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Consider this your syllabus and reference to being a true Illini sports fan. Refer to this as you venture through the exciting and sometimes perilous experience that is being an Illini sports fan.
If you follow these rules, you will be expected to be able to recite every Tim Beckman go-to cliché as well as which sport-specific cheering section is the best on campus. Just beware, this learning experience, as enlightening as it may be, can very much break your heart…I mean come on, it’s Illinois sports.
So here are the ground rules for being an Illini sports fan. First we’ll run through Nos. 6-10 and then focus on the top five.
10. “Our state, our team” isn’t really a thing (just ask Chicagoans)
9. Take advantage of the free/discounted student promotions and admissions
8. Enjoy the uniforms before they change them again
7. Believe in John Groce!
6. You don’t have to call it “State Farm Center,” “Assembly Hall” is still perfectly acceptable
5. The real gems are not always the biggest
I’ve written about this before but it is worth reiterating. Simply put: the best Illini sports are many times not the sexiest ones. Whether it’s the men’s golf team, volleyball or soccer, if you are looking for consistent winners in the orange and blue, you sadly cannot count on football or men’s basketball.
4. Do not get caught up in the Tim Beckman rhetoric
It’s a well-known fact that coaches and players just give the same b.s. answers to every question, but Beckman is an especially sad example of such an annoying part of the job. Let’s just say that Beckman’s biggest strength is not his way with words. All of the “Illini pride” or “We’re very excited” lines just all seem to blur together and can really get to you.
3. Don’t have any expectation (especially of football)
While there are some positive signs on the horizon for the football program, it will never reach the kind of prominence of Michigan or Ohio State. If anything, the football team at Illinois will always be that beat up old sports car from ten years ago that you got a good deal on and have been intending to fix up but just never did. It’s a sad waste of money really but you just had to have it. Frankly, if the team can make a bowl game every so often, that would be enough, because they will always be one of the ugly stepsisters of the Big Ten.
2. Learn the Alma Mater song and participate in the “Three in One” properly
Tradition is tradition and there is no better tradition that singing your school’s fight song with thousands of fellow students, alumni and fans. Most other schools have one song. Illinois has three. I don’t want to be the one to say you’re not a true fan unless you know and sing the song, but come on.
1. Go to as many sporting events as possible
No seriously. I don’t mean to be a shameless promoter for the athletic department but it will really make your college experience as awesome as possible. There is nothing like supporting your school and being able to never see a time where there is not something going on, where there is not some big game to get into. The Illini nation is something truly special to be a part of.
So there you have it, whether its avoiding the heartbreak of perennial mediocrity or enjoying the spoils of being a college student at a big-time sports school, there is definitely something for everyone at Illinois athletics.