An Open Letter to Gator Fans

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An open letter posted on a University of Florida website......

Dear Fellow Gators,

I have reached the end of my rope. I have lived in Georgia for over four years now and am friends with many and am always meeting more Georgia Bulldog fans, as well as those from other SEC schools, as Atlanta is more or less a melting pot for SEC alumni. Universally, without exception, all make reference to the horrible dress of Florida Gator fans. I cannot have a conversation with a UGA person without mention of the horribly tacky and/or trashy apparel that many UF folks seem to prefer. Nowhere is the contrast more striking than in Jacksonville, where we have an equal cross-section of both school's fans. You see all the Georgia women all dressed up (regardless of what the weather is like). Usually the guys are just wearing something simple, like a polo shirt and khaki pants. You look around and all the Gators seem to be dressed like they're going to a NASCAR race - Gator jerseys, jeans shorts, tank tops, black t-shirts, awful Zubaz pants, tacky Gator camo, etc. etc. You may have noticed Dawg fans yelling at Gator fans in Jax this past season: "Gators Wear Jeans Shorts" - I saw it painted on the rear windows of several cars and saw one of them with a sign.

Quite frankly, it's embarrassing and I get so much hell about it from Dawg fans that I finally figured I would make it public to the Gator fans. Maybe we could start some sort of grass-roots campaign. Look, every school has its awful redneck fans who never finished high school, much less attended the university. But at UF, unfortunately, many of the alumni project an image that degrades us all in the eyes of other SEC schools. I've wondered why this is and I'm sure there's a few explanations:

1) It's hotter in Gainesville than at other SEC campuses and, therefore, people are less apt to be dressy. 2) Lots of Gator fans are not from the South and, therefore, are less familiar with the (sort of) tradition of dressing up for games (i.e. at Georgia or at Ole Miss) 3) People in Florida are more used to dressing in a more casual fashion than in other states, even at nice restaurants or private clubs and this carries over to game day.

I only personally know about 3 people who read or post on this board, so obviously I don't know whether the others who read this are the ones who provide so much fodder for the ridicule of Dawg fans. But you have no idea how widespread the notion is among Georgia folks (and others) that Gator fans are white trash, NASCAR-loving rednecks and it all stems from how we collectively project ourselves during football season.

[NOTE: I've been to two Winston Cup races and enjoy stock car racing. However, it is undeniable that 90-95% of the fans there are redneck as hell and would not be mistaken in any respectable quarters for classy, upstanding members of society]

Let me conclude by appealing to the Gator Nation to eliminate denim from the Game Day wardrobe; please do not wear Gator jerseys or t-shirts; perhaps the black high-tops and flip-flops would be better left at home. Collared shirts and nicer pants or (if it's really, really hot) shorts for all!

Thanks, thewerd
Atlanta, GA

A sampling of some of the more humorous responses:

"How about this? Gator fans are not uptight simpletons. We're secure enough in ourselves not to judge others by the way they dress."

"I think WERD has a point to a certain extent. I have been to Jax for the last 6 or 7 cocktail parties (and I am sober for at least the first hour or so) and Georgia's hotties come out in that great red shirt/black skirt uniform. Damn! I think the Gator honies should wear something similar. As for the guys, wear what you want. I don't care. It is a football game. Just don't wear tight jean shorts. I don't want to see that."

"Besides, I think the whole jeans shorts, mullet, silver chains, black sneakers and orange and blue camo thing is grossly exaggerated. Maybe ten years ago that attire was popular, but you hardly ever see it now among Gator fans (or anyone else, for that matter). This is mostly Georgia myth IMO."

In response to the post above:

"I wish this were the case but I made a point of counting all the jeans shorts at the Marshall game last year and, well, it was disheartening. I just wish we could shed the redneck image. The aforementioned "Georgia myth" is an unfortunate reality. After all, stereotypes have some basis in the truth."

"Anyone who dresses up for a game in the Swamp in September is pretty much stupid. I refuse to ruin nice clothes by sweating in them for four hours while bumping into a bunch of sweaty smelly strangers."

"I too have spent a lot of time around Atlanta, on business, and met a lot of people from Atlanta. The people in Atlanta and GA are materialistic and fake. There are also a bunch of gays in Atlanta that overdress."

"As for those GA fans, two years ago I had one trying to stomp on my orange tennis shoes with his tacky red cowboy boots. Talk about redneck! Let's just dress how we feel and the hell with what other people think."

"I sympathize with you. My girlfriend went to UGA for grad school (masters in Statistics). Living in Atlanta and seeing the UGA fans around the state, I was convinced that UF fans are cut from a better cloth. She called me out on it and for last years cocktail party we came up with a scoring system: - 2 points for a mullett - 1 point for jean shorts - 1/2 point for a mustache (non-goatee) Boy, did I get my ass kicked. Within 15 minutes, this scoring system started mimicking football with UF going on to rout UGA, unfortunately a lower score was the goal. Of course I came to realize that our necks have an easier time getting to Jax (perhaps by horse or goat), so it wasn't a fair game. I don't think the issue is dressing up and not dressing up. You can be casual and still look presentable. I usually wear a Gator golf shirt, khaki shorts, and either sandals or flip flops. Where the problem comes in is when jean shorts, gator boxers, gator camoflauge, and tank tops are thrown in."

"I really don't give a horse's smelly $hit what UGA fans say. Seriously, who the hell wants to go dressed up to a football game? I would never wear my best clothes to go to a football game Not even a nice polo shirt and khakis. First of all, I'm gonna sweat like a pig and I'm gonna deteriorate my clothes very fast. Second, you always get either wet, stained or dirt on your clothes in a packed stadium. The constant pushing and shoving in the concourses combined with the usual overflowing toilets can splash water on your pants and stuff like that. And last but not least, it's more comfortable."

"Right or wrong, more then a few gator fans need to stop shopping at Wal-Mart for their gameday attire. Also this is not just a Jawja thing (althought Jawja fans only have Atlanta to fall back on), I have friends at UF who have LSU roots, and even they have the nerve to joke "gators wear jean shorts," but all I have to say to them is at least I don't have to live in Louisiana."

"You know what? I'm probably one of the people the Poodle fans snicker at. I usually wear jean shorts, a Gator jersey, and sneakers to the games. Beyond that, I've got a goatee, long hair, I shop at Wal-Mart, and I drive a pick-up truck. If I liked NASCAR, I'd be certifiable white trash."

"If you wear Jeans shorts and a tank top to an outdoor sporting event where you will sit with some 80,000 other people and scream and yell, drink beer, eat hot dogs and sweat in the hot sun you might be pretty normal anywhere on earth but the "old South".

"I'm wearing jean shorts and a tank top right now. I'll wear jean shorts and my Gator t-shirts to the games until it cools off and then I'll wear my jeans and Gator t-shirts or, if it is cold enough, my Gator sweatshirt. All I care about is my comfort. My shoes aren't black though, they are white, orange and blue."

"What the hell are "jean shorts"? Only a yankee would say that!! There called CUT OFF'S!!!!"

My favorite:

"Jean shorts, black high-tops, T-shirts and Gator jerseys may not be the best looking attire that someone can wear, but at least it's practical."