My take on ACC fans

So the news is kind of slow, not a whole lot left from the Media Days, camp won't start for another two weeks and the summer recruiting push is pretty over as well. Again i encourage people to read the Herzlich article, but if you've already done that than you can stick around for my team by team take on fans. This is only football though

I'll go North to South so that means I start off up here in Chestnut Hill and as far as fans go there's probably no worse place to start. I've mentioned this before but the first telling sign is that TV segment that ESPN ran when BC was #2 in the country after the VT game and people in Boston still had no clue. The fact of the matter is that Boston is a pro sports town and BC gets very lost in the shuffle. Local alumni are probably our best representation as they make up the bulk of the crowd at Alumni Stadium (Irony?) they shell out ridiculous coinage for good seats and even more for parking that is in the same county as the stadium. The students are a mixed bag, you have people like myself (headed into my Senior year) and then you have people like my freshman roommate who don't even know the most basic rules of the game, yet go to the game because everyone goes. I'd say thats about 20% of the student section, then theres another 50% casual fans who know next to nothing about the team, show up 5 minutes into the first quarter, drunk, with the occasional group of drunk bros who dumped a can of paint on their head then spray painted a witty saying across their chest to show how crazy they were. The other 30% are fans who show up early for games, know the majority of the starting players and might paint their chest during home games to show support for the team. Of that 30% of students and among the alumni you have the crazy nutters like myself who follow the team 365 days a year and write a blog that next to no one reads. We travel very poorly (geographic distance doesn't help), particularly the student section and I've heard negative things about the people who do travel.

Maryland: I have not made it to Maryland but they seem right on par with BC, the average populace is more concerned with the Orioles offseason and the Ravens. The alumni seem to rep well and the student section seems about the same as BC as well. I can't speak to their hospitality but they travel pretty well (we tend to travel to MD fairly well also due to proximity) and they are among the most polite while they are here.

Virginia: I really can't speak at all here, BC has not played them while I have closely followed the team.

Virginia Tech: By and large one of the most educated (football wise anyways, don't wanna ruffle any Duke feathers) fan bases. Lane Stadium is generally packed and the fans in the Blacksburg area are fairly courteous. I think a lot of this does stem from the interest they place in the team and the amount of knowledge the general fan has. They travel very well although I do have to admit that I have had a number of negative encounters with VTech fans who travel.

Duke: To be fair they had a run when they were so awful only the really true fans were sticking around and my experience with Duke was during that run. Until recently they repped poorly at home and from what I've heard tend to be apathetic and aren't overly hospitable. They didn't travel well when they came here in 06 and those that did come seemed to just soak in the atmosphere.

Wake Forest: There's not a whole lot to say here. The run to the ACC title in 06 seemed to stir the pot a bit and the fans seemed a little more into it. The relatively small capacity of BB&T (or Groves) means you never see an empty seat and the team travels well to boot. Both home and travel fans are polite and BB&T is one of the best places to watch a game in the ACC.

UNC: As they become relevant again after a weak stretch the fans are starting to get a little noisier. Last year they were close to capacity on average attendance and their proximity to other teams allows for a pretty solid travel squad. I can't say much on how they are when they travel but the home fans seem to be a mixed bag.

Clemson: In terms of devotion and sheer noise Clemson is probably the class of the ACC. I've been to Clemson a number of times and the even the dirt out there is orange. Everyone in the area is devoted to that team and the Death Valley is always packed. The devotion is borderline nauseating and there is a sense of fan ego (in 06 they stamped money with tiger paws and paid for most everything in cash) but the fact of the matter is that they travel well and are devoted. My opinion is that the average fan knows the team and is reasonably familiar with the opponents but doesn't do quite the research your VT fan does. I've heard many negative things about Clemson fans but my own experience has been nothing but great.

Georgia Tech: Perhaps a slightly inflated opinion of their team is really the worst you can level against the Tech fans, although Paul Johnson could quickly make that opinion valid. They are probably the Maryland/BC of the coastal. In fact the similarity with BC is right on par as they don't travel particularly well (at least not here) and they don't seem to have fans who are particularly familiar with the ins and outs.

FSU: Probably the worst fans of the ACC. I haven't made it to Tallahassee and I don't want to. Everyone who's come back has said that they were afraid to even mention they were from Boston. While the devotion to FSU is right along the lines with Clemson my experience with Clemson fans has been classy while FSU fans seem to be classless. When in FL my understanding is that they only want to start fights and when they are here that is certainly the case. They seem stuck in 1999 and have absolutely zero ability to be impartial when evaluating teams.

Miami: They used to have a rabid fan base but now it seems to have softened a bit. When some of my friends went down in 06 most of my friends just wanted to party in the warm weather and there weren't many issues. When they came up here in 07 there was no one traveling (although it was the Saturday after Thanksgiving and it was bloody freezing even for me)