Why Fans Root
Excitement abounds. I have started work on a book about why fans root for their teams, called aptly enough "Why Fans Root". The primary basis of the book will be interviews with fans to learn about their passion for their teams, how they came to be fans, their most memorable moments (lows and highs). Basically to understand just what it is about sports that draws us to identify with specific teams and too root ardently.
I've ordered a couple of academic books on the subject, the book Friday Night Lights, and a book about the 2004 Notre Dame season, which follows fans as they become more and more disillusioned with then coach Ty Willingham. I've drafted a preliminary set of questions to use in interviews and have e-mailed several people to see if they'd be willing to be my guinea pigs as I feel my way through the subject and refine my questions. I'll also be getting a digital voice recorder to use in interviews.
If there are any readers of the blog - Rick? - who'd be interested in being interviewed, just leave a comment with contact info.