Do you shut down after a loss?

OT: anybody want to send me their anthopology 101 with prof peters-golden essay

Not that this thread will be at all relevant this Saturday

I crawl under my desk and suck my thumb.

I may not watch the end of our game if it goes south. And don't anyone here accuse me of not being a good fan. My watching the end of a game we very well may lose doesn't help the team in any way or prove anything except that I have high anxiety and it gets too emotionally uncomfortable for me to sit there like a sitting duck. I'm not giving up on the team, I'm giving up on myself being able to not have a nervous breakdown. 

 

And no, I am not being defensive. 

I wouldn't call it shutting down, but I definitely stop watching college football for the rest of the day. Try to get away from TV altogether - maybe go to a cider mill or play outside with my kids. So hopefully the team can help me out this Saturday and win, because Saturday's weather is supposed to suck and I would really like to enjoy watching that MSU/OSU game.

Being that I live in San Diego, I try to get outside. Also, knowing that this is year 1 for Harbaugh, I know the program will only get better. Justification and weather help...plus booze

It used to ruin the rest of my Saturday and then Sunday. Over time, you just grow up. I didn't play in the game, coach the game, have money on the game etc. it wasn't worth the agony. I am over the loss by the next morning now. However, Colorado, MSU, and few other OSU games still pissed me off much longer.

No.  I'm pretty optimistic.  I'm happy w/ our season so far and as long as we put out some effort, I'm not going to complain.  I also have kids, a wife and a job so I got to keep moving and staying active, etc.

My son was 4 days old for the 2006 #1 vs #2 game in Columbus. Being a Dad is probably what saved me from going into a complete seizure. Funny how that, and only that, gave me perspective. And now he's yelling at the TV ...calling out the refs and shouting to Harbaugh from the stands during the state game, "Come on, give it to the fullback!!"

but often, I will not watch any sports for a while so as to avoid highlights. esp. after some ridiculous thing, e.g., sparty game this year.

 

Because I pretty much only watch sports with people I know I can tolerate in the event of negative outcome, I'm good in person. Well, apart from the occasional memorable sociopathic quote ("I wanna take a chainsaw to a puppy right now" was one my girlfriend recorded, after Penn State 2013 actually). Thanks to alcohol, I'm even pretty good about compartmentalizing it and not dwelling on it until the next day while even salvaging an enjoyable night. But I definitely, 100% disappear from social media and don't answer messages if they came from certain people, don't even open/play them actually. I pretty much stay off the Internet altogether until at least the next day, so you definitely won't catch me here after a loss.

It's funny, I was just telling someone the other day...sure I've always gotten mad during sporting events, in a "Aw man, are you fucking kidding me?" kind of way. But I can honestly say I didn't get furious until the advent of social media. It just makes losing so much more fucking miserable when you can't just hide from assholes. I am sincere when I say I am always a gracious winner, I find gross, loud triumphalism to be unappealing even when the result went my way (the exception: you really annoyed me running your mouth beforehand, and now my team won). And even though I know karma isn't the way of the world we live in, I guess deep down I still feel I shouldn't have to deal with what I don't myself dish out, so I think because of that I kinda get extra pissed when it happens.  

yup

I shut down

Like others have stated, I stay clear of any sports sites, social media(I live in columbus and most of my friends on Facebook are from Columbus and Dayton) and any channel on TV where there's even the remote chance I'll see a college football highlight.

Call me a sore loser or any other name that applies, but for my own sanity and the betterment of my relationship with my family and friends, my methods work.

I get disappointed and sometimes angry momentarily, especially if I'm drinking. But I get over it fast since I'm an adult and getting overly emotional about it is highly irrational. It's a game. It has zero impact on your life as a fan. (As a player or coach, of course, it is your life). For me there are a lot more important things to get emotional about.

I need about an hour. MSU required my friend to take me to a bar and vent all night.

I shut down after the targeting call against MSU. I passed out before the game ended. It just had that vibe

I'm my in my thirties now and have really begun to wonder why I love sports so much. I see crazy fans doing ridiculous things over the outcomes of games they are only watching. Irrational hated and violence. It's kinda crazy. I used to get into fights and talk shit literally to old ladies cause they support the other team. Seems nuts now. I'm still passionate, but at this point I watch cause I love the sport and truly enjoy watching it. I support Michigan cause I went there and it's part of my identity, so their success makes me happy and it's enjoyable to follow and be familiar with one team even though I have no say it their playing. I guess the small stake I have is they represent Michigan and it's brand (yeah, yeah) value is associated with the success of the team. That's my "mature" take on my fandom.

Yes.  I am useless after a loss.

My wife never understands this.  She just needs to leave me alone until the loss wears off, usually mid-Sunday for an "ordinary" loss (not a rivalry game or a bowl game, those take longer).

Instead she badgers me about being pissed about a silly game, then I get grumpy, then everything gets worse because I now have to deal with a fight on top of the loss.

Things they don't tell you about before you get married.  

If you are not married yet, wallow in your Michigan wierdness while you can.  It will change when you get married.

 

Over the years (especially this year) after suffering true losses in life I don't at all. After the MSU while still standing in the stadium I felt bad for 5 minutes and moved on. Perspective is something I have gained and getting mad at sports or "shutting down" seems really, really silly from mine. Hell, the players don't even "shut down" after a loss why should I considering how I little I have invested compared to them.

I used to refuse to watch any other college football game if Michigan lost a game. I came to age in the Carr era where losses were relatively rare. After a blip in 2005, things started to change in 2007. As the losses mounted, each individual loss stung less. I was shocked that Michigan lost to Appalachian State. Toward the end of the Hoke era, I was apathetic.

Will things change now that Harbaugh is in charge? Perhaps, but I'm no longer that wide-eyed kid who grew up in awe of Michigan football. I still want Michigan to win every single game, but I no longer let a loss ruin my day or prevent me from watching my favorite sport.

Avoid anything until at least Monday that reminds me of a Michigan loss.

I read but have not posted for years.  I'm 81 years old and have been a Wolverine since I was 10, 1944.  This topic is close to my heart.  I'm a legend in my family about my raves and rants when we lose.  I get teased by my kids and my grandchildren and my wife just shakes her head and ignores me for a day or two.  I have no one to watch the games with or to vent with so to keep my sanity I follow the games via the Mgo blog and if we win I watch the reuns otherwise I block it out of my mind and ignore sports for a time.  My favorite teams were Fritz C's teams in the middle and late 40's.  God they were good.  The 1960's decade, until glorious 1969, and the last 8 years have been real bummers..  All I hokped for this year was that we would at least play the game like we knew what it was about.  In stead we have gotten so much more and so much to look forward too.  Go Blue and good fortune the next two Saturdays. 

I will shut down but not like I did with Hoke or RR. With them I felt hopeless.

Growing up in this state, MSU was at its zenith under Duffy. I wasn't really a college fan. Then one Saturday afternoon in November '69, while waiting for a buddy to get ready so we could go out that evening The Game came on. I saw these players come out on the field with these crazy helmets jumping, shouting, obviously very excited. I sat and watched and learned of the magnitude of this particular game and heard Keith give a small history lesson on the rivalry between these two schools. I continued watching, the excitement building up in me until the final seconds ticked off. I was hooked.

The next five years spoiled the hell out of me because I think we lost something like 5 or 6 games and won over 50.  Mixed blessing, of course with each season. The losses, on our way to an undefeated season hurt like hell. A trip up at Purdue or State and maybe even an IN or IL occasionally. 

However, as I grew older and realized the improbability of a perfect season was remote. Yet, I proudly wore my UM gear in victory or defeat, most often the former.

As I grew older, I began accepting it for what it was and realized how fortunate I was to be a Michigan fan when many my age had given their allegiance to E. Lansing U due to their victories during the late 50s and 60s. 

Now I can say I let a loss linger for about ten minutes and a direct answer to your question is I will watch the game following, win or lose, the 7 p.m. game and even the w.coast game later. I do sometimes mute the replays though on that day of a losss, but by the next day there is no pain at all.

I don't think I'll be up for watching the MSU/OSU game on Saturday if we lose. TBH, the Penn State game is the last game of the season that is a must-win in my book for the season to be deemed a success. Do I want to beat OSU? Obviously yes. Do I want us to win the B1G (or even go farther and, by some miracle, get into the playoff)? Sure, obviously. But all of that seems so amazing, given where we were last year at this time, that I'm really just telling myself that we have to beat Penn State and that anything else is gravy. It's the mental game I'm playing with myself so I don't get unnecessarily excited.

That's a long way of saying that I'll shut down after a PSU loss, but not as much after an OSU loss or later, as long as my mental tricks work on my brain.

I haven't shut down after a loss for a while after i did after the MSU debacle. After cleaning up the puke all over my bathroom sink Sunday morning , I went in my bedroom with the door shut and watched Mad Men for 12 straight hours . The rest of the week I didn't talk to anyone at work , stayed off Facebook for a week, Twitter for 4 days, and sports talk radio for a week. Fuck that week.

I go to the games with a season ticket.

I DVR the games on three different televsions in the house.

I subscribe to The Wolverine and receive all of the reports online.

I don't look at anything about Michigan until at least Tuesday after the loss.

It's tough to deal with a loss when the hopes are so high, whether that is valid or not.

But in the end,

JUST GO DAMN BLUE

 

 

Chill out!!!

I shut down mentally for the rest of the day and walk around like a zombie.  By Sunday morning I am usually over it, except for MSU this year.  That one took a while to get over.  

It used to be alright when I was single, but now that I have been married for 9 years and have 4 kids, I am trying to work on snapping out of it sooner.

Worst things I have done was smash a walk man after the Colorado hail mary game, thrown an empty Mountain Dew can across the room at my mom after the Spartan Bob game, and cursed at the TV in front of my step dad as a youngster during the Desmond trip in 1990.  Normally, I would have gotten my mouth washed out with soap, but it was one of those times when I think he realized it was good form me to get some anger out.

I mostly do shut down when UM loses, with the exception being when the hope of having a competent team was lost.  This year the first game was on a Thursday so it didn't kill Saturday, but the MSU debacle ruined my weekend along with my dad and brother's, and that was definitely bad since my dad is able to keep sports in perspective almost all the time.  Only twice do I remember him being depressed for an extended time after a sporting event:  When Kobe hit the game winner in Game 2 of the 04 Finals and this year's MSU luckfest. 

I totally shut down, but not without a fit of anger. I've broken a toe from kicking a washing machine, dented a steel door with my fist, broke a coffee table, smashed two remotes, and ran out of my house in an outburst that would have made the most salty of sailors blush. The only thing that can incite such rage in me is Michigan losing.
The MSU game was different though. The unmentionable happened and I went into my bedroom, laid face down on my bed, and wept uncontrollably for 10 minutes. My wife (yes, somehow a woman married me) and dog were confused.
You might say I have a slight problem when Michigan loses. This week a loss will make me mad, but I have a wedding to go to in the evening. I better get over it quickly, or Michigan needs to win.

After OSU in 2012 and MSU this year, I was apoplectic for about a day. After ND in 2012 I felt like I wanted to throw up when I went to bed, and was certainly still upset when I awoke, but nowhere near the level of the other two. Born in 96, vivid memories beginning in 07.

It depends on the game. Specific games I can remember having poor reactions to are the 05 Alamo Bowl, the 2013 MBB regular season finale against Indiana, and of course the 2013 National Championship. The NC loss to Louisville really had me down for a few days. The fact that I lived in Louisville didn't help.

I feel sorry for the younger guys on this topic.  When I was young and just starting out and had nothing to my name, Michigan football defined me.

I took each loss personally.  When they lost, I lost.  I took each loss as a personal failure.  I felt publically humiliated and embarrassed when they lost.

As I got older and had more things to hang my hat on - career, wife, kids, just life experience in general - it did not define me like it once did.

I'll still get worked up over a loss or a big win, but it wears off much quicker.  The intensity is still there, but the duration is much shorter.  Now it's always over by Monday.

Here's a useful hint:  Michigan used to lose a lot of New Year's Day bowl games.  They were all very painful to me, and in my mind they got the entire year off to a bad start.  Now I set my mental calendar to begin the new year after Michigan's bowl game is over.  The bowl game is the finish of the old year, not the start of the next year.