The other day I watched several vitriolic sports fans spew hate at Colorado football. They use too many transfers! They don’t do things the traditional way! They’re too loud! These players play only for themselves! All of these comments are reflections of a deeper and I feel more insidious philosophy that extends far beyond football and is reflective of American principles we’d all rather not discuss. But I’m here for it, and it boils down to the roots of what we call racism.
Let me start by arguing that racism is not about race. It is about belonging and the other. It is about fear. It is about blame and worry. Few people who feel racism deep in their bones do so out of a genetic superiority philosophy. I didn’t fully grasp that until I began to realize how many of these spotlighted racist organizations are often led or shouted up by people of the race they proclaim to hate. Chappelle hinted at this in his first ever skit on his show.
While Bigsby didn’t know he was black, his people did. Just like Enrique Tarrio and others. Al Jazeera posted a wonderful essay on the subject. It is about being part of the in group and about feeling either powerful in your belief and group or about feeling oppressed. Both can be true in different situations. How does any of this relate to Colorado football? Well, the Buffs are not at all about pride in that city or that college (I’m a damn proud Cyclone and they are–once again–conference rivals) it is about pride in Deion Sanders and what that man represents. So too is the hate.
Just recently I watched a post war unfold where a hater Ole Miss fan argued that schools that don’t build from the ground up are destined to fail, because transfer portal players only play for themselves and don’t add to the team culture. Okay, well Ole Miss added 17+ transfer players each of the last two seasons–mostly starters. So is it different because Ole Miss did it? Or is it different because Colorado also exploited it? Arizona state added 31 transfers last year and 23 this year. Nobody talks about them “going about it the wrong way” instead their young coach is being praised for rebuilding the program. USC and other big name schools have been relying on transfers for highlight positions for years without being criticized. Jayden Daniels and Caleb Williams were both transfers and both were treated as if they were not only part of but leaders in the cultures of their respective programs.
The hate comes from a place where people don’t want to see Prime succeed. The hate is intensified because of the spotlight he brings. The more people are forced to see Prime and his family on TV, the more they hate… or love. This polarization is normal. This is what we see with the Chiefs and the Taylor Swift storylines. None of it means that Prime’s Colorado team is going to be terrible or very good. In fact, it drowns any real debate of talent in superlatives and assumptions. What I loved in the beginning of the Prime run was his honesty about where they were. They didn’t have anything resembling a secure O or D line. They knew this and they still came out to compete. Now they’ve gone and recruited some beef–the most important step to being a dominant football program. Now we will see what is real.
The time for talk is far from over. The season is far from beginning. All we can do is wait.. and hope.