Damn the fair weather fan

Wildcat File Photo Arizona Daily Wildcat Bryan Rosenbaum

Too bad there weren't many people in the stands.

I'm going to go out on a limb here, and give the City of Tucson the award for having the most fair weather fans.

What other city can pack 58,000 people into a stadium one week, a mere 39,000 the next, and 58,000 a week later?

You guessed it - Tucson.

Saturday's game against Oregon is a huge game for so many reasons, the first of which has to do with the Rose Bowl. Whoops, that means people might actually show up. All 19,000 fans who are jumping back on the bandwagon are forcing out those of us who have been on since the very beginning, and taking my seat!

My biggest concern when going into Arizona Stadium isn't whether or not we're going to win, but how many times I'll have to move to another open seat. How sad is that?

One of the most depressing moments in Arizona sporting history happened when the entire stadium emptied after UCLA went up by 10 against Arizona three weeks ago. I couldn't imagine what it must have been like for the players to look up and see this happen with nine minutes left in the game. The air had been taken out of the team, and that's as much the fans' fault as it was the Bruins'. Who cares if it was, at least for three quarters, one of the greatest college football games of the year?

If you need to see what spirit really is, watch a couple of college football games every Saturday.

Watch fans at Michigan, Ohio State, Tennessee, Penn State and Florida show up for every game, every year. The last time there was an open seat at Michigan Stadium and Ohio Stadium was before I was born.

Watch Nebraska roll over Akron, with 85,000 fans loving every minute of it. The place is even sold out for the Huskers' spring scrimmage.

Watch Florida play Georgia, in what is affectionately known as "The World's Largest Cocktail Party." Watch Wisconsin fans stay well beyond their team's 38-3 pounding of Northwestern just so they can see "The Fifth Quarter," when the marching band celebrates, win or lose, with a rousing concert.

College football players across the country get support, and there is no reason why Arizona shouldn't, either. Is 7-1 not good enough? Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it is.

And don't forget to TP the UA Mall if we win.

Bryan Rosenbaum is a sophomore majoring in journalism and can be reached via e-mail at Bryan.Rosenbaum@wildcat.arizona.edu.