Western State College of Colorado

Alright sports fans, this one is specifically for you so listen up!  Ask any athlete and they will tell you the best place to win is always at home.  Why might you ask? Because you, the fans, give them the inspiration and recognition they deserve after a hard fought victory.  I have here, straight from Western's head coaches, exactly what the players need from their fans.  What is one thing that every coach asked for? GET LOUD!
    “Loud, crazy, wild fans!” said football coach Patrick Stewart when asked what he wanted to see at the games, “Fans that opposing teams hate to play in front of because they are so loud and wild!”
    Anyone who has ever been cheered for knows the adrenaline that shoots through you when the crowd gets loud.  It's no secret that a team with fans behind them come out stronger than a team all alone on the field or court. 
    “When the crowd is into our matches, and having fun it is great motivator for the team,” said volleyball coach Katie Moskowitz, “I have seen many times in sport how the crowd can be a factor that  ends up being game changing for the home crowd.” 
    “Our players feed off of the energy in the gym,” said women's basketball coach Latricia Trammel, “I can't say enough about the importance of the student body attending our games.” 
    However, all coaches agree that loud does not mean crude.
    “I would like to see more vocal involvement,” said wrestling coach Miles VanHee, “good sportsmanship with a winning attitude that creates and exciting and loud rivalry environment.”  “Not idiots though” Stewart continued, “you can be loud, crazy and wild without acting like you have no class.  Fans represent the school- good or bad.  We get 'no class' fans all the time on the road and it's really embarrassing to their school.”
    Now the true question presents itself: How can a fan be loud and classy at the same time?  One simple way is to keep it clean.  Screaming insults about players like a drunken moron accomplishes nothing.
    “It's a waste of energy and reflects really poorly on their fans and school” said Stewart.
    Another way is to get creative.  You're not a single fan out in the stands, you're WSC watching and cheering on your team.  Take after the players and work as a team!
    “I grew up watching and loving Duke basketball,” said Katie Moskowitz, “I think that their crowds embody what small colleges across the country should set out to do.  Yes, I know we will never have that many people at our volleyball games but the crowd we do get can be organized, loud and come up with some great cheers for the game.”
    One bad habit many fans tend to show is to get loud during the ups and quiet during the downs.    We're all guilty of that, so start out the year cheering the whole game start to finish no matter the score.
    “It means so much for our team when the young ladies come out of the locker room to battle for a victory and they see fans in the stands,” said Trammel.
    “We love having support from WSC and we are excited for our 2011 season and can't wait to see everyone in the stands!” said Katie Moskowitz.
    “We are very excited to play in front of our fans in Mountaineer Bowl this fall! Said Stewart.
    You heard it straight from the coaches, fans make a difference!  As a school, we need to support our teams and show that we are all behind them the whole game.  It doesn't matter what the sport is , the more fans and athlete sees and hears, the better they perform.
    Except golf; don't yell at them.  They don't like that.