Thoughts from a non-student Fan

The answer is yes, you can be a true Michigan fan without having attended the University of Michigan. In fact, one could argue you're a bigger fan than I am, for example, because you've been a fan longer and you are from Ann Arbor. I became a true Michigan fan once I enrolled in '02. There were a few threads about this very topic. Not to speak on behalf of the mgoblog community, but I think the general tone of those posts were in accordance: you don't have to be an alumnus to be a true fan.

Faculty, Staff, Life-Long Townies Don't tell my HS son he doesn't count in the fanbase!

I live in Louisville KY and have been a Michigan fan since I can remember watching football. My father was a fan and now I am raising my 16 month old daughter to be a fan. I have absolutely no ties to the state of Michigan other than the fact that I whole heartedly LOVE the Michigan Wolverines. I love the tradition and the history of the program. I would hope that any Michigan fan would except those of us who are not an alumn or attended the university. As long as I have Maize and Blue on and and cheer like you could you pick me out of a crowd?

and a Michigan fan. I have been since I was 4. The idea that you need to attend a school to support the teams you like to watch, and have supported your whole life, is just silly.

All fan bases have their share of idiots. Some of those idiots would like the cub to be exclusive because they feel it gives them more status. It's best to ignore them, or mock them on those occasions when you can't ignore them. By the way, I'm the older, less athletic version of you. I grew up an hour away from Ann Arbor (and lived there for a year after my parents divorced) and went to upwards of 2 games a year for most of my childhood. However, for a variety of reasons I went to school out of state. For me, that was a good decision, but I don't see any reason to change my allegiance.

Dont ever feel like you have to justify/prove who your a fan of... I dont even care if I am labeled a "WalMart Fan" doesnt bother me one bit.

I sure hope you can be a fan and not be an alum. I got moved to Florida my junior year of high school so out of state at Michigan was far too rich for my blood. (I worked two jobs as it was to pay for college!) I still bleed maize and blue, but after two years of abuse from my friends at Florida, two basketball championships and the first football championship of the decade, a little bit of orange found its way into my veins. I did root for Michigan in the Citrus Bowl against the Gators two years ago.

who determines whether you're a fan or not. It sounds like you're a 100x more of a fan than alums that wanted Rodriguez fired after last season. I went there but it doesn't make me any more of a fan than my brother who didn't...or for that matter, me, prior to attending. Attendance has nothing to do with someone's fanhood. Nothing.

who was really not a fan of Michigan before attending undergrad, I have the opposite issue. In HS, I didn't pay attention to college sports at all. I have noticed 2 types of fans and this is not at all based on whether someone has attended Michigan or not. The 1st is the casual fan that watches ~5-6 games a year, usually at the bar with friends and knows the names of ~4-6 players, give or take a few. Most times these guys are alumni that have watch with college friends. A lot of times, but not always this group consists of grad school students, who feel more "loyal" to their undergrad or just don't get much into football. The 2nd type is the more intense fan that reads MGoBlog, knows all of the players, coaches, recruits... These guys that I have met are sometimes almni, and sometimes not alumni. In fact, most of the non-alumni Michigan fans fall into this group. At the end of the day, it just matters that you are a fan, cheer for the Maize & Blue and show support, whenever you can. If an alumnus questions your fandom, they are a douche and do not speak for all alumni.

Wait a minute... I'm appalled that Gary Moeller and Lloyd Carr would have recruited this type of player. This demands an immediate in-depth investigation by Rosenberg and Snyder, backed by the full resources of the Detroit Free Press, and backed with subpeona power if necessary. Carr's tolerance of this behavior is an insult to true Michigan men like Rosenberg and Snyder.

I've been trying to chime in without writing a frickin' graduate thesis and it's hard. Suffice it to say, I live on both sides of the coin: I'm a born-and-raised Michigan fan who didn't go to Michigan, and I'm a Virginia alum who knew nothing of UVA and had zero emotional attachment until I actually went there. I can't imagine holding my diploma over someone's head and using it as an official certificate of fanhood against some old-timer (or even not-at-all-old-timer) who didn't go to UVA. Especially one who lived and breathed the part of UVA history before 2000, which to me, is not much different than, say, the Korean War: I wasn't there. However, comma, I've never run into a Michigan fan who questioned my fanhood based on my non-alum status. I have even sat in the student section at the Big House using someone else's ID, admitted such to those surrounding me, and never had even the tiniest shred of complaint. I have run into some Michigan State fans who have, which is why that is one of the loserest fanbases in the entire country.

I did not go to Michigan for undergrad. I attend now for overgrad.

I get that a lot too. Where I live , basketball is the king of sports and everybody looks at me funny when I wear my jersey on gameday but I wear it every saturday with pride even more so now after going through last season. There are so many fair weathered fans for the local teams here it is not funny and any fan can jump ship when things go wrong but I proudly and humbly keep my head up high, the block M on my chest stuck out, and feel the sense of pride it is to be a supporter of Michigan atletics.

I was born in Ann Arbor, my parents were born and raised in Plymouth and my grandparents on my mom's side were born and raised in Flint. We moved out of state when I was younger and I could not afford out of state tuition. When I chose law schools, I applied to Michigan and ND, and was accepted to both, but was offered literally 10 times as much money to go to ND and went there. What I have HATED though, is how many people say I am not a fan because I didn't go to school there. I'm sorry that my parents moved out of state before college, and that my parents had no money and I had to pay my own way through undergrad and law school and couldn't afford Michigan. It's not my fault I moved nor is it my fault my parents are poor. I don't think my ND fan friends are bigger fans than me because mommy and daddy could afford to cut them a check to go their favorite football teams school, while also paying their room and board and sending them spending money casually. I especially think their argument is dumb in light of the fact that ND undergrad is about 8,000 people, so if only true fans are the ones who attended the school, ND would lose about 3/4's of their fan base because of how small their student population is. I follow Michigan sports as close or closer than anyone, and reject the idea that economic fortune or parents choosing to live in the home state make someone a better fan than me.

half my family went to UofM. I still live in Ann Arbor. I live and die with Michigan Football. Here's my feeling on fandom; nobody chooses to be a fan of any team. I did not wake up one day and say "I think I will be a Michigan fan." I have no memory of not being a Michigan fan, because I have always been one. I have watched Michigan games with my dad (who also went to EMU) since I was old enough to understand what a TV was. If Michigan loses and you say "oh well, there's always (insert other team)" you're not really a fan. They are MY TEAM. I get a different feeling when I see those helmets and uniforms and those colors than what I get from seeing any other sports team. It's not something I can help. If someone wants to shoot me because I didn't go to UofM, then I will die a martyr for my team, and I'll be sure to turn as I fall so they can kiss my ass afterwards. So my answer is yes, you can be a fan without attending UofM.

I wore Maize and Blue diapers. My first memories are of my brother attending a baseball camp on campus and being mesmerized with how pretty I thought it was, even empty in the summer. My wardrobe from ages 7-13 consisted almost entirely of Michigan clothing... the day my niece was born, I wore a Chris Perry jersey to the hospital. I lived and breathed Michigan... not just football, either. The whole school was my obsession. Unfortunately, I have little tolerance for homework and suffered through severe depression in high school... I also finished short of my hopes on the ACT, I already suck at math, giving me a time limit won't help. Having a 3.3 GPA and a 26 on the ACT isn't even in the same universe as what it takes to get into Ann Arbor. I had good SAT scores, good enough to supersede my bad GPA for some schools on the coasts... so I set my sites on small, private schools out west. Being naive, I assumed my parents would help me pay the $40,000 a year it took to go to Gonzaga. What I got was "lol wut". I picked UM-Dearborn as a safety. It seemed logical, it was kind of Michigan, close enough to drive to and cheap enough that I could could pay for it myself after scholarships. Hey, I even got to go to Michigan games and sit in the student section. Awesomeness. I had an MCard, a uniqname, the ability to check out books on the campus in AA. What more could I have asked for? I was at Michigan... or so I thought. This is what I encountered half the time I tried to hang out in Ann Arbor. Not everyone was like that, but enough people were to bring that depression back real quick. I went from thinking I was finally in to feeling like more of a "Walmart Wolverine" than ever before. So I studied my ass. 3.7 GPA, multiple clubs (some of which only had two other members), volunteer work at the ASPCA, a rec from my congressman, a 29 on my retaken ACT's... and I finally got in as a rising junior. What I learned from this adventure is that college football is not about college. It's about a connection to a team, to a place, to a helmet, whatever. It's personal. Going to school in Ann Arbor for two years did nothing to make me more of a fan than I was when I wanted to go to school in effing Spokane. The people who hide behind the Walmart tags, etc are insecure. They're insecure because their LSA degree can only get them so far and they're stuck in a dead end job (like mine!), they're insecure because you're a better fan than they are and it eats them up. Next time you encounter one of these fans, tell him to get fucked. There would be no football program if not for the tens of thousands non alums packing that stadium each week. They should be grateful.

but I won't. What other people think of my fandom matters not to me. Small minds, small people.