Take a deep breath folks...

[UOducksTK1]

The "bandwagon" argument is the weakest insult ever invented by sports fans.

I don't care if a fan started liking the Ducks yesterday or 300 years ago, it's a positive for the program and is welcomed by me.

But when the Ducks have a couple rough seasons, do those fans walk away? If so, bandwagon.

And you'd be surprised how many people are like this. I knew a couple people who were big fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers, lol not anymore.

[dthomas=ddixon]

The "bandwagon" argument is the weakest insult ever invented by sports fans.

I don't care if a fan started liking the Ducks yesterday or 300 years ago, it's a positive for the program and is welcomed by me.

But when the Ducks have a couple rough seasons, do those fans walk away? If so, bandwagon.

And you'd be surprised how many people are like this. I knew a couple people who were big fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers, lol not anymore.

I'm with TK. Bandwagon fans are great if they stick around. But they usually don't. I know a lot of "huge" fans that didn't even pay attention to the ducks 5 years ago. Now they rep twice as much Duck as I have & are completely entitled & have zero perspective. If we don't beat every team by 20+ its "What the hells wrong with these guys. Chip needs to pull his head out." If we have one bad season they'll be done with the Ducks.

[DarronThomas5]

I've been inside the state of Oregon twice in my entire life. I started rooting for the Ducks in 2005 because I liked their unis.

I'm not the only one like this.

[Phalanx]

I've been inside the state of Oregon twice in my entire life. I started rooting for the Ducks in 2005 because I liked their unis.

I'm not the only one like this.

I admit I felt a tinge of provincial umbrage upon reading this post, but it passed.

[wvduck34]

I've been inside the state of Oregon twice in my entire life. I started rooting for the Ducks in 2005 because I liked their unis.

I'm not the only one like this.

I admit I felt a tinge of provincial umbrage upon reading this post, but it passed.

Yeah, well you should have been there for the toilet bowl in '83. Where I nearly got pneumonia and some drunk
a$$hole knocked me into the gutter. I was about 7. Oh the good ole days.

[Phalanx]

Well, we all have to start somewhere I guess. I lived in southern Oregon in '83 and was only nominally a duck fan (although that is when it started). The pre-season prediction for the ducks every year back then was 'Duck Soup'. Seemed like the pundits never got tired of saying that. I remember always hoping they would prove those media guys wrong. Times sure have changed.

[TheMaehlMan]

The only good thing about bandwagon fans in our case is that it means we have more of a chance with elite recruits since they are probably taking notice as well. I loathe the bandwagon Pats/Sox fans that have popped up this decade, they don't no jack about the teams. It's funny because no one in Boston gave a s*** about the Pats until they started winning, and now I talk to kids at Oregon who have never been to Massachusetts in their lives and they are "Diehard Pats fans". I think college sports are a bit different in terms of rooting for certain teams, because some people aren't fortunate enough to live in a college town. I moved to Eugene when I turned 5 and have lived here ever since, couldn't imagine not living in a college town.

[wheaton4prez]

But when the Ducks have a couple rough seasons, do those fans walk away? If so, bandwagon.

And you'd be surprised how many people are like this. I knew a couple people who were big fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers, lol not anymore.

Why should that matter? Watching sports is entertainment. Not a contract with the military.

It seems like the bandwagon idea is based on people getting offended that other people aren't as into it as they are. I think that it adds to my experience that I've followed them a long time along with family, etc. through thick and thin. But, I don't see any reason to hold it against someone for not following as closely in bad years.

I'm with TK. Bandwagon fans are great if they stick around. But they usually don't. I know a lot of "huge" fans that didn't even pay attention to the ducks 5 years ago. Now they rep twice as much Duck as I have & are completely entitled & have zero perspective. If we don't beat every team by 20+ its "What the hells wrong with these guys. Chip needs to pull his head out." If we have one bad season they'll be done with the Ducks.

Same question. Honestly just want to know what the negative consequence is?

[karlhungis]

The negative side of the bandwagon fan is that they are usually the most likely to make the program look bad. Whether it is juvenile trash talk on message boards to opposing fans or harassing people who come to the games, usually the bad behavior comes from the bandwagon fan.

[wvduck34]

Look at it this way. It can only help spread the word about Oregon football. And we won't have to put up any more billboards.

[wheaton4prez]

The negative side of the bandwagon fan is that they are usually the most likely to make the program look bad. Whether it is juvenile trash talk on message boards to opposing fans or harassing people who come to the games, usually the bad behavior comes from the bandwagon fan.

How does anyone know that though?

It seems like bad fan behavior is often theorized as having come from a bandwagon fan. But, it could have been a long-term fan.

[greenyellow]

The negative side of the bandwagon fan is that they are usually the most likely to make the program look bad. Whether it is juvenile trash talk on message boards to opposing fans or harassing people who come to the games, usually the bad behavior comes from the bandwagon fan.

How does anyone know that though?

It seems like bad fan behavior is often theorized as having come from a bandwagon fan. But, it could have been a long-term fan.

It could but a lot of the bad trash-talking (on national forum boards) comes from fans who don't know the full history of Oregon football and think Oregon's always been good. They make the long-time fans look bad by association.

[wheaton4prez]

When someone is doing bad trash-talking on a forum, how do you know how long they have been a fan for?

[dthomas=ddixon]

But when the Ducks have a couple rough seasons, do those fans walk away? If so, bandwagon.

And you'd be surprised how many people are like this. I knew a couple people who were big fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers, lol not anymore.

Why should that matter? Watching sports is entertainment. Not a contract with the military.

It seems like the bandwagon idea is based on people getting offended that other people aren't as into it as they are. I think that it adds to my experience that I've followed them a long time along with family, etc. through thick and thin. But, I don't see any reason to hold it against someone for not following as closely in bad years.

I'm with TK. Bandwagon fans are great if they stick around. But they usually don't. I know a lot of "huge" fans that didn't even pay attention to the ducks 5 years ago. Now they rep twice as much Duck as I have & are completely entitled & have zero perspective. If we don't beat every team by 20+ its "What the hells wrong with these guys. Chip needs to pull his head out." If we have one bad season they'll be done with the Ducks.

Same question. Honestly just want to know what the negative consequence is?

It creates an inflated fan base full of dumb fans. One or 2 bad seasons & all those fans are gone. And say we've expanded Autzen, what does that do? You have a big debt thats not getting paid for because all the fans you expanded it for hopped of the bandwagon & don't go to games or even pay attention anymore.

And honestly the biggest negative is having to deal with them myself. Nothing worse than running into what you think is a fellow die-hard duck & it turns out he's a dumb arse that doesn't know anything about the team. Just that the Ducks are good & the gear he's wearing looks cool. Those are the same people who act like total A-holes at the games & ruin it for everyone else. You know the guy who gets hammered & goes to Duck games just cuz its "cool".

[wheaton4prez]

So, you think that you would be better off if Autzen doesn't get expanded at all because it recognizes that some of the people buying tickets might be "bandwagon" fans?

How do you know how long a-holes at games have been fans?