That sports require fans. It's unclear to me what you think I don't grasp. Fandom really doesn't require them to be irrational though...even if that's part of the definition of fanaticism...they don't have to buy into the fallacies I pointed out. (Interestingly when I Google fanatical, it leaves out the "irrational" part) I notice you didn't comment on those fallacies. If some fans choose to speak/think/act irrationally...go for it...to each their own for sure... it's just interesting to me how people talk about their fandom and how sports seem to affect them. I'm never going to feel victimized, angry, embarrassed, or even proud really of VT's success or lack thereof (all clearly common things for the populace here.) Happy with success I guess...but it's not like my overall sense of contentment is dependent on what VT is doing in athletics.