D.L. Stewart: Rowdy fans policy deserves jeers

Contact this columnist at dlstew_2000@yahoo.com.

Although my days as a sports parent are over — barring some truly remarkable developments in geriatric reproductive systems — two recent news reports about high school basketball drew disparate reactions from me.

The first concerned local high school basketball games played in front of empty seats last week because of loutish behavior by some fans at previous games. No one, not even the players’ parents, was admitted.

That one made me furious, because watching them play sports was one of the few joys of parenthood when my kids were teenagers. A reward for the miles driving to early morning practices. Compensation for meals missed and schedules dictated by their teams’ schedules. And, to be honest, vicarious satisfaction from watching them compete at a level their father never did. So I empathized with the parents who were deprived of all that because some other “fans” were idiots.

But I had to shake my head at the second story.

That one was about the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletics Association’s attempt to keep basketball fans from chanting, among other things, “air ball … air ball … air ball.” According to an email sent to schools across the state, “Student groups, school administrators and event managers should take immediate steps to correct this unsporting behavior.” According to the association’s guidelines, spectators are expected to “participate only in cheers that support and uplift the teams involved.” The email included other examples of unsporting behavior, including chants such as “you can’t do that,” “fundamentals” and “scoreboard.”

Oh, come on.

As The New York Times reported,“sports media outlets, pundits and fans began mocking the regulations as coddling and overprotective.” Sports Illustrated wrote, “The ‘W’ in WIAA technically stands for ‘Wisconsin’ but it should really stand for whining.” The policy “lives in a world that’s not the real world,” declared the athletic director at one school.

Perhaps it should be our goal to live in a world where sports fans never heckle, boo or jeer. A world in which they applaud with equal enthusiasm regardless of whether it’s the home team or the visiting team that scores the winning field goal with 0:01 left on the clock.

But in the real world, razzing the other team is part of the game. At Duke University, the “Cameron Crazies” have elevated it to a choreographed art form that’s nearly as entertaining as the games themselves. Sports schadenfreude, be it over the other team’s missed free throw, fumbled football or bases-loaded walk is half the fun.

So to the WIAA’s email, however well-intentioned, all I can say is: “Air ball … air ball … air ball.”

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