3 Types Of Duke Fans

[devildeac]

All of us in my household are "A" fans -- as described by ThatDukeFan1. We root endlessly for Duke, we are glad for the rivalry with UNC -- but hope they lose -- except in non-conference play, since we believe that the ACC is almost always the BEST conference in the country and often isn't given its due. So we wish for ALL ACC teams to do well prior to ACC play.

We have DirecTV and FullCourtPress to watch as many games as possible -- and Tivo the rest. (....noted: FullCourtPress is NOT needed if one only wants to watch Duke games, as they are almost always broadcast on network or basic cable).

My daughter and son-in-law graduated from Duke in 2001, and contribute financially to Duke every year as their finances permit, as do I.

Their interest is (mostly) Duke MBB. Mine however extends to almost all sports-- and I also LOVE the WBB. We are DIEHARD supporters. Does anyone else out there have a Duke bluedevil rubber ducky? Or a slammer that yells "Ahhhhh, see ya" when you slam it one the table?? (so cool) --- let me know who else is out there.

Go Devils. My daughter is pregnant (yeah) and her T-shirt with a down arrow reads -- "Future Cameron Crazie." Generations of Duke fans, future alums, Rhodes scholars, and...yes more Nobel Prize winners are to come without a doubt.

Great school, great fans, great atmosphere, great CIS. As a Duke mom, I am so blessed to feel part of the Duke family -- a team for whom I have rooted, and chronicled their progress for many years before my daughter matriculated at DUKE.

Another proud owner of a Blue Devil rubber duckie chiming in here. Just sits on our computer desk and stares at the TV(but I swear one time I heard it quack "go to hell, carolina, go to hell')

[Ann Arbor Devil]

I like the Type A categorization described earlier in this thread and suspect that a majority of us on this board fit this description.

But I am wondering if there is a useful distinction within this group b/w 1) fans in this category who happily wear this identity on their sleeves--sport the gear, decorate their office in Duke blue, have Coach K as their screen saver--and 2) those who are more conflicted about their obsession and try (usually unsuccessfully) to keep it under wraps. Those in the latter subcategory might often wonder why their emotional well-being can be so affected (at least temporarily) by whether or not a 19 year-old hits a jump shot, if they would be better off reading The Economist than hoops chat room banter, and whether it's good for their physical health to scream repeatedly at Psycho T through the TV. But despite the internal debate, come game time this type of fan will still be there glued to the set and will be willing afterwards to debate important issues such as the best (Kenny Dennard undercut of Buck Williams in 1980 ACC championship) vs. worst (Jared Jeffries mugging Carlos Boozer in 2002 Sweet 16) end of game no-calls in Duke hoops history.

Psychologists make the distinction between traits that are "ego syntonic"--that is, fully embraced by oneself, and "ego dystonic." Where are you on this dimension with regard to your Duke fandom?