From Where I Sit: Get Your S.U. Fix

Sept. 28: The Only Way To Pre-Game
Sept. 21: How Fans Are Made
Sept. 14: Emerald City Blues
Sept. 7: The End of Summer

They say the first step is admitting you have a problem.

The symptoms are easy to spot.

Lack of Self-control. You know you should cut back, but you can't. Sound familiar?

Obsession. An inordinate amount of time is spent planning, engaging in, and recovering from the activity. Three days of planning for a three and a half-hour event that often turns into an eight-hour day.

Withdrawal. A manifestation of unpleasant symptoms that are often the opposite of the affects of the addictive behavior caused by simply not engaging in the activity. Acutely experienced on the cruelest of weeks -- the Bye week.

Say it with me now… I am a Syracuse Sports Addict.

I always throw in a little melodrama and hyperbole when I'm trying to make a point. Obviously, there are all types of fans. There are casual fans and lifelong fans and diehard fans and bandwagon fans and closet fans and ceiling fans (okay, just seeing if you're paying attention). The point is -- I know everyone won't be able to relate to this, but those of you that can will appreciate it. Syracuse sports are a yearlong obsession for me.

Some people are fans during at least one of the seasons of the SU Sports Trinity (football, basketball, and lacrosse). Some people are even fans during all three. Inevitably, people take a break. Maybe they don't watch lacrosse (blasphemy!). Maybe they take the summers off. Not me. 7/24/365. I celebrate leap years for that extra day of being an SU fan.

So I consider myself somewhat of an expert at getting my fix during the slow periods. And I'm not even talking about the painful, desert-like stretch from Spring Football to Opening Camp. Let's crawl before we walk, walk before we try running across the Sahara. Let's just start with the dry patch that is Bye Week.

As a football fan over the last decade, Bye Weeks were certainly the only weeks during the season we could be certain that we weren't going to lose. That sounds comforting, but it's not. Bye Weeks are a cold, depressing time that many fans deal with in their own unique ways. Some tips for dealing:

First thing you do when the schedule comes out, circle the Bye Week on the calendar. That will give you time to mentally prepare.

As the week approaches, make a list of all the weekend chores you've neglected. Pick one or two and get them done. This won't help you get through your withdrawal, but it should keep your wife or parents or roommates happy, giving them every reason to continue enabling your habit.

Join a message board, where other fanatics are shivering through their withdrawal like Ewan McGregor in Trainspotting. Even on bye weeks, there's something to argue about. I'd recommend Syracusefan.com. You won't find a better community of knowledgeable diehards.

Visit a blog. There are a handful of clever, engaging writers that do nothing but write about Syracuse sports. One of the best out there is nunesmagician.com. It's irreverent and chockfull of good reading material.

Check out the newspaper's online content at Syracuse.com. There have been some recent changes (Oh, my Kingdom for Donnie Webb), but Dave Rahme is a straightforward sports-writer that knows football.

Stop by Syracuse's SUathletics.com. The videos of press-conferences and interviews are great.

Do these things and it'll be game week before you know it. Okay, maybe I'm not ready to admit I have a problem.

Syracuse University Athletics

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