[NU Sports] Back from the Cow Pasture

[John Labbe]

I definitely agree with you that Ross-Ade is an annoying place for a 
visiting fan.  I think the fans are polite enough, etc.  In fact, 
numerous people were congratulating us on the way out, and not just the 
drunk guy.

But the problem is that the fans are annoying with their cheers and 
that darn drum booming all the time, not to mention the train whistle.  
Every first down, the announcer calls the first down, then the band 
plays a little tune, then everyone shouts "1, 2, 3, 4, FIRST DOWN" 
while the drum booms along with the chant.  It's a lot better though to 
be on the winning side.  Most of the noise was kept down during the 
first half while we kept a big lead.  But the second half got bad 
again.

I was also shocked by the fact that the fans at Ross-Ade repeatedly 
booed their own team.  They weren't just booing calls, like whether to 
go for it on 4th down, and things like that, but they were booing the 
quarterback, booing the kicker, etc.  I know some devoted football fans 
who tend to hold their teams to high standards, but I've never known 
them to express their frustration by actually booing their own team.

> - Ross-Ade remains a place of mixed feelings - the new pressbox is 
> impressive, but almost overpowering.  And I miss the old block letters 
> PURDUE in the North end-zone.  The bigger down-side is probably the 
> Purdue fans - despite the programs limited success (certainly between 
> the Agase and Tiller eras), the fans, with their cutesy 'synchronized' 
> chants and cheers, the silly cheerleading PA announcer, and the inane 
> steam whistle are a pretty annoying bunch.  I must say, however, that 
> everyone in the parking lots was very polite, they only seem to get 
> cloying when they are in a group, chanting en-masse.
>