What's not to like?One of my Grandfathers has a scholarship in his name at Butler...the other played golf there. My brother and sister-in-law are Butler grads. A guy I went to high school with is a coach on Brad Steven's coaching staff...and Butler's players and head coach seem to be about as likable as a college team can be. Plus, I have a white-hot hatred for Duke...So, I really want Butler to beat Duke tonight.
But dammit, I hate it.
I hate the fact that all season I talked to friends of mine about how similar Purdue and Butler are...from the scary similarities between Hummel and Heyward...to the fact that Butler's a defensive-minded squad...to lack of any depth in both frontcourts...BUT, they'll be playing on the big stage tomorrow, but my favorite squad won't.
Purdue's been to one Final Four in my lifetime...though I don't remember it. But, unlike Butler, they've sent a ton of very good teams to the dance in the last 30 years...and quite a few 1 seeds. So to see a team like Butler succeed as they have, can you do anything but be envious? From Barry Collier (The Great-Grandfather of the modern Butler coaching tree) down to Stevens, it seems these guys just do things the right way...with maybe one exception. But, the Bulldogs are hard not to like.
Good for real Butler fans...Good for Brad Stevens...Good for those two guys on their team that should have been Boilers. I hope they get a ring tonight.
But, I also understand the ramifications of rooting for Butler.
I can't stand Gonzaga...and it's really not their fault. They've got the same problem that Duke has- Dick Vitale. So, win or lose, do you think Butler deserves anything less than an absolute slobbering by Dukie V and the network for years to come? They absolutely do. And then, Butler will go from a team that I used to root for to a team I absolutely can't stand.
Atop that, Posers and bandwagoners are coming out of the woodwork here in Indy...And it'll only get worse. Those IU fans that have been looking for something to grasp onto since RMK was ran out of town will now have a new favorite team (they probably already do). Grandmas who have no clue who Shelvin Mack is will have Butler window flags on their cars. And alums who haven't gone to a game in Hinkle since they graduated, just bought their first Butler sweatshirts (I'm told Butler's bookstore sales are up 1000% this week).
And if you're reading this, poser Butler grad living near Indy, you're a chump. This year isn't the only year your alma mater's been good...but your sorry arse couldn't manage to make it to 5-10 games/season? Sad.
Hinkle holds just under 11,000...and Butler averaged just under 7,000 casual observers for this season. Nice work.
But make no mistake, I'm not dogging the real Butler fans. You guys deserve a National Championship as much as the long-suffering Purdue fans...OK, maybe not that much...but you deserve it.
So, if you're torn as a Purdue fan by whom you should root for, let me clear it up for you: Not Duke.
In one short year, I believe (or at minimum, hope) my favorite team will be able to get back to Houston and expunge 30 years of painful season-ending memories (from dribbling off the leg, to a season-low scoring output from the player of the year, to losing for a fourth time to the same team, to a blown ACL) from our collective mind.
But as for tonight, Go Dawgs.
37 comments:
Well said and much agreed. Dealing with the bandwagon fans has been tough lately. I can't over the thought that Butler has been incredibly lucky with their matchups so far and also that Purdue was much more well prepared and much more deserving for this kind of postseason success.
And TMill is a traitor. Its okay to want Butler to win. Its not okay to wear Butler garb to the game as if you are affiliated with the university.
I am not a traitor! I've been to a few Butler games this year and always liked them. Since I can't get Purdue Final Four stuff this year i got one of those generic Final Four shirts with all four teams on it.
Generic Final Four shirts are acceptable.
Glad to know that's ok with you Purdue Matt...since you are the sheriff of purdue fans here... lol. But I agree it was sickening seeing all these butler fans, most of them not knowing the fight song for butler, but definitely knowing IU's fight song.
I absolutely DO NOT want Butler to win tonight. Am I jealous- heck yes! But, their fans are beyond obnoxious... maybe its the fact that I read the IndyStar comments too much and hear the "Dawg" fans and their rants on Purdue articles.
It could be my most-hated co-worker now is donning Butler gear daily (she is an alum, but I haven't seen a shirt all season and I doubt she knows where Hinkle is!) She also asks about how Purdue did on Mondays after they lose a football game the previous Sat. No, she is not a sports fan and doesn't keep up on it... just probably heard a blurb about a loss on the local news.
The bandwagon fans are the worst! Now everyone in the state is the biggest "Dawg" fan around!
I can't stand the word "Dawg"!
I would not want Howard as a Boiler- Hayward, yes! If Bade got to play in the Horizon League to work on his game against lesser competition, I think he would probably be better than Howard by his junior season.
Go Duke- I have never and probably will never again say that in my life... It is so hard to believe that Butler would be the team that makes me root for Duke. And, I want Butler to lose to Duke by more than we did!
Anyone supporting Butler is a Traitor.
Lucky with their matchups? How about lucky with their stretch of dollar store coaching hires that turn to gold. Their fans suck so hard that they can't afford to retain anybody decent (despite balancing their budget by joining the Pioneer Football League so that they don't have to hand out scholarships) and they still keep hitting the lottery.
But really... Screw Butler for the crap they played with the Wooden Tradition. First they demand payout that exceeded the revenues of a sold out Hinkle, then they refuse to commit so that they can cut and run the minute a TV contract comes their way.
Then they follow it up with a cheating clock operator helped steal the game from Xavier.
Outside of the players and coaches there is nothing class about the Butler program or their pathetic fans.
Wow. I never expected this vitriol.
Understand, everyone, that b-dowd's got close family who went to Butler. He and these family members head to several games a year -- which, as he points out, is more than most Butler alums or "fans." I'm simply saying this so you remember where he's coming from. He's a good dude and wants to see his brother, sister-in-law and other Butler peeps he knows happy.
However, all that said, I think the obnoxiousness level from the casual fans will probably supersede that. Because once the excitement from the true fans settles back down, the barking front-runners will still be chirping. (Barking...chirping...I'm mixing metaphors here.)
I can't bring myself to root for Duke, though. I look at it this way: We all pretty much hate Duke anyhow. If they win again, whatever. Doesn't change hate level much. So if it happens, I can live with it. Purdue would have been knocked from the tourney by the National Champs.
If Butler wins, though, I get to see Duke lose to a "mid-major" and see a program with good kids and a good coach get the ultimate prize. Not bad, either.
What IS bad is that it might hurt Purdue's recruiting in state a bit... or at least challenge Matty.
A Final Four run next year makes that moot, though.
I am definitely not attacking Boilerdowd... If you have a connection of some sort I can understand cheering for them. However, I really doubt that 'Dowd is spewing the crap on the Star about Purdue! I live within 2 miles of Butler's campus, but their fanbase over the past several years has spoiled any chance of me rooting for them as the sentimental choice. Some of their fans have surpassed IU and OSU fans in obnoxiousness!
I guess I'm a traitor, Scott. And in that case, you probably don't want to be visiting my site anymore. I guess I'll have to live with that loss.
I'd take about any of the starters on Butler's roster at Purdue right now. They've shown they can play with big time talent in the right system.
I almost hit a Butler fan at the Wooden tradition a few years ago. He reminded me of a UND or Northwestern rich kid at his worst. BUT, I also have many more great examples of Butler alums that I respect- the good ones outweigh the bad.
My son has been wearing a Butler hat that his Uncle got him...and I'm OK with that. But, I can't bring myself to wear another school's colors (with the exception of a military academy or a team playing UND in the fall...just to tweak the domers)...even one that I have such attachment to.
It feels fake to me...not my style...kind of a threshold I'm not willing to cross.
BG, I didn't think you were. Did you know I grew up at 38th & Delaware?
Dowd- Didn't know you grew up in that area. I live around 54th and Central.
As far as reading IndyStar comments, maybe that is my fault, but I read out of curiosity for what people are saying. When it is flooded with comments from Butler fans acting as if we were some sort of rival, it has a consequence. Trash talking from them is about as relevant as trash talk from Indiana State or Marion College. When it is non-stop, even during football season, I find it pathetic and I choose not to root for their team.
Plus, why not go for the team that knocked us out (even though I hate Duke) over a team that could compete for recruits with Purdue. Overall, you talk bad about my Boilers, I take it personally and will root against you!
I find it amusing that Boiler fans, other than those with affiliations to Butler like Dowd, would be rooting for Butler tonight. First of all they took 2 recruits from Purdue that could have helped our basketball team. They will continue, especially if they win, to battle and take Purdue recruits. Second, I have heard so much about how everyone hates Duke? Why? Because they win continously? Because they have passionate/obnoxious fans? Because they play good fundamental basketball? Or is it because some jack hole is ALWAYS up their rear. (Dicky V). Seriously, if it wasn't for Dicky V, who I hate with a passion, I PRAY that Purdue will some day be close to the Duke program. Do I think Duke gets some calls, absolutely, but Michael Jordan got more calls than any human in the NBA. Good players tend to get more calls. Good pitchers get a wider strike zone. I digress. Anyway, my point is, for the good of Purdue, I think you should be rooting for Duke. As for me, I can't wait for the Dukies to blow them out so I can take them to the bank!
I am just going to watch the game tonight and enjoy it for what it is: one of the best sporting events out there. It will get watered down next year, so I'm just going to enjoy it this year. I would like to see Butler win because I like to see new blood on top every few years (if it can't be Purdue...). I also dislike Duke's basketball program. But mostly, I just love watching the championship game, no matter who is playing.
BTW: even out in Salt Lake City, there are IU fans cheering on Butler like it was their own team. I'm ignoring them.
Here's to Healthy Hummel in Houston with the rest of the team!!!
That would be sweet to see the Boiler Nation in Reliant for the Final Four. Y'all come back now, ya hear!?
I find it so hard to root for either team. I hate Duke, but I also hate that Butler is starting to be a team we will be competing against for recruits. Matt Howard even went to the same high school as me but I still have a hard time rooting for him. I actually scored a ticket for the game and will be wearing my Purdue clothing and hopefully get to enjoy a great game.
Screw Norman, Shooter, Jimmy, Ollie, Strap, Merle, Buddy, and the entire Butler team. Oh wait, am I not watching the right tournament? Oh by the way, if this is the real life Hoosiers, Butler will win it next year. In 1953 Milan went to the final 4 and then won it all the next year. Actually the year they won it they were considered a favorite from the beginning of the year since they returned 4 starters from the year before, so it wasn't the SURPRISE that the movie makes it out to. Wow, I am really digressing now.
I want to see a good game. I'm a die-hard boiler fan. I'll see y'all in Houston next year. And I'll give you one good reason to root for Butler:
Zoubek
Duck Fook
A reason to root for Duke...
Matt Howard's ugly-ass mustache that makes me puke in my mouth a little every time I see it. If you can't grow a real man's mustache, you should probably just choose to wear the same pair of socks each game for superstitous reasons...
Here's another Boiler who'll be rooting for Duke tonight! What reason do I have to hate Duke? They're a very solid program and I've almost never run into a fan of theirs because everybody hates them. And we've already lost, can't change that. Might as well lose to the champs. It makes us look better.
And how can Butler winning be anything but bad for Purdue? They're already taking some of Purdue recruits. A national championship will only help Butler grab in-state recruits for years to come. I'm not saying Butler will become better than Purdue at recruiting, just better than they are now, which is worse for us.
You wanna root for Butler? I have no problem with that. You wanna wear Butler gear? I wouldn't, but you can do whatever you want. But if you start referring to Butler as "we", that is just wrong!
S-Du: You must never have been to a game in which Duke is playing if you've never run into their fans. They've got fans far and wide. We talked to a few in Houston last weekend and they were friendly enough, but hardly what you'd consider real fans. And there were plenty that make nice guys want to throw down.
Ga Boiler: Wasn't Hoosiers set in 1951, not 1954?
J, not sure on the movie, but I do know it is suppose to be about the 1954 Milan team that won the state championship.
hey, lighten up guys. i know we're all frustrated about a particular indiana team not being in this game. but y'all seem more passionate about who to root against than you were about the boilers at times. i think both programs are respectable. zoubek might be the only guy out there i have a problem with. i like picking sides bc it makes the game more fun for me. who wins this game shouldn't have any bearing on our recruiting or future.
Zoubek reminds me of Brad Miller, except tougher and without the tears.
I'm like a petulant, jealous child right now, so I'll be rooting for Duke. I can't stand seeing all of the press that Butler is getting in Indy right now - this city should be awash in Gold and Black, not blue and white. You can't take a breath in this city without "Go Dawgs" getting rammed down your throat. I've been waiting for 30 years for a return trip to the Final Four and this shoulda/coulda been Purdue's year. It just seems like Butler made an end run around us and slipped into OUR celebration.
Envious? Jealous? Childish? Yes to all three, but sitting on the outside without OUR dogs in this fight just doesn't feel right. Fingers crossed that the stars aline next year for a long overdue Purdue run. As much as it pains me (I'm still not over the Knoxville loss with Big Dog): Go Duke.
Purdue also was after both of the Plumlee brothers...who are from Indiana. My count says that's two recruits. Just saying...also, Matty's still recruiting their little brother. Sure, this sounds much like the Brothers Zeller case (and will probably end the same in both scenarios), but Matty's a prideful dude, I guess.
Matt Howard's mustache is awesome. My son and wife ran into he and his family at Paradise bakery last week after church and said they were all nice...and Howard was really cool with my son, which I always appreciate.
http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/story?id=100919&page=1
They were "unaware". Good enough for me and the NCAA, I guess.
Next case in point:
Snyder, Amaker, and most-recently McLeod all learned from K...but the big difference is they don't have the protective umbrella of NCAA-feeding Duke monies over them...so their scrutiny is much more fair.
Lastly, do you really like watching K whine at pressers? Most recently, he got angry at a member of the press for asking a pretty fair and harmless question of his players following the WVU game, then chastised a paper for having the audacity of printing a satirical photoshopped picture of him! Oh the horror!!
Georgia Boiler- And Miller without the ability to score.
Bugeye, how can Duke winning make you feel any better about '94? I don't get it.
boilerdowd: because my brother-in-law is a Duke grad, and a Duke win will make him, my sister and their family very happy and that is good enough for me.
Go Duke!
*vomits*
/but really....don't want to see an Indiana school win if its not Purdue
Please go vote at Hammer & Rails and help TMill see the light...
http://www.hammerandrails.com/2010/4/5/1405941/on-the-scene-butler-vs-duke-for#comments
I figured that having a tie to Butler that existed prior to your birth was an exception that went without saying, but I guess not.
I know I'm not alone in the thought that you are underestimating the impact of a Butler win on Purdue's future. There is certainly enough frustration within the athletic department that Purdue has lost the fight for airtime on the 3 network newscasts in Indianapolis by almost a 2:1 margin despite holding a higher ranking and playing bigger opponents the entire season... and that was BEFORE the start of the tourney.
If you add the prestige of a NCAA victory to Butler there is going to be a serious battle for the 3 star Indiana recruits that still dominate Purdue's recruiting logs. Particularly if they retain Stevens.
For the record, Purdue wasn't "after" the older Plumlees The family was upset that Painter was too busy with Martin to be bothered with Miles. Painter didn't even offer a scholarship to Miles before he committed and decommitted from Stanford while Duke's scholarship was offered while he was attending Purdue's basketball camp and prior to his commitment to Stanford.
Painter and the athletic department have been open about the strategy of building Purdue to greatness by capturing the mindshare of Indiana kids and have only recently started to make strides outside of northwestern Indiana.
If the folks who don't have ties to Butler don't mind slapping them in the face by rooting for Butler to destroy most of that progress just because they have an irrational hatred of Duke, so be it. Don some blue and root for the 'dawgs' and help isolate recruiting back to Gary, East Chicago and the northwestern cornfields like the good old days.
Scott, I guess I just don't see it that way. I don't think we need to have every other in-state program held to no more than middling success for Painter to build what we would like to see at Purdue. Besides, there are enough other successful programs within driving distance of Indiana that one more one way or another shouldn't make that much difference.
Worrying about the local media coverage is necessary for now, I guess, but a losing battle anyway. Most of the media seem to pick their favorites without regard to logic or reason and cover them accordingly. I'm sure if Purdue actually wins a title in the near future, the Star's headline will read something like "AN INDIANA UNIVERSITY WINS" and the sports section will discuss the likelihood that the title will be stripped for recruiting violations or some nonsense crap like that. Then the preseason coverage the next year would be "After six winless months, Boilers regroup".
I'm rooting for Butler because my best friend is a Butler grad, because Butler is local for me, and because I hate Duke. And because of Zoubek.
I wish that it had been Purdue here. I hope that Hummel's knee gets and stays healthy, that Moore and Johnson return, and that the team plays just as well next season as it did this season. And maybe next year, those of us who rooted for Butler can ask people to return the favor. I know my friends will.
Question:
We already have to deal with Notre Dame and IU people saying how great their team/program is in the state of Indiana. Do we really want to hear all that from Butler people as well?
Sure, they may seem like a decent enough fanbase now, but they could be a sleeping giant I'd just rather not wake up.
It's not so much Butler fan I was worried about (I mean, c'mon, how many of those even existed until two weeks ago?) I just don't need IU fan hitting me with: "We don't expect you to ever win as many titles as we have, but could you at least try to keep up with Butler?"
thank you Patrick WB.... because you know IU fans are waiting to use this against us ad-nauseum for next year... We gotta get a championship...Coach Painter please get it done...
That's easy enough to deflect. We can simply respond that we think it's cute they're still following the tournament in the papers and all that. Seeing how things have been going in Bloomington, we'd figure they would be telling us about the CBI instead.
I did not enjoy watching Duke winning at all. Hope you guys who wished for it did.
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