From the Lawton Constitution
By James Finck, Ph.D.
I wanted to weigh in on the controversy that happened Saturday night at the Bringham Young–Colorado State game, when the Colorado State student section chanted, “Fthe Mormons.” This has not been an isolated incident; it began last year and has happened at almost every stadium where BYU has played.
While this type of behavior should never be tolerated, I think the reason it is so awful is different from what most sports announcers are saying.
I can’t speak for the team, but I doubt the actual football players could care less about what opposing students shout at them. I promise not a single tear was shed. They are used to obnoxious student sections, and honestly, they probably tune out the noise and barely notice it. They especially don’t care what students say from teams they go in and crush. If anything, the chants probably just make their wins that much sweeter.
So, don’t feel sorry for the players; feel sorry for the fans.
And when I say fans, I mean the Colorado State fans.
Here’s the thing: They aren’t shouting “FBYU.” They are shouting “Fthe Mormons.”
Guess what. I guarantee there were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints wearing green on Saturday, sitting in that student section and cheering for their team. Those are the people I feel for.
Imagine sitting there with your fellow students, classmates, and possibly your friends, cheering for the same team they are cheering for, only to hear those same people chanting something hateful about your faith. That has to hurt.
Colorado has a significant Latter-day Saint population. There are more than a dozen Church buildings in the Colorado Springs area alone, and there is even a student congregation. Yes, they are Latter-day Saints, but they are also Colorado State fans. They wear green. They go to the games. They cheer for their Rams.
I know when Oklahoma State hosted BYU last season, their students did the same thing. I thought the same thing then. I knew members of the LDS Church who attended OSU. They bleed orange and want nothing more than to see their team win. But what they got was their own classmates and fellow students shouting derogatory things about them.
I wish these student sections would understand this.
You are not hurting the football team; you are attacking your own fans.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a worldwide church, with members in every state and communities all across the country. You may not agree with their beliefs. That’s fine. You may hate BYU. That’s fine, too. College football is supposed to be passionate, and I have no problem with students giving the opposing team a hard time.
But the members of the Church who attend your school and live in your communities deserve better.
No Latter-day Saint is perfect. None of us are. But they are trying every day to live good lives and be positive members of their communities. They are your classmates, your coworkers, your neighbors, and your friends.
And they root for the same team you do.
They should not have to sit in a student section, wearing the same colors and cheering for the same team while their fellow students chant hatred toward them, not the opposing football team, but their religion.
If you want to yell at BYU, yell at BYU.
If you want to boo the Cougars, boo the Cougars.
If you want to make fun of their quarterback, their coach, their play calling, or their ugly uniforms, have at it. That’s college football.
But when you turn it into “Fthe Mormons,” you have stopped attacking the opposing team and started attacking people sitting beside you.
James Finck is a professor of American history at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. He can be reached at james.finck@swoknews.com.
