Support the Tigers for all 4 quarters. They deserve it.

We’re already a third of the way through the 2013 college football season, and our Tigers are a perfect 4-0. Many people claimed that this would be a rebuilding season for the team after losing a record number of players to the professional ranks in the latest NFL draft. Yet somehow the Tigers seem to simply reload year after year, and this season is no exception.

LSU made a statement on national television in Dallas by putting up 37 points on TCU’s vaunted defense, showing the college football world that this team had left behind it’s offensive woes of the past few seasons. Having been to every game that LSU has played in Jerry World, I would argue that this year’s fan support rivaled that of the Oregon game in 2011. Our fans were consistently loud, and it was obvious that the team fed off of that energy. LSU is known for having one of the most passionate fan-bases in the nation, one that travels and seemingly takes over the town. It’s just how LSU does it. Which is why I’m confused as to what happened after Dallas.

So far this year, every game in Tiger Stadium has been broadcast on the ESPN family of networks. The entire nation has a front row seat to see just how intimidating and awesome the atmosphere can be in Death Valley. But so far this season, it has been just that. What it can be. Not what it should be. It should not matter if LSU is playing Alabama, Texas A&M or Kent State. The most intimidating sports venue in the United States shouldn’t be half-empty at the beginning of the third quarter.

This past Saturday was shocking, to say the least. Yes, the weather was not ideal. But it was Auburn, an SEC opponent just three years removed from winning a national title. Coach Miles said that he “expected Tiger Stadium to be electric” on Saturday night, and during that first quarter monsoon, the stadium was alive and rocking. The Tigers fed off of that energy and kept Auburn off the scoreboard in the first half. But by the start of the third quarter, viewers on ESPN saw not just rows but entire sections vacant. They saw a pair of SEC teams who combined for two of the past seven national titles playing for empty seats.

I want to challenge every fan in attendance for the rest of the season to support our team to the finish. Our players deserve to play in front of a packed house. They expect to run out of the tunnel to be welcomed by a sea of purple and gold 93,000 strong. More importantly, they expect us to have their backs from the opening kick off until the 4th quarter clock hits triple zeros. As Coach Miles said last season, “Tiger Stadium is truly a place where opponent’s dreams come to die”. Let’s keep it that way.