UMD reacts to being ranked third for best college sports fans
As students gear up for the semester, USA Today placed the University of Maryland in the top 10 for colleges with the best sports fans.
On Aug. 26, USA Today published its annual Readers’ Choice Awards, ranking Maryland the No. 3 college in the nation for the best sports fanbase. The publication noted that Maryland
possesses a “consistent force across the college sports spectrum,” recognizing basketball, soccer and lacrosse.
Maryland Athletics’ senior associate athletic director and strategic communications officer, Jason Yellin, expressed his gratitude to Maryland fans and USA Today for the No. 3 ranking
“It’s awesome to be recognized by a national outlet such as USA Today,” Yellin said. “We have an incredibly passionate and dedicated fan base here for the Maryland Terrapins, and it’s great to see them recognized with such an honor as this.”
Ryan Bush, a senior information science major, commented on the ranking and discussed his student section experience attending Maryland’s sports venues.
“I could really believe that,” Bush said. “People throwing their shirts off and coming in with Maryland makeup on… even I go crazy when I’m in the student section. Any time it’s game day during football or basketball season, I’d see people in UMD shirts all over campus.”
While USA Today didn’t recognise football in its description of the rankings, alumni and students alike still mention the sport because of its prominence in Maryland’s sports culture. Last season, Maryland football had an unfortunate conclusion, finishing 4-8, which left fans with mixed reactions to the college sports fans ranking.
“Football last year was tough on the field,” Yellin said. “But we had our highest average attendance for Maryland football since 2015.”
Liam Bell, a junior management and communications major, shared his thoughts about Maryland’s fan base rank.
“I do think we have a lot of pride at Maryland, but they could be basing it off that,” Bell said. “In terms of our overall sports, I think it could use some work. When people consider sports, they just think basketball and football … I would say #3 is a stretch.”
Adron Allen, a Maryland alum and current University Book Center employee, commented on last year’s football season and what led Maryland to a high rank in college sports fans.
“Honestly, I’m quite surprised that we were ranked so high,” Allen said. “With our [football] record not being so great last season … I think overall, soccer, field hockey and lacrosse doing so well in recent history is why we’re ranked so highly. When you account for all other sports, you have to say that we’re ranked that high. I’ll take #3, and we should be #3.”
Yellin also discussed the strengths of the potential Maryland sports have to offer.
“Men’s basketball has ranked in the top 25 in the country for 32 of the last 33 years,” he said. “Last year, women’s basketball made the NCAA tournament and finished ninth nationally in total attendance. Nationally, we were second in men’s lacrosse attendance, third in women’s lacrosse attendance and led the NCAA in total attendance for men’s soccer last year.”
Melat Birhane, a junior public health science major, wasn’t convinced that Maryland ranked third for college sports fans.
“I 100% disagree with us being third on that list,” Birhane said. “UMD could do so much better when it comes to games and showing energy. To prove that we’re at the top, we should have better advertising to get more students to show up to more games. The first game is always fun, so we need to continue that type of advertising so we can bring that energy every time.”
Inspired by sports analyst Pat McAfee, Allen suggested more fan involvement with a student-led sports show, referencing “The Pat McAfee Show.”
“I think there should be a little bit more fan involvement, especially when Pat McAfee has his own shows before the games,” Allen said. “We should have our own student-led version of that, especially for football games.”
With the start of a new semester and the Class of 2030 showing out, Maryland sets its sights on what’s in store for the future of Terrapins sports.
“The Class of 2030, you’re the future because our student athletes cherish and believe in you,” Yellin said. “You’re part of the big reason why they go out and represent the University of Maryland with all the passion and pride that they have.”