Recent Comments

As a graduate now living and working in Richmond, I've only been able to come to one game this year due to other commitments. The game I did make (Georgia Tech) I sat in the North End Zone through OT despite having to be back at work in Richmond at 8 the next morning. Understandably, I was beyond angry when people in front of me left early because they had to "get up so early for an 8 AM."

I don't expect everyone to care as much as I (or many of the people on this blog) do. In some ways, it might be healthier not to get so upset everytime we lose. But don't sit there and tell me how you "bleed orange and maroon" and then leave early.

We can't force people to like this team, and I get that. All I know is if I'm Holland Fisher or some other recruit and I see half empty stands after halftime I'd have to be a lifelong die-hard Hokie to honestly want to play here over a school like Alabama.

My first thought after seeing the stands after halftime of the BG game was "wow, it looks like a UVa game," and that's kind of embarassing.

I think Frank Beamer is the type of person that does not want to air in his dirty laundry or problems in public. It's quite obvious the family atmosphere for this team is very important to him. How many of you know of families where you would never know about the type of problems they're having or if they're having problems, you know they're not going to talk about it with anyone outside of their family. I know my family is like that. I think that's how Frank Beamer runs this program. He's made changes in the past. Don't believe me? Ask some of the former players. Sometimes it takes him awhile to make a change, but he's made the changes non the less. I don't know what he's saying behind closed doors, and I'm not going to speculate.

I would argue that we're talking about the same thing. Complacency breeds an aversion to risk. If you're complacent, you're going to take less risks (eg: keep the status quo) because everything is hunky-dory in your mind.

Also, I do not think "complacent" is accurate description of the fan base. I think we're heading toward apathy.

From dictionary.com:

com·pla·cen·cy [kuhm-pley-suhn-see]
noun, plural com·pla·cen·cies.
1. a feeling of quiet pleasure or security, often while unaware of some potential danger, defect, or the like; self-satisfaction or smug satisfaction with an existing situation, condition, etc.

ap·a·thy [ap-uh-thee]
noun, plural ap·a·thies.
1. absence or suppression of passion, emotion, or excitement.
2. lack of interest in or concern for things that others find moving or exciting.

IMHO, the coaching staff exhibits symptoms of complacency and the fanbase is exhibiting symptoms of apathy. Neither of which are good.

I live in the heart of SEC country and I see our fans becoming more and more like their fans and I really hate it. One of the reasons I love VT is because we weren't like the SEC. I don't need assholes running our football team. You don't have to be a asshole to win football games. Don't we all deal with enough assholes in our lives, why do I need another running one of the things I love. Saban has a few other things going for him that helps win National Titles and it's not just his attitude. He also over recruits and has endless streams of $$$ to get the stuff he needs to land the best recruits. Not to mention he's got the brand of Alabama Football. I agree there is definitely something wrong with the team this year, but it may not be all coaching. Has anybody stopped to think we're making our players better than they really are? VT football seems to be at its best when it has to over achieve and the coaches have to coach them up. This year it seems like the new starters and and the ones in new positions just don't have enough talent to give us the kind of season we have come to expect.

As a senior at the university, you have said everything that has been on my mind this season at Lane stadium. Now bear with me as I add to what you have said(I'm new to this blogging thing)....

For a season opener, the Georgia Tech game was a disappointment. I don't mean the content of the game, it was a thriller in every sense of the word. What was disappointing was the fan base. The north end zone has fallen disgracefully from a place of euphoria and support for the team, whether we're losing to JMU in the rain or beating the dog shit out of some scrub team. It isn't matter every play was as exciting, if not more, as the last. We cheered our asses off and may have turned away on the occasional sack or offensive hiccup, but we turned right back around because no matter how bad we were performing, we had faith we could do better. We have lost that faith.

It is clear to me that the football games have become less about the football and more about how many beers you can drink, how much alcohol you can sneak into the game, or how early you can leave to go back home and either drink more or nap before going out. This is ludicrous. If you can't come to the game to support our hokies, stay home, you can do all those things you're more concerned with from there anyway.

I am most ashamed of my fellow upperclassmen. I am ashamed for them not remembering games like Nebraska, where students left and Tyrod made them regret it, games like Miami where we played a heisman hopeful in the rain and took him out of the running because he came to Lane stadium, a place of support in deafening proportions. Win or lose, and everyone was predicting a loss( if I remember correctly), we were there, we had faith. We were the David in that battle and we knew we could take down a Goliath. Because we had faith.

I realize that we're not the team we were a few years ago, we're not even the team that unofficially beat Michigan in the bayou last year. But that's the nature of college football, it's a dynamic equilibrium and the team adjusts. The reason great teams arise is their ability to cope with this change year after year. Part of that falls on the coaches and their ability to recruit, adjust, etc. the other, much larger in my opinion, part is the fan base. Why do the large teams have such behemoth stadiums? BECAUSE THEIR FANS SUPPORT THEM WHETHER THEY ARE 0-3 or 3-0. Look at coach Lou on ESPN. He's a true fan, were his health able to cope with the stress of a 20 year old you better believe he would be at every single ND game no matter the score, until the conclusion of the game. On his feet every second. why can't a bunch of young, physically active students do the same? I think it boils down to what Brian said, we've been spoiled. But that's no excuse. We've been tainted in our faith with an expectation of a 10 win season. Which doesn't matter at all if you still lose the bowl game. I don't have a single issue with an expectation of excellence. The issue I have is with the lack of support behind that expectation. Winning 10+ games a season is not a given. It takes a lot of hard work and dedication. Players lose faith as well as the fans do, they just do, it's a fact. But I'm not going to place the entire blame on the players for a lack of heart and faith in the game when the stadium is empty and no one is supporting them. I think we can all agree that if we were in a similar situation, an uphill battle with no support, we would lose heart and put forth less effort as well.

This is getting long winded and I'm going to wrap it up now before I start repeating myself. Hokies, mainly hokie students. How do you expect to get our offense and defense fired up early in the game(when we always look flat), after halftime(whether we're trailing Duke or FSU), or late in the game( like most games this season), when half or more of the stadium is at home. You call yourself fans? No one is going to do a damn thing on that field if they don't have support or a reason to do something incredible. The reverberation of screams from hokie nation is enough to make even a mediocre team play with the fervor and hunger of the crimson tide. Those kids want to play, show them we want them to play too. If you can't get behind that, sell your tickets to someone who will and stay the hell at home where you can not pay attention to the game and drink all the alcohol you want.

Thank you for making a much needed point Brian.

Soon, VT will have to have start pumping in artificial noise as well. The North End Zone should be taken down at this point. It's a temporary section anyway. The MV's and the VTCC should be moved back to 50 yd line behind the visiting team. This team needs to get back to the basics and that includes the fans. Unfortunately I think the fact that Virginia has become an even more transient state with the every growing NOVA area, these new type of students when only grow. The kind of student that would once never consider VT are now going there because either the reputation has gotten better or they can't afford the private schools or both.

My days at VT were spent from 1995-2000 as a member of the VTCC. I have been to enough games since to see there is a definite change in the fanbase in the last 3-4 years. You don't even have to go to the games. It's obvious on TV as well. I was at the Orange Bowl in 2010 and remember students leaving early the 3rd quarter when the game was still a one point game. I recall no one getting excited with Jayron almost intercepted Luck for a 2nd time for a sure 6 points. I stayed until the clock turned 00:00 because I wanted to watch Tyrod's last game in it's entirety no matter how bad it may have ended.

The loyal fan base is shrinking and the fair weather fans have become a plague. Isn't this how most runs for a good program ends?

There are way too many psychological angles to make an assumption like that. It is just as easy for me to say that because he is always optimistic and become he always walks softly, the team feels more motivated to win for him.

P.S who knows what goes on behind closed doors.

It's a shift in culture. This doesn't change with winning or loosing seasons. It changes with management of the "GameDay Experience," which has fallen off.

I'll be running for VT AD this November. Stamp your ballots!

#Bando2012

Every game I attend I think I'm going to have to slug some poor kid who is so drunk he is elbowing my wife or knocking over peoples drink or throwing up all over my shoes. Just food for thought if you are so drunk you can't communicate in english or throw up on someone's shoe you shouldn't be at a football game for a team you obviously don't care about. Give your ticket to someone who cares. I was born and raised on VT football. I didn't have the luxury to attend VT but when I was taught what football was I was taught on VT. I havebeen cheering VT since I was 5. I been here through Drunk, Al, Mike,Bryan,Tyrod all the greats. Like Brian said don't let the bandwagon door hit you in the ass on the way out. I bleed ORANGE and MAROON.

That's llike something Uva would do LOL!

Just to throw this out there as an addendum: VT is 12-1 at true road games that I've attended. Wins include Clemson, Duke x 3, GT x 2, UMD, UNC, UVA x 2, WF x 2; the sole loss was at LSU in 2007. All of the wins were ACC games.

So that means I have never witnessed Tech beat a non-conference opponent outside of Lane Stadium.

I love this college so much that, even having graduated, I risked losing 80+ dollars to still try and get student season tickets. I've gone to every home game since 2008 (when I entered), and if I don't lose my voice at a game I consider myself a failure. I considered myself a failure when I left the Austin Peay game early because I was deathly ill. But I don't think I'm the problem.

The problem is when the North End Zone is EMPTY against Bowling Green. I have a picture of it. I was able to see two of my friends in North from eyesight. That should never happen. Ever. And I hate those paper airplanes.