Fan superstitions really do help

Things were looking bad for the IU basketball team -- down by double digits to the Duke Blue Devils, the deficit growing with every passing possession. And then, miraculously, something happened. Just like that, a light came on.\nLiterally.\nIn my dorm room, a light came on. And what do you know? The Hoosiers made a comeback. Sure, there was now a glare on the television, but when we turned the light off again, the Hoosiers turned the ball over. \nWe were just going to have to deal with the glare, play-through-the-pain, if you will, for the sake of the team. Light back on -- IU pulls off the upset. To us it was obvious -- the Hoosiers won because we had the light on during the second half. Rest assured, that light was on throughout the rest of the tournament, glare and all.\nPut any thought into it, and it makes no sense whatsoever -- but superstition drives fans all the time. It gives us a sense of importance. And while most fans will concede that they understand their beliefs are silly, they still do it -- we all do it.\nWhen the Indiana Pacers were in the playoffs, a friend of mine watched every game in the same seat, in the same shirt, always with popcorn in hand. One night he could not watch the game, so he popped the popcorn, rested the shirt comfortably on the chair, and left. When he returned, it had all been moved -- and the Pacers lost. He had let his team down.\nAs fans, we want to feel needed. The team we root for becomes a part of our lives, and we want to become a part of the team -- no matter how exaggerated the circumstances.\nFan superstitions are not the same as athlete superstitions. Athletes do things that make them feel more comfortable and confident when they perform -- both feelings are essential to their own success. We fans, though, have no direct impact on the final outcome, so we create it in our minds:\n"It was tough wearing that same, dirty T-shirt every time the Hoosiers played, but I suffered through that pain -- for the sake of the team."\n"I'm sorry, but you can't sit in the Lazyboy tonight, you want us to win, don't you?"\nI believe that the rituals created by fans are essential to the success of sports. When people switch seats at half-time, or go make their popcorn after the third quarter, or give the same people a high-five in the same order every time a three-pointer is made, the games are infinitely more fun to watch. Looking back afterwards, win or lose, the experience was enjoyable -- and enjoying sports is the most important thing for fans.\nSuperstitions add to the passion of sports enthusiasts. When we wear our lucky T-shirt all day, we show our pride and help the entire community get psyched up for the big game. We display our colors proudly not simply because we have team pride -- but because the team needs it in order to win.\nSo the next time your team is making a postseason run, and you notice that your actions are mysteriously contributing to the victories, keep them up -- after all, the team, the campus, the city -- we're all relying on you to bring us a win.