Issue date: 11/13/09 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Stephen Fogg The Reed Rowdies are a student organization that is centered around providing support for the men's basketball team. [Click to enlarge]

When you woke up today you might not have known it, but you're a part of the Reed Rowdies. As the basketball season opens, the student organization Reed Rowdies is preparing for the start of the men's basketball season by urging anyone who is a fan of Aggie basketball to join.

"Pretty much anyone who shows up to the game is a Reed Rowdy," said President Matt Bate, a senior accounting major. "It's not an exclusive thing. To be a Reed Rowdy, you have to yell, go through the basketball traditions, be loud and supportive."

With no official number of Reed Rowdies, the group considers themselves a fan club of the team and is looking for anyone who wants to join for the sake of the team and Reed Arena.

"Our goal is to increase the atmosphere of student attendance at Reed Arena and the overall knowledge of basketball within the student body," Bate said. "It's really easy for students to take charge and promote basketball on campus. We just want to make games fun and make them an experience."

A Reed Rowdy is similar to the Twelfth Man in football, and the same Aggie yells apply, but with a twist. Since fans are closer to the players, there is more of a home court advantage, especially when it comes to the behavior of a Reed Rowdy.

"We are trying to set apart the basketball program so that it has a great atmosphere," said junior business major Zach Reeh. "We are essentially trying to reinvent that atmosphere."

For Bate, that was one of the main reasons he joined Reed Rowdies.

"The coolest thing about basketball for me and why I love it so much is you, as a student, are right there," Bate said. "The players can see and hear you and you can affect the game."

Whether you call it spirited enthusiasm or plain old heckling, the atmosphere in Reed Arena plays a factor in the game on the court.

"Heckling is great," Reeh said. "You can say something and people can hear you, and they will look up at you. If someone makes a great play, and they are on the court, you can tell them that you appreciate what they're doing. You're able to see emotion and effort as opposed to football when you're so far away."

For Reed Rowdies, just being fans isn't enough. They have goals every year that include putting on fundraisers, providing discounted tickets to certain games and promoting the overall knowledge of the organization.

"To get people to come to games, we are trying to promote a lot," Reeh said. "I think that's what sets us apart from other sports organizations. A future goal of ours as an organization is to get more members and officers. The end goal is to fill up Reed Arena more frequently and for it to not be a freak accident."

Becoming a Reed Rowdy is simple. Any student who is a fan of Aggie basketball is welcome to join.

"We have a great team and great fans," Bate said. "We haven't been a good basketball school for long. Now, we are trying to become a great basketball school."

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