3 Types Of Duke Fans

[Uncle Drew]

After being very ill for over a week and taking care of my wife who has also been ill. I stopped by DBR to check all the postings, especially after last nights Duke game and UNC's game against Clemson. After adding 2 and 2 and 2 together I have come to figure out something about those of us who call ourselves Duke fans. As near as I can tell there are 3 types of Duke fans.

1.Students / alums.
2. Fans that want Duke to succeed above all else
3.Duke fans who want UNC to fail more than anything else.

This was very apparent in the UNC recruiting post that got closed. Slightly apparent in the Duke game thread from last night. And very apparent again in the Clemson Has A Chance thread.

The way I see it a person attending Duke or that graduated from there has the school spirit, proud alum rah, rah thing going. Duke IS such a great school that optimism about all aspects of Duke are going to shine through 99 times out of 100. The second category is a little skewed because if Duke succeeds, ultimately UNC is going to fail. (There are no co-national champions...at least in basketball!) But many people that fall into this second category want Duke teams to do their best and pay little or no attention to what any other schools accomplish.

Then you have the ABC crowd. Some are converted NCSU fans (and other former fans) that hate UNC. Some are Duke fans from childhood that remember when UNC owned college basketball in NC. Some are just people who want to hurl every time they hear a UNC fan / alum spew light blue garbage from their mouth, tee shirt and car bumper. Granted we all want to beat UNC more than any team each year in every sport. But some of us view the whole thing as a good vs. evil, force vs. dark force, JR Ewing vs Bobby Ewing thing. I think that's really important to look at when a fan is stating / posting their opinion. 99.9% of fans in the country would be satisfied with the season Duke is having, the last ten seasons they have had and most of all the prospects for the next four years. I can Guarantee UCLA fans don't stress over UNC getting three recruits in the boat. And aside from true Duke haters out there most will only see the score of last nights Duke game and see who won.

It's really not fair to the players, staff and prospects for some of us ABCers (Yes I'm one of the third type.) to have the mindset we do. Heck it's not even fair to all of us Duke fans in general when some of us think we have to live up and surpass what they do in Chapel Hill. (There are a ton of UNC and MD fans who think the same way about Duke.) But the rivalry is older than anyone reading this and it runs deeper than the number of miles between the two campuses. Any kid inking with either school should know a spotlight is going to be on them not just from their fans but the fans of their arch enemy. I really didn't agree with the UNC Recruit post being closed, but I understand why. Under 99 spotlights the past and future gleam bright for Duke University (From last nights game it's apparent Duke needs some more Rhodes Scholars and Nobel prize winners!) and Duke athletics. But to those of us looking at things from under that one ugly spotlight in a light blue shade we want more even though we should be happy with what we have.

[JasonEvans]

People in group #3 are not Duke fans. No offense to those of you who fall into that group, but I don't even begin to consider you Duke fans. Being against one thing does not automatically make you "for" something else. There is more to being a fan of a team than hating its rival.

Heck, as most of you know, I have a great deal of admiration and respect for what Dean and Roy have done at Carolina. One reason Duke is Duke is because Carolina is Carolina. Our close proximity (both physically and emotionally) drives each of us to be the best in the rivalry and, because we are both so good, the best in the sport. Trust me, Duke is a better basketball program because of our rivalry with Carolina.

People who just root for Carolina to lose sorta disgust me.

--Jason "rooting for Duke should be a positive thing" Evans

[feldspar]

People in group #3 are not Duke fans. No offense to those of you who fall into that group, but I don't even begin to consider you Duke fans. Being against one thing does not automatically make you "for" something else. There is more to being a fan of a team than hating its rival.

Heck, as most of you know, I have a great deal of admiration and respect for what Dean and Roy have done at Carolina. One reason Duke is Duke is because Carolina is Carolina. Our close proximity (both physically and emotionally) drives each of us to be the best in the rivalry and, because we are both so good, the best in the sport. Trust me, Duke is a better basketball program because of our rivalry with Carolina.

People who just root for Carolina to lose sorta disgust me.

--Jason "rooting for Duke should be a positive thing" Evans

Man, I wish I had been on last night 'cause I coulda predicted this post coming.

[Bluedog]

(From last nights game it's apparent Duke needs some more Rhodes Scholars and Nobel prize winners!)

Really? We have 41 Rhodes Scholars to Cornell's 21, IIRC. Duke is 5th in the nation among private schools (Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Stanford are the only ones with more). That's pretty impressive if you ask me....Nobel prize winners, yeah, agree with that. Stat showed only 4 to Cornell's 40...

Getting back to the topic on hand, can't somebody be a member of more than one group? I suppose 2 and 3 are mutually exclusive since you said "above all else," but I certainly feel that I am part of all three groups. I'm a Duke alum and want Duke to succeed above all else - I also hate Carolina and want them to lose. Of course, my #1 priority is our success, but after the Cornell game, when my focus was on Clemson-UNC, I wanted UNC to lose above all else since we were no longer playing...I don't see what's wrong with that. I certainly respect UNC, appreciate the rivalry, and understand that Duke and the rivalry wouldn't be so great if it wasn't for UNC's successes...but that doesn't mean I want UNC to win anything. There is a point of obsession of wanting UNC to lose that perhaps crosses a boundary - but I certainly think I'm a member of all three types of Duke fans.

[allenmurray]

I have a great deal of admiration and respect for what Dean and Roy have done at Carolina. One reason Duke is Duke is because Carolina is Carolina. Our close proximity (both physically and emotionally) drives each of us to be the best in the rivalry and, because we are both so good, the best in the sport. Trust me, Duke is a better basketball program because of our rivalry with Carolina.

--Jason "rooting for Duke should be a positive thing" Evans

Yes, but there is nothing in your statement that contradicts with my rooting for them to lose. I admire what they have done. I respect them. I recognize they are a great program. But will I ever root for them? No.

[Lavabe]

Umm, I'm 1, 2, and 3. I don't see that the categories are mutually exclusive. Also consider that a number of folks post on the snrubchat, rather than the thread.

As for rooting for Clemson, there's a part of me that wants DBR lore to come to life. I realize that Klemnop won't go streaking down CHapel Hill for a win at Littlejohn, but I am DEFINITELY rooting for Klemnop against UNC. There's always that possibility!

Why root against UNC? Well besides the obvious (they're UNC, 9F), EVERY loss they get is important for Duke. If Duke wins a lot this year, I'd much rather they have fewer losses than UNC. If Duke comes in second by one loss, I'm going to be annoyed that C-L-E-M-S-O----N didn't win last night. I'm for anything that keeps the tacky blues from hanging another tacky blue ACC REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONS banner. Whoops ... they've now made it into one banner.

I also loathe Clever Hans; it's not yet reached Chris Paul levels, but it's getting there. But I am tired of the announcers shouting PSYCHO T!

Finally, I can't stand the ram hats. It's sort of like my dislike for the Wake tie-dyed shirts and wigs.

Cheers,
Lavabe

[allenmurray]

Finally, I can't stand the ram hats. Cheers,
Lavabe

Which brings up another point - if they are the tar heels why is their mascot a ram? Any school that can't make up its mind about its identity should lose every game. I hereby suggest that until they have someone dressed up in a giant foot costume as their mascot no one should ever root for them again!

[Lavabe]

Which brings up another point - if they are the tar heels why is their mascot a ram? Any school that can't make up its mind about its identity should lose every game. I hereby suggest that until they have someone dressed up in a giant foot costume as their mascot no one should ever root for them again!

Sort of like the HILLTOPPER mascot, eh?

OKAY... now someone PLEASE answer this question.

The alma mater (the music) of Cornell, UNC, and Emory are one and the same. Whose came first?

Thanks,
Lavabe

[JasonEvans]

Yes, but there is nothing in your statement that contradicts with my rooting for them to lose. I admire what they have done. I respect them. I recognize they are a great program. But will I ever root for them? No.

Yup, root for them to lose all you want. Heck, even I (the most noted Carolina sympathizer in these here parts) root for them to lose when I am watching one of their games. I rationally think their victories are mostly good for Duke (though I rationally want them to lose enough to give Duke the ACC title) but I emotionally want them to lose.

But, I refer you back to the definition of a certain type of Duke fan that started this discussion:

Duke fans who want UNC to fail more than anything else.

I say people who are more focussed on Carolina's failure than in Duke's success are not really Duke fans. They are anti-Carolina fans who fuel their ABC feeling by rooting for the school that is Carolina's biggest rival.

For example, I imagine there are some people who would not really mind if Duke went 3-27 one season so long as those 3 victories were over UNC and Carolina went 0-30 that same year. Taken to a less ridiculous extreme, there are people who would not mind Duke finishing 5th or 6th in the ACC if Carolina finished lower than us and we beat them when we played them.

I say a person like that is not a Duke fan. Though that is just my opinion.

--Jason "Feldy, I almost didn't post in this thread because my response was so predictable... but I could not resist " Evans

[dukeENG2003]

agreed, we should be, above all else, Duke fans more than anti-UNC fans.

I don't think that these categories are mutually exclusive though. I fall into all 3 categories. I'm an alum, I want to see Duke succeed above all else, and I want to see UNC fail above all else other than Duke succeeding.

For example, I ALWAYS root for the ACC to go 10-1 in the big 10 acc "challenge" every year. I can root for other teams in the ACC to succeed, b/c it helps Duke. Rooting for UNC though, even if it helps Duke indirectly, I cannot do.

Sure, I respect what Roy and Dean have done, and I'll agree that UNC's success has helped push us, but there is PLENTY to dislike about UNC. I don't think its necessary to go over all the reasons why, we all know them, and they have been rehashed many times here.

[wilson]

Sort of like the HILLTOPPER mascot, eh?

OKAY... now someone PLEASE answer this question.

The alma mater (the music) of Cornell, UNC, and Emory are one and the same. Whose came first?

Thanks,
Lavabe

FWIW, it's also the finale of the talent show in Dirty Dancing and the alma mater of my high school. North Atlanta High School was chartered in 1992, and DD was made sometime in the '80s, so I'm pretty sure neither of those came first. But when the Emory carillon plays the alma mater at noon every day, I definitely always chuckle to myself about all of the above.

[allenmurray]

Yup, root for them to lose all you want. Heck, even I (the most noted Carolina sympathizer in these here parts) root for them to lose when I am watching one of their games. I rationally think their victories are mostly good for Duke (though I rationally want them to lose enough to give Duke the ACC title) but I emotionally want them to lose.

But, I refer you back to the definition of a certain type of Duke fan that started this discussion:



I say people who are more focussed on Carolina's failure than in Duke's success are not really Duke fans. They are anti-Carolina fans who fuel their ABC feeling by rooting for the school that is Carolina's biggest rival.

For example, I imagine there are some people who would not really mind if Duke went 3-27 one season so long as those 3 victories were over UNC and Carolina went 0-30 that same year. Taken to a less ridiculous extreme, there are people who would not mind Duke finishing 5th or 6th in the ACC if Carolina finished lower than us and we beat them when we played them.

I say a person like that is not a Duke fan. Though that is just my opinion.

--Jason "Feldy, I almost didn't post in this thread because my response was so predictable... but I could not resist " Evans

I agree. Your desire for UNC to lose should be a little less than your desire for Duke to win. That is the proper order of things.

[feldspar]

I say people who are more focussed on Carolina's failure than in Duke's success are not really Duke fans. They are anti-Carolina fans who fuel their ABC feeling by rooting for the school that is Carolina's biggest rival.

For example, I imagine there are some people who would not really mind if Duke went 3-27 one season so long as those 3 victories were over UNC and Carolina went 0-30 that same year. Taken to a less ridiculous extreme, there are people who would not mind Duke finishing 5th or 6th in the ACC if Carolina finished lower than us and we beat them when we played them.

I say a person like that is not a Duke fan. Though that is just my opinion.

I understand and agree with this point, I just don't think there are actually that many of these types of fans out there. At least not enough to get worked up about.

--Jason "Feldy, I almost didn't post in this thread because my response was so predictable... but I could not resist " Evans

Jason's perpetual sig could be Jason "Rooting for Carolina to go 30-3 every year" Evans

[wilson]

Also, I am a Duke fan above all else. If Duke wins, I'm happy. But the #2 thing that I am with regard to college athletics is a not-kuralonna fan. If they lose, it makes me happy. Not as happy as when Duke wins, but I definitely actively root against them in every game they play in every sport. I'm with everyone on the "respect them, etc." thing, but I simply can not root for them.
I don't go in for the whole "root for the ACC" thing either. When kuralonna folded against Georgetown last March, it made my day.

[feldspar]

It's like I told my wife last night while watching the UNC-Clemson game. She was surprised that I was rooting just as hard for UNC to lose as I do for Duke to win. I was just as intense, screaming just as loud at the TV, and just as disappointed at the result.

I looked over her and just said, "I admit that it's not rational, my desire to see UNC fail at all things. But sports rivalries aren't supposed to be rational."

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

Somehow the conversations about types of fans and the games last night remind me of conversations about political candidates these days... similar elements. Somewhere in all the analysis and scrutiny the joy and excitement of college sports in the truest sense seems lost. I'll try to remember that when I watch LSU and Ohio State this evening!

[wilko]

Also, I am a Duke fan above all else. If Duke wins, I'm happy. But the #2 thing that I am with regard to college athletics is a not-kuralonna fan. If they lose, it makes me happy.

Amen.
Duke 1st, punching UNC in the teeth (metaphorically) 2nd, watching someone else punch UNC in the teeth 3rd...

NO sympathy for UNC unitl we get the all time win record swung in our favor by 20 or 70 games..




What pisses me off most about last nites game is that UNC made me watch.. baiting me with the prospect of a loss hooking me in and keeping me interested right up unitl those miserable SOB's pulled it out and won. IF they were going to win I wish they would have blown them out so I wouldnt have wasted my time.

[DevilCastDownfromDurham]

I think it's hard to overstate the effect of living/working in the "tar heel" state. As a lifelong Duke fan who grew up in NC, every day of college basketball season meant being surrounded by and taunted (or worse) by disgusting UNC-ers. Even growing up in Durham I was generally outnumbered by light-blue boosters and could expect the majority viewpoint to be "^$%^$%^$%^$% sux" "K is evil" "Dean freed the slaves" etc.

From a rational standpoint, Duke winning is far and away the most important thing. Duke #1, UNC #2 is absolutely acceptable. From a quality of life/shutting up those who yap incessantly standpoint, a UNC loss is hard to top. Duke #1 UNC 0-fer is immeasurably better.

[EarlJam]

If they (unc) lose, it makes me happy. Not as happy as when Duke wins, but I definitely actively root against them in every game they play in every sport.

Is this always the case? Not sure about me. Honestly, I'm just not sure. For example, I might be happier to see unc lose in the NCAAs in March than I would be over a Duke win against Pepperdine in November.

What if Gern, the basketball god, came to EarlJam in October with the following proposal:

"EarlJam, I will make unc lose in the first round of the NCAA tournament in March to Gaylord State, but it will cost Duke a loss to Pepperdine in November."

With a modicum of shame, I must confess I might...MIGHT...pull the trigger on said deal, as long as the Pepperdine loss didn't result in Duke getting frummle-caked in the March seedings.

Does this make me, EarlJam, a cheap, back-stabbing, son of a beekle-koch? I don't know. But I have to admit I'd ponder the proposal.

-EarlJam

[EarlJam]

What pisses me off most about last nites game is that UNC made me watch.. baiting me with the prospect of a loss hooking me in and keeping me interested right up unitl those miserable SOB's pulled it out and won.

It's part of the UNC brand. They've been pulling that little irritating stunt for decades.

-EarlJam