Fan of the Team or a Player??

I can remember claiming to be an Auburn fan years ago. It took a while for me to realize that I wasn't really an Auburn fan as much as I was supportive of Carrollton native (and family friend) Courtney Taylor.

As years progressed and Courtney left Auburn, I found myself lost. I couldn't really say I was an Auburn fan because I wasn't.

For years, I used the history of the University of Alabama as a reason why I'd never be a Tide fan. Then, I despised game day traffic.  I blamed the Tide for the reason I could no longer leave my house and get to any destination in 10 minutes and why I was forced to cook on the weekends rather than wait in long lines at area restaurants.

Then came the day I attended a gymnastics meet. Something about the atmosphere just pulled me in.  I was still determined not to be a Tide fan, but I couldn't help but like these girls. So, I told myself that I'd become a fan of the gymnastics team but not the football team.  What sense that made, I don't know.  Eventually, it got to the point where I couldn't escape game day activities.  My job required me to be on the Quad.  Friends wanted to gather near the stadium.  Everybody I knew wanted to know if I had tickets to the game or where I'd be watching it.

One day, my cousin (who was attending Mississippi State) asked me to go to the game with her. She got to Tuscaloosa late.  So, we avoided the heavy crowds and traffic.  Once I made it inside the stadium, my reservations were cancelled; and the Tide fan in me emerged.

At some point, I admitted to myself that I was never really an Auburn fan, and that I'd been deadset against the Crimson Tide because of the history around the University of Alabama.  Using that logic, I should be against the United States of America and most definitely the South.  Yet, there's no where else I'd rather live right now.

To this day, I find it odd when Tuscaloosa-area residents call themselves Auburn fans, ESPECIALLY those that never attended the school.  Former Auburn students and prospective students, okay, they get a pass.  But can those with no affiliation REALLY be Auburn fans, or are they more interested in going against the grain?