan interference in the HR against Baltimore) Now while the Cards got hosed in ‘85 the Yankees have have way too many go their way. I for one APPLAUD THE fans that threw garbage on the field for both their passion and good aim (that no one got hurt) JEFF YOUR WRONG ON THIS ONE, save your apologies for next years days of awe. Shalom lansman
Gary
October 12th, 2012
3:43 pm
Af Dawg, you will not be missed at the stadium. Plenty of folks willing to by tickets to see 10 win seasons back to back.
truth be known
October 12th, 2012
3:44 pm
@ Clock stoppa…… glad to have you in my company. Bradley and Schultz never have banned me. Maybe gave me a fair warning or two. Little Chipper Towers just banned me a few weeks ago without warning. He couldnt handle the truth….
Ben
October 12th, 2012
3:45 pm
Its a shame that an immature prank has shifted the focus from last Saturdays performance, which was unacceptable and quite frankly embarrassing. To every Dawg fan’s dismay, since 2008 we are 2-14 against teams that finished the season ranked, going 0-9 against SEC opponents during that stretch. Our coach makes 3 million a year and we are repeatedly unprepared for big games. I wish we were talking about this, as opposed to the bruised ego of our second string LB.
Buzzzed
October 12th, 2012
3:46 pm
Jeff, the Ump did the braves a favor by calling the in-field fly rule. Other scenarios include:
1.) the ball is caught – one out.
2.) the ball drops and is played – double play ( the two runners have to tag up and advance to make room for the batter).
The Ump did the braves a favor. Why doesn’t anyone explain this?
GA Fan
October 12th, 2012
3:52 pm
If we don’t throw batteries into the opposing bullpen like Mets and Phillies fans, we are “The Least-Deserving Fan Base in Sports.” If we get passionate and angry, we are hooligans. We do own a stake in these teams with the extreme ticket prices for pro sports–and very soon, we’ll foot the bill to pay for a billion dollar stadium, for which we’ll then have to pay even more extreme rates for seats in our own stadium. CMR and his staff are among the states highest paid employees. They should be more accountable. This does not justify violence toward players or vandalism. But you can’t bash us for being upset at things like a really, really bad call or a high-paid coaching staff that apparently did little to prepare their team to play.
Angus
October 12th, 2012
3:56 pm
Buzzzed, no one is explaining it ’cause you’re wrong. The ball dropped, the LF picked it up/threw it in, and not one runner was thrown out (much less the two you assert would have been).
truth be known
October 12th, 2012
3:56 pm
Maybe Richt should ban his players off of twitter and facebook. They should be committed and focused on UGA football and just socialize around campus. It can be done.
SSIgator
October 12th, 2012
3:57 pm
“Robinson said. “I understand people get emotionally involved.”
________________
Question for Mr. Robinson: Do you think St. Markus Rectumus will ever be emotionally involved or will he simply continue to listen to his Ford truck commercials on his headset during the ball games?
Hold my sack
October 12th, 2012
3:59 pm
im tired of these so called fans crying and peepeeing in their pants. its just game man, man
Heisenberg
October 12th, 2012
3:59 pm
number of factors have combined to embolden sports fans more than ever, including: a growing belief that they can affect the outcomes of games with crowd noise, increased ticket prices that grow their sense of involvement; and the growing platforms for their opinions, including message boards, blog commenting
Uh that we be us. Why I am shocked I tell you! Just shocked that people would say such things on blogs.
Hold my sack
October 12th, 2012
4:00 pm
yea i think richt needs to ban twitter i unfollowed mr robinson bc he tweeted so much
SSIgator
October 12th, 2012
4:02 pm
truth be known -
Twit Towers is the biggest UGA cheerleader that ever pecked on a keyboard. If you don’t have something warm and fuzzy to say about UGA, you are out of luck. He is the kind of guy that thinks everyone that plays sports should get participation awards.
jb
October 12th, 2012
4:03 pm
I don’t understand the treatment of Murray and Robinson by the UGA fans neither one of these players or anyone else on this team were put in a position to succeed by the coaching staff. If you are frustated express that to the staff or administration, financially. Quit buying merchandise, don’t go to the games. Money is all they understand. This coaching staff laid an egg in Columbia, no preparation at all. Same as Boise State and Michigan State last year. Mark Richt is not going to take this team to another level. Even Grantham does not have the fire this year. So before blaming Murray or anyone else look at the game plan or lack thereof
The Factor
October 12th, 2012
4:04 pm
Those of us who actually attended the University of Georgia wish we could lose that faction of fans e who only care about UGA for it’s football. When you cuss opposing fans in OUR stadium you embarrass us. When you leave trash on OUR campus we wish you would stay home. We are sick of you and don’t need you….We really don’t. Those footbal players and US have a special bond. They are UGA like we are. You are not . We welcome you to join us only if you are civil.
truth be known
October 12th, 2012
4:04 pm
Mr. Robinson should have known better. He left the door wide open with those comments on twitter.
dean
October 12th, 2012
4:06 pm
“Lost perspective has reached moronic proportions.”
And there you have it. Enough said.
BulldogBen
October 12th, 2012
4:09 pm
Ahhhh my favorite medai meme, the blaming of fans for crazy behavior. This has been going on forever. Shultz, do you not see the irony? The very reason there is a sports section, or sports blog, or sports talk radio is because of this fanaticism. There is no Furniture Talk Radio. But by all means, let’s stop keeping score and just give out Participation Awards.
The Factor
October 12th, 2012
4:13 pm
Be careful of what you wish. 112 wins in 12 years. Saban, Spurrier, Bobby Petino and Urban Myers are not coming to Athens. These are the only 4 elite coaches in America in college football. MRicht falls in with Stoops , Miles, M Brown and F Beamer as good coaches respected nationally. All able to drop a big game when least expected and have the ability to under achieve when stakes are high. We have a good coach. Not an elite coach. Others would beg to have him. Enjoy this ride. It is the best in our history.
PMC
October 12th, 2012
4:14 pm
Talk Radio is not that bad. I’d say a lot of it has to do with the amout of money people are paying to attend events, and alcohol.
Ultimately it is just a game, athetes are people too.
We need to do better not sweating small stuff like this. Passion is good, and losses are frustrating, but they aren’t that important really.
Maybe we should all just be frontrunners, it’s a lot more fun way to live.
PMC
October 12th, 2012
4:16 pm
Bobby Petrino is not elite. Bobby Petrino has never won boo anywhere. He has a nice fancy offense and wins a few games, but he’s never won a championship unless you’re counting confrence USA and the Big Least.
truth be known
October 12th, 2012
4:16 pm
First!…so do I get the kudos?
Bobo
October 12th, 2012
4:17 pm
Here is something no one has mentioned yet…..
If someone thinks that they are bad enough to take on a college football player in full playing shape, then they should go ahead and try for the amusement of the rest of us….. They’ll find out pretty quickly that an average college lineman bench presses in excess of 400 pounds, squats 600, and can punch them in the face 5 times by the time they get off one good swing. You also don’t play D-1 college football if you don’t have a few screws loose in the ‘crazy’ department. For those that have never experienced it, getting hit by a 235 pound linebacker running a 4.5 on a kickoff is about what I would imagine being run over by a Special Ed bus doing 20 mph probably feels like…….and someone wants to fight them?
A fight between just about any player but a kicker (and some of them would still beat the butt of an average Joe) and a guy on the street will almost always turn out to be comically hilarious as Average Joe ends up looking like he had a heat-butting contest with a gorilla and then got run over by a Mack truck and thrown in a dumpster.
1eyedJack
October 12th, 2012
4:19 pm
Guy Bailey, good read. Strangely I found myself reading your post in an Austin Powers accent.
bfred
October 12th, 2012
4:19 pm
The Turner Field incident was Braves fans finally hitting the breaking point after 17 years of frustration. After watching MLB-best teams get swept out of the playoffs and epic collapses, we’re finally in position with a quality squad and a wide-open NL field. It’s bad enough what we get is an idiotic one-game playoff (can’t be three? Really?) with a team we beat by 7 or 8 games over the course of the season, but in the middle of a rally to have the deck stacked by one of the most idiotic calls in recent memory was the final straw. Braves fans are known as some of the most polite and reserved in the country – just about any other city would have torn the place down. I’d love to have seen that go down in Philly or LA.
PMC
October 12th, 2012
4:19 pm
Georgia brought in Mark Richt when he was a hot assistant, people are right in that they aren’t attracting anyone who is an elite coach at the time, for them Georgia is probably the worst job in America. Great Expectations with not much ability to be Above Average most of the time, but hey, so is Auburn, and they just won a National Championship.
They could always send a dump truck of money Kirby Smart’s way and see if he can coach.
Larvell Blanks
October 12th, 2012
4:19 pm
Buzzzed: Jeff, the Ump did the braves a favor by calling the in-field fly rule. Other scenarios include:
1.) the ball is caught – one out.
2.) the ball drops and is played – double play ( the two runners have to tag up and advance to make room for the batter).
The Ump did the braves a favor. Why doesn’t anyone explain this?
As Angus so eloquently put it, no one explains this because you’re wrong. However, your explanation shows why the call was wrong. You have almost accurately summed up the rationale behind the infield fly rule — it’s to protect the runners from being double-played by intentionally dropping the ball (although you’re incorrect to say that they have to “tag up” if the ball is dropped). However, because the ball was so far in the outfield, there was no possible way the defense could have gotten a double play by intentionally dropping the ball — indeed, as the actual outcome demonstrated, they couldn’t even get a single out. So the danger the rule seeks to avoid was never a possibility in that situation. That is mighty strong evidence that going 75 feet into the outfield to make a tricky play is not the type of “ordinary effort” contemplated by the rulemakers.
The Factor
October 12th, 2012
4:19 pm
One more thing, UGA over M Richts 12 years is 2nd in total wins, only narrowly behing LSU who has had 3 coaches over this period.
PMC
October 12th, 2012
4:20 pm
I wonder what would have happened in Cincinatti or Chicago (Cubs) if that had happened there.
They nearly killed Bartman in Chicago. Cincinatti has to be close to the breaking point.
Bobo
October 12th, 2012
4:20 pm
Also…all those fans that want to blame the players for their performance should haul their happy drunk butts out there onto the gridiron. Nothing would be more hilarious than a tight end drag route pass over the middle to the fat drunk lawyer in Row E or a fullback dive by the drunk sorority girl who dresses like she’s going to church at the game. I would pay double to see that. Unfortunately, the only place I get to see that is the scene in “Waterboy” when the towel boy suited up for Michigan State.