DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum Fandom. What Does It Mean To You

Okay,this is a little bit of a different kind of thread. It seems I saw a similar one a long time ago on the old board,but thought it may be worth revisiting. I think everyone has their idea of what a "fan" is or isn't. What a fan should be. But I think that people have differing views to the point that it might make for an interesting topic.

Now,I'll at least touch on what the word "fan" means to me.

Let's start off by saying I use different terms. I follow and root for Buckeye Football. Do I consider myself a fan based on that? No,I don't. But I do watch their games. I know who the majority of the players are and I root for them to win. I have Buckeye gear and wear it on game day,but I don't feel that constitutes me "being a fan"

The Indians. I root for the Indians but in reality,I'm not a fan of the game of Baseball. I'm not what I consider a fan.

See Indians for a refrance to the Cavs.


The Browns? Oh,I'm a FAN! I follow damned near everything that has a blurb about the Browns. I follow the draft,FA signings,potential FA's. You name it and I try to absorb it. I know where most all of their players came out of and their attributes as well as their shortcomings.

I get excited even on Saturday night have trouble sleeping anticipating the game. I talk about, read about it and think about it on a daily basis 365 days a year! It's something inside of me that makes it a "true passion".

So now,I'd like to hear what being a "fan" means to you? Because I'm sure there are varying degrees of fandom and probably means something just a little different to a lot of you. So have at it!

What does being a "fan" mean to you?

Since football is my favorite sport I guess I am more of a fan of the Browns and Bucks than anything... only other sport that I REALLY get as excited about watching is ultimate fighting...

don't get me wrong... I'm a fan of baseball and basketball (at least my teams) but not a die-hard fan. So I guess I'd consider myself a fan of all the Cleveland teams but not a die-hard of any of them except the Browns.

Loyalty, plain and simple.

I'd say its safe to say we won't see any Bengals fans in this thread...

football is different because you get it only once a week, whereas baseball is almost everyday, and basketball is 3-4 times a week...

in my opinion, if you root for a team, you're a fan... maybe not as much of a fan as you are with other teams, because you may not follow every little move they make...

i do get more excited about the browns than any of these 2 other teams in cleveland... and these 2 other teams are far and away better at what they do than the browns are at playing football, right now... and i think most people on this board can say that...

also, with football, there is more to follow... nobody really follows spring training in baseball.. to be honest, because the season is so long, and there are so many ups and downs, i don't even want to hear anything until opening day, outside of a major trade or injury of course...

but the nfl has done a marvelous job of keeping interest during their offseason, with the draft, the ota's, the mini camps, training camp, pre-season, etc... the fans want more and they're happy to give it to us...

i think the nfl also succeeds at all of this, because unlike baseball, and unlike basketball, teams can come out of nowhere... the saints last year got home field advantage for a round in the playoffs after being bad enough to draft reggie bush the year before... as people say, the NFL stands for "Not For Long" are you good? well not for long... are you bad? well, not for long...

so there is always that glimmer of hope that keeps the fans wanting more...

and the entire experience of actually attending a game exceeds anything else in sports... the tailgating, the food, the drinking, tossing beanbags... getting into the stadium, the loud music, the big crowds... people love that stuff...

from what i've experienced being in chicago for 3 years, bears fans aren't nearly as into it as the browns fans are... i think it's the small-town thing, the way the entire town rallies together, you saw the same thing with the cavs...

i use the term "fan" loosely though.. .because fan is really just short for fanatic...

i'm a fan of other non cleveland teams... but i wouldn't call myself a fanatic of them...

i guess they need another word?

A fan to me is a person who follows his team, win or lose.

To me, the term "fan" is subjective.

For example, I'm a Rams fan, a Colts fan and an Eagles fan.

But any time they play my Browns, I want the Browns to suck the life out of them.

I love my Indians and I love my Cavaliers, but if they have a down year, I can go without watching them. In fact, I'll refuse to watch in protest.

But the Browns could be 0-16, and I'd still come back and watch the next Sunday barking viciously, throwing dog biscuits at Bengals and Steelers fans telling them they're not half as good as Browns fans.

I say a fan is anyone who follows a team, but the amount of a fan you are can be measured.

To me a fan is someone who is not only loyal to the team, but actually knows the players and whats going on... You don't have to know everyone on the other team or even anyone, just know your team and your players and cheer for them no matter how crappy they are... Also, don't root for the team after they have became good, because thats the biggest crap ever. I'm tired of people who rip a team or a player and then the next year after they do good they're all for that team/player... Someone ripped on me for wearing a Winslow jersey last year, same kid had a Winslow jersey on this year, it irritates the hell out of me.

This is one of the main reasons I don't claim to be a Cavs fan, because I'm not. I'm glad they made it to the finals and hope they did well, but in all honesty I could care less, and it's not like I know anything about the Cavs. I didn't decide to act like I cared just because they were a good team and everyone else acted like they cared, or did care, I stayed true to myself, I'm a Browns fan that supports a team that loses the majority of their games, I'm not going to fake who I like just to fit in, the Cavs may be good, but sometimes the fans even ruin it for me, they can take all their bandwagon fans, but if they try to come root for the Browns when theyre good I will be looking way down on them.

Well, I have loved the Browns for 19 years and change, and despite taking a lot of crap I'm still hanging in there.
I live in an area where I only know of one other person who's a Browns fan, and I still wear my jerseys and stuff to the mall or grocery store during the season, even when the Browns suck.
I've never, ever NOT been proud to be a Browns fan.

When the Browns win the Super Bowl, I'm going to get hammered and PM a bunch of posters here and tell 'em to give me a shout on the phone. And I'll be bawling.
Hell, I got a little teary-eyed watching The History of the Cleveland Browns on NFL Network last week, especially at the end when Jim Brown was addressing some fans in 1996, after that pig Modell stole our team.

I'm tired of losing, I want a Super Bowl so effin bad, but I'll always root forthe Browns either way.

When I fall in love with a team, it's forever.

Fans have all consuming passion for their team. Basically everything else stops and for the moment, the team is the fans entire focus.

I think people can be boosters of other teams in the same sport(league), but not really fans. I can be a booster of the Titans, Falcons, or Bucs....but that isn't a fan. In the end, I don't really care about their season or if they win or not.

And really, it is probably impossible to be a fan of anything else....a real fan... seeing it does consume much of your thought.

I consider my self a fan of the Gators...and am to a degree.....but I don't plan my Browns games around Gator games. I select the Browns games I want to attend, and then look to see which of my Gator tickets I might use. Every year I am in a hurry to see the NFL schedule released so I can plan my vacation days around Browns weekends....I don't do that for anything else.

Being a real fan is as much a lifestyle as it is anything else.

I honestly don't understand the feelings some people have about being a fan. Its simply following teams I root for. I don't care who else roots for them, how long they've rooted for them or any crap like that. Frankly, it all becomes semantics and a way for people to feel superior to another on that topic. I watch the Browns each Sunday, just like I watch as many Tribe/Cavs games as I can fit into my schedule. Frankly, I probably know more about the other two teams than the Browns. But, I consider myself a "fan" of all three teams, as well as some others. Like I said, it all comes down to some fans wanting to find a way to distinguish themselves in "fandom", with these levels of fans, IMO. (No offense meant toward any posters here in this thread, FYI.)

I think being a fan is an investment of time, effort and emotions to a team. I am a Browns fan. I own Browns gear. I go to Browns games. I discuss, argue, root for, and even ( sometimes ) get depressed after they lose, and euphoric after they win. There are no other teams I feel that way about...

I follow College football, and have several teams I "root for," but if they lose....So what... no big deal. I follow College football to see which players may make it to the NFL, and have an impact on my Browns. In the process of following college football, there are some teams I become interested in, but not a fan of....

I root for ND ( I had tickets given to me for the ND - Michigan game, didn't want to be bothered with it. I gave them to a ND alumnus who owns a local tavern...LOL ), Michigan, Ohio U, Tennessee, Texas, Arkansas and sometimes...OSU. There are some teams I always want to see lose, no matter who they play... USC, UCLA, Florida State and Miami ( Fla. and Ohio... I am an Ohio U alum, after all... )

I am a fan of teams and I like some teams. There is a difference to me.

I was born, raised, and love the city of Cleveland. I am a true homer and I don't care. The "Cleveland" before their names represents my city. I am truly a fan of the Browns, CAVS and Indians. Out of all the Browns are sorta a passion of mine. Since I was a kid Sundays were special and the one time during a week of school, work, and whatever else was going on the family got together and put all that aside to watch football. Same with Ohio State the day before. It might be the only time during the week I saw my old man and it was special to me. Then as we know the history thru the 80's and what happened in the 90's made the passion flame grow. Now I read, watch, listen to anything to do with the Browns. When we lose the girls at my work know to leave me alone b/c I am seriously pissed till at least Tuesday. I won't watch ESPN or read the paper till at least Wednesday hehe. Some of you may remember in 2004 in the gameday chat my wife went into labor in the middle of the night before we opened vs Baltimore. She waited till halftime to go to the hospital so we wouldn't miss too much of the game (she is great isn't she lol ) Then we watched us win in the hospital as I got yelled for being loud lol. I will always love the Browns and even got a browns tattoo on my arm.

When I was a kid the Indians sucked but I loved baseball and loved going down to games with my family. In 1993 skipping school to watch the final opening day at the stadium. The hot dogs, the massive stadium and the history, and then the mid-90's fueled that fire up a little. I love listening to the games on the radio on a summer night and it reminds me a little of my childhood still. To me there was no other team but the Indians.
The CAVS I do admit I am not as big of a fan as the other 2. Growing up my friends dad had tickets all the time to Richfield and we went to see the CAVS of the 80's. Those teams were exciting and then into the beginning of the 90's with Daugherty, Price, harper, ect. I did go to some games at the Gund but maybe 2 a year after that till LBJ came to town. The CAVS gave us nothing but I did still follow them.
Outside of the Cleveland teams I am a huge fan of OSU football. Just like the Browns I look for anything related to Buckeye football to read, watch, ect. I flew all the way out to Arizona for last years debacle and cried in 2003 when we won the National Championship. I never miss a game and like the Browns if I do I go the entire day not watching or listening to anything so I can watch the game like it is live. Shoot, I would say 50% or my clothes has something to do with my teams, my pictures are all sports related, my license plates are Browns, the frame Buckeyes, my daughter says "michigan Sucks" and knows how to "O H" "I O". She has been to 5 Indians games already with me. Sports to me is a great way to forget the BS of the world and all the stress I deal with if just for a few hours.
I do follow the Toronto Maple Leafs too but the distance doesn't make me a "fan" I guess. It's too hard for me to see a game or follow the team. I also like watching MAC football(Go ZiPS!) and the Texas Longhorns but I don't consider myself a fan really. Well Akron I am since I went there and I do catch the games on the radio when they come in.

I didn't have much time on my hands for my first reply...so here it goes..

I've been a Cleveland fan for as long as I know, I've been a Browns fan since '99 when we first got season tickets...cause I wasn't old enough to watch and follow the games in '92, '93, '94, and '95 and then those 3 years of no Browns, so I officially became a Browns fan in 1999. I remember my first game was a preseason game with my Dad in 1999 vs. Eagles..I got my first Browns hat that day..I still have that hat...It's now covered in sweat, and it smells from all those times wearing it.. Haven't been to a game since 2004, but my family still has the season tickets, and we hope to keep them, but with all our moving and stuff.. we just don't have the time for it..

The Indians are my favorite...I never really experienced those '90's teams, because I was still too young, but, boy, do I wish I do remember those teams.. I've seen and almost met Tom Hamilton at Winter Haven for Spring Training one time, and I'll be 100% sure that I meet him one more time at Winter Haven hopefully before they move to Arizona.. I was heartbroken when Jim Thome left for the Phillies (traitor ) because my parents just bought me my first Jim Thome jersey for my birthday that year....And I got my jersey just days after he left Cleveland... I was so mad! Then along came this guy named Travis Hafner aka: Pronk And else is history from there...

The Cavs, I really don't follow, but I do care enough to know what they do, and to watch them when I can....But I do consider myself a fan...

Well "fan" is short for "fanatic."

Can I consider my self "fanatic" regarding the Browns?

Yes, without a doubt.

Can I say that I'm "fanatic" about the Indians, Cavs, and Buckeyes?

Well, I root for all 3. I follow all 3, and have a decent knowledge base regarding them all. Do I fanatically follow them? Not like the Browns. I watch every minute of every game they play.

The Tribe plays a lot more games, so it's not a priority to watch them all, and I have to work, so it's impossible to catch them all. But when I'm home and don't have stuff to do, I watch the games.

The Buckeyes (football) is a priority. If I have to be somewhere, I'll miss a game, but I try to make it a priority to watch all the games. There are some games I miss because you need to get stuff down on the weekends because those are my days off, and Sundays are off limits.

Now, I admit I haven't always been the biggest Cavs fan. I lazily followed them back in the day, along with Jordan and The Bulls. Jordan was just something special, so I ended up watching him a lot on Sundays because they aired a lot of Bulls games. But I still liked the Cavs. It was until LeBron came around that I really got into the Cavs. So I really don't want to consider my self a "fanatic" of the Cavs because I haven't really followed them closely until more recent times.


So, in short, I am without a doubt a Browns fanatic, and would consider myself a Buckeye football fanatic as well as Indians. I am a follower of the Cavs, but like I said, I have to following them for a while longer until I consider my self a fanatic.

Growing up, baseball was my favorite ...probably because it was the one sport I could play fairly decent. I became a Dodger fan who lived in Giants territory.

Close to 30 years ago, I decided to try to pick a football team to follow. Most of the people at work were Raiders fans, a few 49ers fans, and one obnoxious individual who loved the Steelers. I somehow felt drawn to the upper midwest area as true football country, and liked traditional sounding teams, so was considering the Bears, Packers & Lions.

Suddenly "Cleveland Browns" snapped into my brain. Providence, maybe? On a lark, I proclaimed myself a fan of the Cleveland Browns. As the season began, I was following the Browns, and quickly became a loyal fan. For years, I have rooted for the Browns only.

There was another Browns fan in our small town (he grew up in Ohio) who I would talk to occasionally, but his wife dragged him up to Seattle, the selfish broad! Last year, while in a hardware store in a neighboring city, this guy walked up to me and said, "Are you the Browns fan?" He said he noticed the Browns bumper sticker on my pickup, and looked for me in the store. We decided there were 4 of us Browns fans in the area, counting the woman who wears an old Kosar shirt while walking her dog.

I admit feeling a little envious of you who live in or near Cleveland...especially those who grew up in Cleveland who attended Browns games or watched them on tv with the family. Someday I would love to be in Cleveland for a game...even if it's watching on tv in a sports bar.

I did see the Browns play the 49ers in SF a couple years ago...the Browns fans in attendance were definitely LOUDER than the 49ers fans!

I guess you were wrong,TopDawg.I'm a Bengals fan..32 years and counting.
Simply being a fan is how you represent something you have a desire and passion for.
Whether it exhibiting team colors, exercising values,theres different ways to expressing yourself as a fan.
You can be a fan of anything you believe in.it doesn't have to be a sports franchise.
Being a fan also respecting other fans too,no matter how different they seem.