Hat tip Smart Football via EDSBS via Doc Saturday
The first article I ever had published in UWeekly was my account of the 2007 road game against Purdue, in which I remarked how pathetic the non-student section of Ross-Ade Stadium was, especially considering the rankings (1 vs 25) of the two teams at the time. This divide is highlighted by this hilarious story about a first down cheer with a curse word. Here is the reaction of one miffed “fan.”

I don’t remember if the “bitch” part was there in 2007. Purdue didn’t get many first downs in the game so I didn’t have many opportunities to hear it. I think its pretty funny and will offer no comment on whether the students should stop saying “bitch” or if the University should force them to stop. I think it does offer a unique contrast between the conservative alumni and the rowdy students.
Ohio State is pretty lucky (in some respects) to have very enthusiastic alumni. There are sections of the stadium that are deader than others but for the most part having an Ohio State degree does not kill your fandom. While there are differences between the students and the majority of the alumni, everyone usually has a good time. The exact opposite is true of Purdue. Read my account of the biggest game in Ross-Ade since Drew Brees was there. Red was the most common color where I was sitting, but not because of a domination of Buckeye fans. Half of the Purdue fans- at least I assume they were Purdue fans, because they sometimes clapped or cheered the few times the Boilermakers did something good- were wearing normal clothing or generic Purdue shirts in sweaters of any color. This was at a “Blackout,” where you are specifically instructed to wear black. While the student section was yelling on every down and and chanting the entire game. Any member that didn’t have a black shirt on was painted. The closest thing to passion my section had were drunks angrily yelling at Joe Tiller and Curtis Painter for sucking so many balls.

I ‘m not going to take a position on the “Bitchgate” going on in Boilerland, but I will take specific issue with the idea that the football games not being for the students. Fuck you. The players are students. You CAN’T have a game without the students, as Molly O’Halloran so miffingly asserts. You are at a college, Ms. O’Halloran. College is X rated as they come. In 2007 a giant inflatable black* penis was passed around the hated student section. Considering the 30somethings tailgating with White Zinfandel before the game, I guess they should have seen this coming.

Most people not wanting to hear the word “bitch” in public or be exposed any other aspect of the primal fury of Ohio State football games just avoid it entirely. Ohio State has a reputation for being a football obsessed university, but there is a growing dissident population (a major concern, btdubs) at Ohio State of people who just could give a hoot about whoever the hell this Kurt Coleman is. Ohio State can fill a 105K stadium without them while still charging $60+ a seat. Purdue on the other hand, cannot. I don’t know the exact numbers, but tickets to Ross-Ade are much cheaper. The less threatening environment allows for the day-tripping alum to “stop by and see the game” in between nostalgic trips to the library and eating at the campus Panera. For Purdue alums, the game isn’t so much a sporting event as it is a sight-seeing destination. “Game Day” is less of an experience, more of a landmark to these people.

How does a rowdy bunch of students become a bunch of wet blankets? My guess is boredom. In West Lafayette there is not much to do. There aren’t even a lot of girls. Therefore, getting drunk and watching football is a very enticing social opportunity. People who would otherwise go gallery hopping or eat sushi or read a book are forced to become inebriated and go to football games because they don’t have art or Japanese food or books in the middle of Indiana. Once these people can pretend to look at painting or go to sushi bars or read books, they lose the urge to get drunk and pass around a giant black* inflatable penis. The fans whose hearts were really in it become the disgruntled lushes in a sea of apathetic and opposing fans.

Ohio State doesn’t treat its student fans terribly well, although the prevalence of students scalping tickets gives the university reason not to. The alumni often blend in quite well with the rowdy students, to say nothing of the legions of non-graduate fans. The fact remains, however, that college football is a student’s game and any assertion to the contrary is just being a bitch.
*By which I mean colored**
**BY WHICH I MEAN NOTHING RACIAL ARE WE CLEAR?