Fans "Bury the Burrow"

I’m a big supporter of FAU sports and I love Owl football but I never really got into basketball. Partly because the games are during the week and I work and partly because they just aren’t as cool as the football games.

But today, watching the Owls play Florida International in the FAU Arena for the third installment of “Bury the Burrow in Red,” I was pleasantly surprised. There were cheering fans, school spirit and tons of red. In fact, the game brought out the biggest turnout of the season.


The free stuff and extra promoting for the event didn’t hurt either. Oh, and we did play one of our archrivals. But nonetheless, the Arena packed in 1,576 fans – all of whom were wearing red.

We might have lost the game, but at least we had spirit. Here’s a look at my favorite moments…

The Tailgate
I didn’t realize people tailgate for basketball games. But who would pass up an opportunity to drink beer, talk about your favorite team and hang out with your buddies? My first reaction: Tailgate? Alright – I’m in!

What I also didn’t realize was how serious FAU fans were at tailgating. A group even started tailgating at 12 noon for the 7 p.m. game! Unfortunately I had class and couldn’t join them until after 5 p.m., but FAU spirit groups the prOWLers, Sexie Rexies and Roundy Rexes spent the whole day getting pumped for the game.

The Flair
If you didn’t get the memo about wearing red, FAU Athletics handed out 500 “Bury the Burrow in Red Part III” T-shirts.


But some fans took the “wear red” to a whole new level. Playing with paint was a biggie – red faces and red hair are always fun. I particularly enjoyed the guys who painted letters on their chests. Yes, I was reading the letters, but to be honest… I was looking at your abs.


The award for best flair goes to junior Michael Burdman’s shoes. Maybe if I’m nice he’ll let me borrow them.



The Cheers
The Owl fingers. University of Florida has their alligator chomp thing, Florida State has the tomahawk chop and we’ve got the Owl fingers. I feel silly doing it, but its fun.


Best lame cheer of the night: “Ole… Ole, Ole, FIU is Really Gay”
I’m not really sure why our generation feels the need to refer to things as “gay” but this chant made me laugh out loud - but not necessarily for the right reasons.

-Look for next week’s print issue for more in-depth coverage of the game and the fans.