So if you go watch a Wisconsin high school athletic event, keep your mouth shut and sit on your hands. Don't want to hurt the feelings of players on the opposing team. Especially if they're not American, because we know how demeaning the USA chant can be.
http://onmilwaukee.com/myOMC/authors/jimmycarlton/wiaanewrulescheering.html ↗
I can see both sides. I love the rowdy crowds, but have also been at games where student sections crossed the line (taunting a deaf player by mocking sign language was probably the one of the worst I've seen). I would rather the enforcement came from the school level, where the admin at the game could see when things were going too far and step in, but that usually doesn't happen, either.
@justanotherfan Agree with your illustration, but if you read the guidelines, no chanting "airball", "over-rated", no reading of newspaper during opponent intro's or turning your back, no doing the "wave" or doing anything to distract opposing players shooting ft's. How about just turning off the scoreboard and give each team a trophy when the game is over so everyone feels good?
I'd like to see them ban the greatest cheer/taunt in Wisconsin sports history. "Sieve, Sieve" after goals are scored in hockey matches. Hockey fans won't give in too easily on that one.
As a Badger state resident for 14 wonderful years i wasn't surprised to read that embarrassing headline when I saw it the other day. It's a great state but you've got a state capitol literally walking distance from the state university and some of that big university liberalness drifts down the street to the hallways of the magnificent capitol building. Ask @jaybate-1.0 he knows the geography there, better than I do actually. I could go on a rant about Wisconsin style liberal politics but I won't! But what you brought up @brooksmd is just a perfect illustration of it.
Interestingly, only about 3 of the 29 examples of bad sportsmanship occur at AFH on a regular basis:
Air ball chant... check (dumb, IMO. Usually backfires)
Newspapers during opponents intro... check
Distracting opponents... check (I personally love the free-throw background creativity at every school)
Booing... the refs occasionally (when they really deserve it). Booing Players? VERY rarely, if ever.
The crappier the program, the more examples you see of bad sportsmanship from fans. Exhibit A: Mizzou. I'm sure the antlers would have loved using the U-S-A chant on Svi and Diallo this year. Demeaning? Nah, just reveals Mizzou fans as small minded bigots.
But yeah, otherwise, I agree. It's stupid to try to enforce civility on the stupid.
@DanR "It's stupid to try to enforce civility on the stupid"
I'm emailing that to myself at work to put on the little dry-erase picture frame on my desk. That's one of the best lines I've heard in a long time.
Back to the chants. The most incredibly stupid one I've ever heard is the "Over-rated" chant. OH - you must be over-rated or we couldn't beat you. That's the message that chant conveys to me.
I Do like the saying we have at times - You let your whole team down. That's just funny. Nothing wrong with Air-Ball. You throw up an airball, you should frequently be reminded of it.
Funniest student jeer ever was Colorado students doing 'it's peanut butter and jelly time. Peanut butter and jelly time' and making (I think) Mario little crack up at the free throw line.