LETTER: Stop punishing Aggie team

To the editor:

Ever since I stepped onto campus I have been in love with this university and its athletics. I can’t count how many times I’ve come home from games voiceless, soaked to the bone or with throbbing palms from clapping so hard. We have the loudest and most spirited fans in the nation, a reputation that I love sharing with everyone I come in contact with. I love being an Aggie fan.

However, in the past few years, that great reputation has been tarnished by those who sometimes forget they are representing the university as a whole when they are at sporting events. The enthusiastic school spirited chants that I loved so much 6 years ago are now mixed with classless, dehumanizing and crude chants, meant to demoralize individual players of the opposing team. Stan Albrecht was right when he asked the Aggie fans to continue with the “extraordinarily loud” school spirit, but just without the crude and vulgar personal attacks on opposing players. I don’t think that’s too much to ask, but for the self-proclaimed leaders of the Spectrum student body, it was.

On Wednesday night they decided to make a statement by not cheering for the first 3 minutes of what would prove to be a very challenging game. Seriously guys, seriously? I find it ironic that these “leaders” of ours, who are supposed to be die-hard Aggie fans, told everyone to not do the one thing they were there to do, and everyone listened. Anyone ever heard of “groupthink” or “mob mentality”? I think it’s time for all of us to grow up just a little bit. Stop throwing tantrums and stop hurting our team. Don’t get me wrong, I love how enthusiastic and crazy we are at the games but there is a line and it has been crossed.

So what are we going to do about it? I’m not sure what the answer is, but I know punishing our own team isn’t it.

Richard Varela