19 producer

I was on the phone this morning talking with my best friend about the Tennessee-Kentucky game last weekend, and I related to him my story of watching the game with two dozen Alabama fans that were more than happy to let everyone know how much they hate my alma mater.

It turns out, he was watching the game last weekend in a much worse situation.

He was at his wife's uncle's house watching the game in Georgia, with Georgia fans...one of which was jumping up and down and yelling everytime Kentucky got a leg up on the Vols. He yelled at my friend every chance he got ... obnoxious to the point that my friend was ready to stand up and throttle him. And he's not the type of person who gets angry easily.

Of course they wanted Tennessee to lose. If I were a Georgia fan and Tennessee's losing put me in a conference championship game, I would be pulling for a Kentucky win myself. But does college football really have to be that way? Do you really have to just dig in and rip on someone's team to their face every chance you get?

Don't get me wrong...I'm not a casual fan. When I'm with my Tennessee friends, we all talk about how much we hate Florida, and Alabama's back on our radar too. But we're all polite and manly enough to keep our opinions to ourselves when we're in the company of others. And I know a lot of people who are fans of other schools who behave the same way.

A little gentle ribbing is OK, people, and rip your favorite team a new one with your buddies whenever you have a chance. Even e-mail those funny Photoshopped pictures amongst yourselves. But at least act somewhat like an adult when you're in public ... it's what sets us Americans apart from the soccer hooligans.

Oh, and if you never even went to the school you root for, this goes double for you.