Packers' Fans: UK Fans of the North

Where I grew up, the community was bitterly divided. Not by race or socioeconomic status - it's hard to be divided by statistics that are relatively uniform across the board - but by team allegiance. You were either a University of Louisville fan, or the lesser: a University of Kentucky fan.

You see where my loyalties lie...and the slant this post will be leaning towards.

Louisville fans were far and away the classier of the two. The stereotype, in my household, was that Louisville fans were more upper crust. We had more money (not that we, personally, had tons of money), we dressed better, were more educated and eloquent. Most importantly, Louisville fans could take a loss with pride. We stuck by our team no matter what, and didn't make excuses when we weren't the victorious team. Instead, we accepted our mistakes and stuck by our guys.

Kentucky fans, on the other hand, embodied the stereotype of the dumb redneck. Kentucky fans were hillbillies. Country bumpkins. Trailer trash. If they weren't born and raised Kentucky fans, they became one as soon as the team started winning. A Kentucky team with a winning record was the bandwagon everyone jumped on. Lifelong fans talked with a twang and were rowdy and obnoxious. That was the key term: obnoxious. Kentucky fans were the type that constantly blamed the referees or the other team. It was never their precious team that ever did wrong. They constantly made excuses. They were lower class.

Obviously, all of this is ridiculous to some degree. Prejudices that go that deep that are based on which college team you cheer for are ill-founded and ignorant. There are Kentucky fans that are millionaires (Ashley Judd) and Louisville fans that constantly make excuses for a loss. It's silly and, in some cases, actually awful to put those stereotypes on anyone.

That being said, when I moved to Chicago I pledged further sports allegiances. I became a Bears fan. I also met numerous, numerous Packers fans.

I remember texting my sister one Sunday during the football season, "Oh. My. God. Packers fans. They're the Kentucky fans of the North."

The only adjective that really accurately describes it is obnoxious.

If I have one more Packers fan explain to me how Packers' fans are the only TRUE fans because they "own part of the team", I'm going to get physically violent. I do not give a rodent's rear end who owns a team. I do not care that you are so very dedicated that you wasted money buying into it. That just means you're an idiot. I would have taken the money, bought a few jerseys, and spent the leftovers on a mani/pedi and a six pack for the game.

When I think of Packers fans, I revert to the following stereotype: overweight men and women snowed in their houses with bad hair cuts and horrible, horrible accents. Generally unattractive. Generally naive. That men belong to the union and the women raise a household of boys. For some reason, the women have high pitched voices and make a lot of casseroles. I envision cartoons, almost. And the overuse of the word "crap" (pronounced "cray-up").

But, again, stereotypes. Bad. Bad, bad, bad. Bad. Hurry, someone come give me a slap on the wrist. You'll find me holding my nose and bragging about my Super Bowl win- doing my best impression of a Packers' fan.