Don’t be lame, stay all game.
LSU won its third consecutive game by more than 30 points Saturday, but a good chunk of the fans in attendance heard that news from outside the stadium.
With 7:27 to go in the third quarter, senior cornerback Ron Brooks – starting because of the suspensions of sophomore defensive backs Tharold Simon and Tyrann Mathieu – took an interception 28 yards for a touchdown. The score capped a 21-point quarter for the Tigers. There were also three jaw-rattling hits on kickoffs, the biggest of which came from freshman wide receiver Jarvis Landry.
But the real sight on these plays were all the visible bleacher seats that had been vacated by fans making an early departure.
By the time the clock reached 0:00 in LSU’s 45-10 victory against Auburn, a hefty percentage of the Tiger faithful had already exited the building.
Why?
Was your tailgate food going to spoil by staying in your seat for the final quarter? Was there a once-in-a-lifetime drink special at Serranos that ended with the game’s final whistle?
Or did you give the overused and never effective excuse that you wanted to beat the traffic?
This is arguably the best football team LSU has ever put on the field, and the people who claim to be its most loyal and die-hard supporters bail before the game even ends.
Now, before I delve too far into this rant, this is not an indictment of just the student section. This epidemic has spread to the entire LSU fan base.
For those fans that remember going to games during the Mike Archer, Curley Hallman and Gerry DiNardo eras, the past dozen or so years of LSU football should be cherished for all the joy it has brought.
Two national titles, three Southeastern Conference championships and four wins in Bowl Championship Series bowl games since 2001 should have made people realize this is something special.
Instead, it has created a spoiled, entitled fan base that can’t even manage to stay in the stadium for four hours six times a year.
This mindset of treating games as just another social outing is mind boggling. Why go to something if you have no intention of staying until it’s over?
People don’t go to a movie, say it’s amazing, then leave with 20 minutes left to say they’ll catch the end when it comes out on DVD.  And no one goes to dinner at his or her favorite restaurant to leave before the entrée arrives.
Some people claim to get bored at blowouts. These are the folks that should surrender their tickets to the thousands of people left outside the stadium unable to get a pass into the game.
There is no shame in admitting that football isn’t the most exciting thing in the world to you. Different strokes for different folks.
But if that’s the case, just watch the entire game at the tailgate or the bar and let someone who really wants to soak in all that going to a game in person has to offer go.
Watching a rout is the most enjoyable thing in the world because you get to celebrate a victory and see the young talent get some snaps in mop-up duty.
And the underclassmen will decide if the program can sustain the current success it is enjoying.
Most of all, it’s about supporting the guys on the field. Those guys spend countless hours and give their all year-round for the team. The least you can do is support them until the end of a game.
Next time the Tigers play a game in Death Valley, stay and watch the team huddle up by the student section and sing the alma mater with them. It’s what a real fan would do.
 
Rob Landry is a 23-year-old mass communication senior from Mandeville. Follow him on Twitter @RobLandry85.
 
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Contact Rob Landry at [email protected]