Hi,
I'm an avid Utah State football fan. Did you see what happened in the final minutes of our game with yOUr upstart team?! We tried first to sit on a 13-point lead and on a six-point lead, that's what happened. Disgusting. Our offensive coordinator ought to be fired.

So, fellow BA.com'ers, there's my final comment concerning the season that was, during which OUr players and coaches tried their best to make OUr university successful on the football field ... while we bitched, moaned, insulted and defamed here on the board.

I will never cull out any from among our ranks as being particularly idiotic in this regard. It isn't even a matter worthy of discussion, perhaps mainly because those who shoot their mouths off through their fingers (a) are world-renowned experts who know what they are talking about, (b) are so idiotic they can't carry on a sensible discussion, (c) were so angry and frustrated that within seconds of hitting the "Submit Message" they wished they hadn't or (d) were so inebriated at the time they don't even remember posting the diatribe.

While I bleed green, try to maintain an alcohol level unacceptable to law enforcement agencies (and suspect "d" is the most common reason for these types of posts), my hope is that we can be more measured in the way we express things in 2012. That's my New Year's wish ... along with 12 or 13 wins ... and another Mitch Morsillo (and an effective short-yardage offense) ... and nothing but more bad news for the Evil Empire ... and yOUr health, happiness and continued participation in BA.com (because I know we all mean well even when we say and do really stupid things).

Peace
(and a new OC at USU!)

Some people just can't deal with Frank criticism.

It's been that way from the get-go, when a quasi-cult of personality was marketed in conjunction with introducing a "savior" for the program.

It's weird that way.

Meanwhile, every season there have been legitimate reasons to question things, even when things have mostly gone well.

I find it unfailingly ironic that people are so sensitive who are so involved with a violent, grueling sport.

This board would be so boring and there would be even less accountability in the athletics department if the board were nothing more than a mutual admiration society and a circle jerk. 

Monroe, I actually had no one in mind. I agree with OCF's comment that BA.com isn't chartered to be a mutual admiration society. And "opinion" certainly isn't a marketplace for only sweet accolades.

My wish is for more civility about the way things are expressed. Curtail the personal attacks. Perhaps if our family of posters all updated their profiles to identify to all the world who they are, it might be a start. The Internet is a haven for reckless expulsion of vitriol under the cloak of anonymity (presumed or otherwise).

I think that for the most part everyone here is very reasonable most of the time and discussion rarely gets out of line. Sure, there is sometimes disagreement. Sure, some people post emotional messages sometimes, particularly in the heat of the moment when something unfortunate happens in a game. And, sure, some people have a tendency to ignore economic realities and focus on idealistic scenarios. That's all perfectly normal, and really better here than most places. I don't see anywhere the level of vitriol that I see on some other boards, nor the universal dissatisfaction with anything short of a perfect season, so, its all good.  I still rate Ohio fans A+, and remember - It's the classy Ohio fans that keep me coming back here.

Some of the most vitriolic and less than civil posters user theiir real names so I don't think there's good correlational data to support your hypothesis.