Indiana fans fall short in shouting “***k you, Haarms” at the Boilermaker who beat them #iubb

The best IU fans could do to harass this Dutchman from Purdue was “***k you, Haarms!”?

The chants were audible throughout the game as IU fans expressed their disdain for Purdue center Matt Haarms, “***k you, Haarms!”

I have no problem with yelling at opposing players – it’s part of the fun of going to the game.  I have no problem with profanity – skillfully used, it can punctuate a point and get attention.

But I have a problem with IU students yelling “***k you, Haarms!” throughout the game because it’s not clever.

Many times during his 29 years as Indiana’s basketball coach, Bob Knight grabbed the PA microphone from Chuck Crabb to chastise fans for yelling profanity.  Despite my affection for shouting obscenities, I always listened to Knight because he was a scary guy.

There are rules preventing coaches from doing that today, so Archie Miller lacks the means to communicate his displeasure, if he feels any.

I would pick up the mic and demand better, but not necessarily cleaner from the student section.

Again, my disdain for last night’s chants is not driven by a prudish aversion to swearing, but a lack of respect for college students who can’t come up with anything more clever to distract a kid like Haarms.

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IU students were shouting at a 7’3″ Dutchman with goofy hair from Purdue, and the very best they could come up with was “***k you, Haarms!”?  How about swearing at him in Dutch?  That’s barely clever, but it would be a step in the right direction.

When I was a student at IU, we spent three hours per day in class, slept another four hours, and invested the other 17 hours a day annoying people.  At no point did we chant, “***k you, (insert name here)!”  We weren’t always classy, but there was always a bit of wit in our exploits.

Indiana University’s student body should demand better from themselves as they harass opponents at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Greeks on North Jordan, or professors in Ballantine Hall.

IU lost 48-46 to Purdue last night as Haarms silenced the fans with a tip in with 3.2 seconds left.

Now that was clever.

Kent Sterling hosts the fastest growing sportstalk show in Indianapolis on CBS Sports 1430 every weekday from 3p-7p, and writes about Indiana sports at kentsterling.com.

8 thoughts on “Indiana fans fall short in shouting “***k you, Haarms” at the Boilermaker who beat them #iubb

  1. Bill Remeika

    Not sure there is anyplace for swearing at a player or coach or official at any sporting event. What does it prove on any level?
    I read a code of conduct statement at each game I have announced. I have seen game officials ask school administrators to remove fans who have gone over the line. Maybe the same thing needs to be done at the college level – if it is not dealt with there, then when will it be dealt with? And wouldn’t the wonderment of retaliation be of a concern, especially if it is something more than words? Either you have class and act like someone or you don’t – just don’t be surprised if something worse happens when situations like this aren’t dealt with !

    Reply
  2. Steven Brown

    Kent, thank you for telling us how you always stood the high moral ground as a student at IU. Frankly, I don’t believe it. I certainly don’t condone the profane chanting especially when it is broadcast on ESPN for all to see and hear. However, there is another side to your story that you failed to highlight.

    I seem to remember a time when our IU team visited Mackey Arena and was shouted down by a chorus of “IU Sucks”. I have to ask you what is the detail meaning behind the term “Sucks”? Is this just a mild rebuke, or does it refer to some other deeper, insulting meaning. I think that it does.

    Maybe you should help us understand why Fred Glass or Archie Miller did not take the microphone and chide the IU students. Do you figure that Fred and Archie intended to leave this job up to you?

    Reply
    1. Kent Sterling Post author

      That is a great idea. I would happily drive to games and stand as the pious guard of appropriateness. I’m in! Despite the penmanship of our forefathers, there is a big difference between Fs and Ss – particularly when followed by “ucks”.

      Reply
  3. Ron

    Swearing at an opposing player should never be allowed, even if it’s done in a clever way, as you ignorantly stated. There are probably a lot of fans there that are very young and there’s no need for vulgarity. Bob Knight, despite his abusive use of language, wouldn’t tolerate it, and he was one hundred percent correct. As far as Archie Miller being restricted from doing the same thing, I doubt if he would even have the guts to chastise the fans if he could.

    Reply
    1. Kent Sterling Post author

      Nothing “ignorant” about my statement. You can argue it’s wrong-headed, or espouses a view with which you disagree, but nothing about it conjures the correct use of “ignorant.”

      Reply

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