bamafan4ever
Staff
I never really had experienced Florida fans before October, 2001, so I had no opinion of them as a whole. I had seen some of their posters on their own message forums and they reminded me a lot of LSU fans with their vitriol but that doesn't always translate to the way other teams' "game fans" carry themselves in person. It is absolutely an accurate representation of Florida's fan base however.
My first experience was at a "Cocktail Party" in Jacksonville but I attributed the crude behavior of the Florida faithful to partying it up in Jacksonville (it is a party!) or the fact that Georgia is a hated rival and has its own share of problematic fans. No big deal. In October of 2005, it was a bigger deal. A highly ranked Florida Gator team came to Tuscaloosa in what was Urban Meyer's first SEC test. They had handled Kentucky quite handily the week before. Gameday was there and the atmosphere was indeed charged, quite possibly the loudest Alabama game I have ever attended. The Gators were very well represented and their fans wanted you to know they made it to the show. There was screaming and cursing going on that I have never seen by any fan base before a game on BAMA's campus. When you contrast and compare Arkansas' fan base this past with Florida's from 2005, it's palpable.
During the game, I was able to sit far enough away from the Jort Nation that they didn't bother me until Tyrone Prothro broke his leg in one of the worst injuries to a college player I had ever witnessed. While the Alabama fans held their collective breath, the southeast corner of the stadium was roaring. Once the roar died down, you could hear the shouts of hatred toward Prothro. As he was being carried off the field on a stretcher, I saw many of their fans giving him the middle finger. They are without a doubt the most classless lot of fans I have ever witnessed.
They say the Swamp is a great venue, one of the best in college football. If the 10,000 fans that made the trip to Tuscaloosa is magnified by 9x at Florida Field, I think I'll just sit back and watch our guys thrash the Lizards on national TV. At least I won't be dumbed down just by being in the presence of the Mullet Nation.
My first experience was at a "Cocktail Party" in Jacksonville but I attributed the crude behavior of the Florida faithful to partying it up in Jacksonville (it is a party!) or the fact that Georgia is a hated rival and has its own share of problematic fans. No big deal. In October of 2005, it was a bigger deal. A highly ranked Florida Gator team came to Tuscaloosa in what was Urban Meyer's first SEC test. They had handled Kentucky quite handily the week before. Gameday was there and the atmosphere was indeed charged, quite possibly the loudest Alabama game I have ever attended. The Gators were very well represented and their fans wanted you to know they made it to the show. There was screaming and cursing going on that I have never seen by any fan base before a game on BAMA's campus. When you contrast and compare Arkansas' fan base this past with Florida's from 2005, it's palpable.
During the game, I was able to sit far enough away from the Jort Nation that they didn't bother me until Tyrone Prothro broke his leg in one of the worst injuries to a college player I had ever witnessed. While the Alabama fans held their collective breath, the southeast corner of the stadium was roaring. Once the roar died down, you could hear the shouts of hatred toward Prothro. As he was being carried off the field on a stretcher, I saw many of their fans giving him the middle finger. They are without a doubt the most classless lot of fans I have ever witnessed.
They say the Swamp is a great venue, one of the best in college football. If the 10,000 fans that made the trip to Tuscaloosa is magnified by 9x at Florida Field, I think I'll just sit back and watch our guys thrash the Lizards on national TV. At least I won't be dumbed down just by being in the presence of the Mullet Nation.
