Confession: I Hate The Seven Nation Army Cheer at OPACY

[Phantom]

Hail to the Redskins!

I believe you meant Heil.

[SilentJames]

The only thing more annoying than the wave or Seven Nation Army, are people incessantly complaining about it on twitter.

We get it, you don't like the wave, I don't like it either, but I also don't feel the need to smugly complain about it every time it happens.

[SilentJames]

if anyone is interested in a short essay I wrote on the subject of various names and images

http://oriolepost.com/baltimore-orioles/articles/native-american-mascots-an-essay.html

[frankpembleton]

BS. The top two traveling fan bases are #1 Green Bay and #2 Steelers. Ravens fans don't compare to either when it comes to traveling. There must have been 25,000 Packer fans in Ravens stadium last year and Pittsburgh usually has about 15,000

Now this is complete BS. 25k Packer fans is so absurd I don't even know what to say. There were as many Steeler fans in that stadium last year as Bengals fans, which is to say not many at all. I was at both games and you obviously were not there if this is what you believe. Again, Steeler fans haven't had a presence in well over a decade. I don't understand how this narrative still exists. It's just strange.

Ravens fans travel just as well. We don't have fans all over the country but routinely fill 25 % of stadiums out west and down south. For the last Ravens game at Lambeau, Packers fans indicated the Ravens had more fans there than any other team. I was at the game in Chicago this year - same thing. By far more Ravens fans in Chicago than Packers fans at M&T - it was not even close.

Bandwagon Steeler fans just live all over the country. They may fill stadiums better, but they certainly don't travel better.

[frankpembleton]

People hate fun at stadiums I guess. I like Seven Nation Army - nobody does it louder in pro sports than Baltimore fans. It sounds great. It doesn't matter that other teams use it - we do it better.

[centralpaosfan]

Steeler fans are the most arrogant, obnoxious fans I have ever run into. For years they invaded Ravens stadium and acted like it was theirs. Now that they suck, not so much, good riddance. If you don't like the way you are treated in Baltimore, stay home

Your response to my post speaks volumes about your character.

[atomic]

Your response to my post speaks volumes about your character.

I have to agree with him. Attending numerous Capitals games back in the day in DC I would have to say that Pittsburgh fans are the worst. They thought they own the arena. I know a lot people from there lost their jobs and had to move to Baltimore and DC but when you are a visiting fan you have to show respect to the home team.

And the more there are of you the more the local fans will dislike you.

It would be nice if they could do like they do in European soccer and make all the visiting fans sit in one section. I don't want to sit with Steelers fans, Yankees Fans, or Penguin Fans.

[atomic]

Can't do the Yes chants either. Just gotta sit there, be silent, and watch. It's like the opera, apparently.

Yeah and hold your applause to the end.

[FlipTheBird]

I prize originality above nearly everything, and so knowing that the "Seven Nation Army" cheer was a common college-football cheer before it was a Ravens cheer before it was an Orioles cheer makes me wish that O's crowds would come up with something new. (I've never followed college football and I grow less and less interested in the NFL anymore.)

That said, I like the enthusiasm. It beats empty seats (or seats full of people who think they're in a place called "Fenway South").

[Edit: I just saw that Hank Scorpio posted essentially the same thing I did, but about a half hour before I did it. So much for originality.]

Agreed.

And, when push comes to shove, there's originality doesn't go very far anymore. In this Internet-laden era, as soon as a fan base comes up with a new cheer, 45 other ones copy it almost as soon as they see the YouTube video.

At the end of the day, the chant I hate more than anything in sports is the "I Believe" fad that started a few years back and really exploded with this past World Cup.

[OFFNY]

Agreed.

And, when push comes to shove, there's originality doesn't go very far anymore. In this Internet-laden era, as soon as a fan base comes up with a new cheer, 45 other ones copy it almost as soon as they see the YouTube video.

At the end of the day, the chant I hate more than anything in sports is the "I Believe" fad that started a few years back and really exploded with this past World Cup.

Even the Angels' Rally Monkey is copy-catted.

Oo

<a href="" title="DSC04838 by canal138, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8114/8645677983_79ba663046.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="DSC04838"></a>

[centralpaosfan]

I have to agree with him. Attending numerous Capitals games back in the day in DC I would have to say that Pittsburgh fans are the worst. They thought they own the arena. I know a lot people from there lost their jobs and had to move to Baltimore and DC but when you are a visiting fan you have to show respect to the home team.

And the more there are of you the more the local fans will dislike you.

It would be nice if they could do like they do in European soccer and make all the visiting fans sit in one section. I don't want to sit with Steelers fans, Yankees Fans, or Penguin Fans.

You agree with assaulting someone simply because they may be annoying or rooting for a team different than yours? That is a very immature way of thinking. Ravens fans annoy me I'm sure just as much as Steeler fans annoy you but I never thought about assaulting a Raven fan simply because they are annoying to me. That is an incredibly immature way of thinking.

[atomic]

You agree with assaulting someone simply because they may be annoying or rooting for a team different than yours? That is a very immature way of thinking. Ravens fans annoy me I'm sure just as much as Steeler fans annoy you but I never thought about assaulting a Raven fan simply because they are annoying to me. That is an incredibly immature way of thinking.

I was replying to the heckling you were receiving. I don't think that anyone should assault another person at a football game. But I also think you shouldn't provoke people either. If you are at a football stadium full of drunk fans in a frenzy and you are wearing opposing jersey and you start taunting the other teams fans that is asking for trouble no matter what stadium you visit.

I don't really get the cheering for your team at an opponents stadium. I have gone to other stadiums but never when my hometeam has been playing. That is just not fun anyway. I like to cheer for the home team.

[centralpaosfan]

I was replying to the heckling you were receiving. I don't think that anyone should assault another person at a football game. But I also think you shouldn't provoke people either. If you are at a football stadium full of drunk fans in a frenzy and you are wearing opposing jersey and you start taunting the other teams fans that is asking for trouble no matter what stadium you visit.

I don't really get the cheering for your team at an opponents stadium. I have gone to other stadiums but never when my hometeam has been playing. That is just not fun anyway. I like to cheer for the home team.

Ok....thanks for clearing that up. Yea...I have no issues with the heckling I received. I fully anticipated it and found a lot of it pretty clever and funny. You go into that situation expecting it. W

[MurphDogg]

I don't really get the cheering for your team at an opponents stadium. I have gone to other stadiums but never when my hometeam has been playing. That is just not fun anyway. I like to cheer for the home team.

I don't get the allure of traveling to see your NFL team on the road. It is different though if you live in or near an NFL city that your team is visiting. When I lived in Southern California I took every opportunity to see the Ravens play (meaning lose) in San Diego. As for baseball, I do occasionally go to O's games on the road. It is a great way to see the team take batting practice and interact with players as stadiums are typically only open for the visiting team's batting practice. Players and coaches appreciate those that make the trek and I typically get a BP ball tossed my way. I will wear an O's hat but usually not a jersey on the road, especially if it is an AL East rival. Clap for good plays by both teams and don't be too boisterous.

[atomic]

I don't get the allure of traveling to see your NFL team on the road. It is different though if you live in or near an NFL city that your team is visiting. When I lived in Southern California I took every opportunity to see the Ravens play (meaning lose) in San Diego. As for baseball, I do occasionally go to O's games on the road. It is a great way to see the team take batting practice and interact with players as stadiums are typically only open for the visiting team's batting practice. Players and coaches appreciate those that make the trek and I typically get a BP ball tossed my way. I will wear an O's hat but usually not a jersey on the road, especially if it is an AL East rival. Clap for good plays by both teams and don't be too boisterous.

This brings up an interesting question. If you move permanently to a new city would you continue to root for Baltimore teams? I mean its not like the players are actually from Baltimore. I would probably root for the Ravens and Orioles until most of my favorite players left or retired and then would root for the new local teams. Unless I moved to NYC... Can't see rooting for the Yankees or the Mets.