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Wildcat Sports => Football => Topic started by: Lynch on March 28, 2011, 10:08:29 AM
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Interesting article. KC blows balls becuase it is over loaded with KU and Mizzou fans, plus the KC Star is the worst news source in the history of sucky new sources. Glad I no longer live in that town.
Image is everything: KU, MU and K-State fans share similarities
By PETE GRATHOFF
The Kansas City Star
More News
Mizzou, Big 12 have welcomed mid-major candidates College news: Gillispie introduced as coach at Texas Tech Speculation over MU’s Anderson remains constant Williams lifts Arizona past Texas 70-69 Adams powers Texas A&M past McNeese State, 87-47 Sooners women get past James Madison Gillispie hired as basketball coach at Texas Tech Wisconsin beats K-State 70-65, ends Wildcats' season Big men on stage when Texas meets Oakland NCAA Tournament buzz Big 12, Fox Sports reportedly near deal on new TV contract Ohio State remains No. 1 in AP poll; KU No. 2 Channel 5 adjusts to new TV picture in tourney Download a printable NCAA women's tournament bracket (PDF) K-State gets a tough draw in women's tournament Big 12 has that left-out feeling today K-State grabs No. 5 seed, will face Utah State Missouri, a No. 11 seed, to play Cincinnati on Thursday in D.C. KU, a No. 1 seed, will face Boston U. on Friday in Tulsa KU adds tournament crown to regular-season title Although it happened nearly 20 years ago, the memory is still fresh in Phil Carr’s mind.
When Carr was a child, his family would travel from Topeka to visit his grandparents in Columbia. They weren’t affiliated with the University of Missouri, but the trips always revolved around a KU-MU game.
For Carr, it was a ruthless introduction to the passion of the Border War.
“I remember I spilled my nachos, and (the MU fans) just would be cheering,†Carr said. “And I was a 5-year-old kid.â€
Carr now has what might best be described as MU fan radar.
“I would say I could point out a Missouri fan without them wearing any Missouri gear,†said Carr, a 2008 KU graduate.
Likewise, MU grad Pat Ryan believes he can spot Kansas fans in a crowd.
“The Mizzou crowd would be more fun to roll to an event with, but I’d probably have to have a bigger damage deposit on the hotel room,†said Ryan, a 1992 graduate and a three-time letterwinner on the Tigers football team. “Mizzou is a little bit more blue-collar lunch pail.
“The KU crowd is a little bit more spoon-fed and debutant and high society. My impression is KU people are just a little bit more needy and entitled. Sweater vest-wearing, Ivy League wannabe.â€
But here’s the dirty little secret. Fans of the two schools — and Kansas State for that matter — are not all that different.
A Scarborough Research poll of 1,959 adults in the Kansas City area found that supporters of all three schools are similar in most demographics.
And in what’s likely a stomach-turning twist to the more hardcore fans, some of the respondents said they were fans of more than one of the three schools.
The overall breakdown showed that 46.3 percent of those polled called themselves KU fans, followed by 38.6 percent for Missouri and 29 percent for K-State.
If that seems on the low end for Wildcats backers, think again. Gary Raffety, a 1969 graduate of K-State, can remember a time when Wildcats fans were an afterthought here.
“Back when I was just out of college,†Raffety said, “you couldn’t go out to the store and find anything with Kansas State University on it. … Usually it was limited to KU and Missouri in Kansas City.â€
So perhaps the number of Wildcat fans is unexpectedly high. A closer examination of the survey may be surprising to those with preconceived notions of the enemy.
Those “spoon-fed, entitled†KU fans actually have a lower average household income than K-State fans ($76,657 to $75,170), and Mizzou supporters are not far behind at $73,565.
Kansas fans had the highest level of education, averaging 14.4 years of schooling. But MU and K-State aren’t far off, each averaging 14.2.
The average age of the fans is similar as well: the average K-State fan is 45.3 years old, followed by KU at 45.9 and MU at 46.1.
That the fans are a lot alike wasn’t surprising to Carr.
“You hear those stereotypes, but I don’t necessarily know if that’s true,†said Carr, who admitted he was careful with words since his boss is a MU fan. “It’s too big of a stereotype to fall under. I’ve always had the theory if you go along with the stereotypes, you only make yourself seem worse.â€
The poll results did reveal some differences. K-State had the largest percentage of male supporters at 59.8 percent, followed by Mizzou (56) and KU (54). In turn, KU ranked highest in female fandom (46 percent of the overall fan base). MU had 44 percent, while K-State is at 40.2 percent.
Perhaps not surprisingly, KU fans showed a higher level of interest in college basketball than their MU counterparts (87 percent to 79.2), but both schools ranked behind K-State (89 percent).
In football interest, K-State (87.7 percent) leads the way, followed by KU (82.9) and Missouri (81.9).
That speaks to the passion of K-State’s supporters. And if there is one thing that unites Mizzou and Kansas fans, it’s their view of Wildcats fans … though not in the way one might think.
Both Ryan and Carr actually have a fond view of the Wildcats — as long as they are not playing their team.
“I can tolerate K-State,†Ryan said. “They are more like an orphan and you feel sorry for them and you root for them.â€
Especially when the Wildcats play KU. And Carr feels the same way when the Wildcats take on Mizzou. In fact, Carr has a number of friends who attended K-State.
That both schools are in Kansas probably helps bridge the gap.
“Maybe (it’s because) we have so many family members who go to both schools,†Raffety said. “Maybe that has something to do with it.â€
Given the geographic distance separating MU and K-State, that rivalry is not quite as strong as the one between the Tigers and Jayhawks. Plus, Raffety said, the Wildcats had little football success before Bill Snyder arrived in Manhattan.
“I think their attitude toward us has probably changed somewhat,†Raffety said. “We used to be Silo Tech, but now I think they have a little more respect for us.â€
All-out loathing? That’s reserved for the relationship between the Border War teams.
The Nacho Incident will always stick with Carr — as will that early impression of Mizzou’s fans.
“It wasn’t just one or two people,†he recalled. “It was the whole section.â€
Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2011/03/10/2715825/image-is-everything-ku-mu-and.html#ixzz1HuY0nLId
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Some interesting parts.
Perhaps not surprisingly, KU fans showed a higher level of interest in college basketball than their MU counterparts (87 percent to 79.2), but both schools ranked behind K-State (89 percent).
They tryied to make it sound like KU had more basketball supporters, but K-State actually comes out on top. This may work on the weak minds of hawk and tiger fans.
In football interest, K-State (87.7 percent) leads the way, followed by KU (82.9) and Missouri (81.9).
We also rock at supporting Football. By a lot.
That speaks to the passion of K-State’s supporters. And if there is one thing that unites Mizzou and Kansas fans, it’s their view of Wildcats fans … though not in the way one might think.
WOW KC Star good job not even attempting to analyze those numbers, but that would prevent you from tossing KU and MU's salad.
Those “spoon-fed, entitled†KU fans actually have a lower average household income than K-State fans ($76,657 to $75,170), and Mizzou supporters are not far behind at $73,565.
My favorite part.
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More interesting parts: http://goemaw.com/forum/index.php?topic=11700.0