MATT VOLZ
Sports Editor
There’s nothing like being a sports fan.
Celebrating the highest of highs, mourning the lowest of lows — it can be quite the emotional roller coaster.
But for people who don’t follow sports, it doesn’t always make sense. Why would anyone get so bent out of shape over something that’s “just a game?”
Why do fans care so much about sports, even though they don’t have any control over the outcome of their favorite team’s games?
Believe it or not, there’s actually a psychological aspect to all of it.
Aimee Brunelle is an adjunct professor at Fredonia, as well as a full-time athletic trainer at a high school. She teaches a class called Sport Psychology which takes different concepts of psychology and applies them to sports and exercise.
She cites the “social identity theory,” a theory which says that people get a sense of self-concept and identity from being a part of social groups.
A social group is defined by the University of Minnesota as being “two or more people who regularly interact on the basis of mutual expectations and who share a common identity.”
Brunelle says that fans can form emotional connections with the symbols and colors associated with a team.
Various fanbases hold a strong connection to the colors of their team, like the Las Vegas Raiders with silver and black or the Pittsburgh Steelers with black and yellow.
Even college fans can attach heavy emotional connections to their team’s colors, maybe even more than fans of professional sports.
It’s also no surprise that fans can sometimes have major emotional reactions to tough losses. The Leader’s own staff writer, Parker Gurnett, face-planted in a snowbank following the Bills’ playoff loss to the Bengals last season.
Some fans use sports as an escape from their everyday lives, or even as a coping mechanism, according to Brunelle.
This was clear in 2020, when people had to stay home and isolate themselves due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As most sports came to a screeching halt, many fans didn’t have things to distract them from the realities of the world anymore.
Fans were so desperate to watch sports that some started waking up at 3 a.m. to watch Korean baseball on ESPN, as it was one of the only sports still on TV.
Stock car racing was one of the first American sports to return to action following the initial shutdown in March 2020, and because of that, NASCAR’s TV ratings boomed throughout the summer.
There have also been some moments where sports were far more than just a game, moments where a single play or a single game helped to heal a team or its fans from tragedy in the outside world.
In September 2006, the New Orleans Saints returned to their home stadium, Caesars Superdome (formerly the Louisiana Superdome) 13 months after Hurricane Katrina devastated the area and caused damage to the stadium that some thought may be irreparable.
The Saints’ return to “The Dome” was a matchup against the division rival Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football. Following Atlanta’s opening possession, Saints special teams ace Steve Gleason blocked a punt which New Orleans recovered for their first touchdown at home in two years.
The ESPN broadcast crew remained silent, allowing the crowd to speak for themselves in a moment that has since become synonymous with the city’s healing and rebirth after the hurricane.
Five years earlier, the New York Mets returned to play 10 days after the Sept. 11 attacks destroyed the World Trade Center and devastated New York City.
With the Mets trailing the rival Atlanta Braves 2-1 in the eighth inning, catcher Mike Piazza launched a two-run home run to give New York the lead, a lead they would never relinquish.
It was a moment that, while it didn’t change the realities that the city was facing, it allowed New Yorkers to breathe somewhat of a sigh of relief.
We’ve seen something similar play out in Western New York, too, with the Bills’ response after the injury to Damar Hamlin.
On Jan. 2, 2023, Hamlin collapsed during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals, needing CPR for over nine minutes in a moment that shook not only Hamlin’s teammates and coaches, but the entire NFL world.
The rest of the game was canceled as a result.
Six days later, the Bills returned home for their regular season finale against the New England Patriots. Many fans wondered if the Bills would be ready to play following such a traumatic incident.
However, Buffalo answered the call, as running back Nyheim Hines returned the opening kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown.
The CBS crew remained silent and allowed the thousands of fans at Highmark Stadium to narrate the moment, much like the ESPN crew had done in New Orleans in 2006.
The outcome of the game didn’t change what had happened the week before. Hamlin was still in the hospital in Cincinnati, and it wasn’t clear if he would ever play again.
But it allowed the Bills and their fans to take a deep breath and feel like, for just a moment, everything was going to be alright.
That’s sports in a nutshell — they can break your heart, but they can also uplift your spirits.
To many fans, it’s not just a game; rather, it’s a way to deal with the world and keep on going.