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Work Memo

When doing this ethnography it came with a bit difficulty. When I observed and took
notes I wanted to assure that I wasnt missing anything before I left the place I had to observe for
my project. Nicole had looked over my rough draft as she graciously corrected errors that needed
to be fixed throughout the paper. She looked at my notes that I took and fixed a few mistakes I
had in there. I didnt have a thesis at that moment but at the end of the workshop she assisted me
as I developed a thesis. I was confused on how I should write my paper so she suggested that I
should go to the writing center to receive extra help. I got great feedback on the scene that I
observed. I was informed I had to grammatically fix a few lines and switch some paragraphs
around to make it fully comprehensive. I added more details along with more sentences to
conjoin the sentences to assure it reached the standard of mine and my professors expectations,
other than that everything was okay I believed, I took Nicole suggestions into consideration and
corrected the things that needed to be corrected.

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Deondra Mayfield
Ethnography paper
Laura Knudson
UWRT -1109
Ethnography

For my Ethnography paper I choose to do my paper on the life of a college football

player and why humans become so excited or hostile over a Football Game? This Behavior is
widely spread throughout the United States. The main focus of this ethnography is to understand
why the behavior is global, and can be contagious. I conducted a mini interview with a football
player and observe the scenery of a football game just to experience their reactions in person.
Why do society let Football control their emotions? To me it was just a game. The first thing that
outsiders notices about a football community, is the support they receive from fans, and how
excited their fans are to see them play.
Football is an American sport where people gather around a one hundred yard field to
watch their favorite teams make field goals, touchdowns and interceptions. It is a time where a
community comes together to cheer on their team to a victory that when received you get
boasting rights. Football consist of fifty-three to one hundred players on a college football team.
When the game is about to start the coach will send out eleven players called the starters to battle
it out over the course of four quarters. The four quarters consist of fifteen minutes per quarter to
break it up mainly for the players to get a little break during half time to rejuvenate the energy

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they lost within the duration of the first half of the game. Game day is mainly on a Saturday for
college football players essentially, so it wont conflict with the NFL players. It became
Americas # 1 sport in 1972. As I observe a Football game and interview an active football
player at Winston Salem State University I notice a lot of things. I was in a big stadium filled
with a lot of people. The stadium were created out of concrete in an oval shape. People was in
their football gear called ram pride which consisted of red, black and white colors. The stadium
was in a oval shape when you looked down at the bottom, you could see the field and the grass in
particular was very green and shiny coming to my conclusion it had to be fake. There were
supporters of the football team everywhere cheering and motivating them on to win. This game
was just a spring football game, I could have imagine what it would have looked like on a real
game day.
As the spring game began the football players came out and ran through a rectangular
paper held by two of the Winston State University cheerleaders with ram pride written on it. You
could hear everyone yelling, screaming and cheering them on saying, whoahhhhhhhh!!!! Were
going to win today, Boys make them holler. As I looked around and stared at the people who
were screaming trying to figure out why they were so excited for a practice game? Each time the
other team would have defense against the Football team of Winston Salem State University you
could hear hundreds of people yelling boooo each time, because they stop them from getting a
touchdown. After being there for a long period time, and sitting watching the game I notice
myself becoming active with the crowd. Every time there was a fumble I would scream out and
have a comment about what just happened. After a while, I started yelling, and noticed my voice
starting to change because I was yelling and screaming at the other team. I have never been a big
football player, and I never knew why people would be so excited for a team to get a touch down

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until I was ranting about the game. I found myself getting suck in with the crowd. When that
happen the whole observation change, because you can find yourself being a fan all because of
the competiveness of the game.
I read an article called the Bleacher Report as it mentioned why football is the top
sport in the United States, and supported by many fans across America. One reason is because of
the big support they receive from their amazing fans. Rain or shine, day or night, hail or sleet
the bleachers will always be filled with a crowd, supporting their number one team. (Turner,
Bleacher Report) I understood why they would have said that, because if you watched the NFL
on T.V the stands are never empty it doesnt matter if it raining, or snowing the fans are
tailgating or showing support by cheering them on. The vibe that you can get from such a
positive crowd from a football game can make you want to cheer the team on also. Therefore, in
my observation I notice that I was becoming a part of the crowd cheering Winston football team,
and tell them to win. The football team need the cheering and the ranting from their fellow
supporters, because as whole they receive confidence from the crowd that they can defeat the
opposing team.
When I interviewed Trey Foggie, a sophomore that attends Winston Salem State
University home of the Rams. His major is Physical Education, and his position on the field is
left tackle. We conducted a mini interview after the spring game a Winston Salem. As he was
getting out of the game heading home. I asked him a series of questions that I was also interested
in knowing after observing the crowd at the game. I asked him why fans go extremely hard over
a football game. I also asked why do he feel that the people that are less interested in football
seems to get dragged in the ranting and cheering from the crowd. From the interview Trey talked

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about a variety of things that are misconstrued though assumptions of football and fans. He
informed me that the other football players are not only his teammates but his family.
Through the intense workouts, victories, failures and everything in between, his
teammates and fans are the people that are always there to keep you balance and help build you
up when you begin to crumble and fall in a game. To have their support gives us the confidence
that we need to feel that we can defeat the other team. They are there for the good, bad and ugly
and we need those people around us. Also Trey stated that football players work harder than the
average student and many dont see that. Football players practice before and after classes in the
weeks leading up to the first game of the season and throughout the season as well. So if we are
in the game and we hear our supporter cheering us on we pick our head up and do the best we
can do even when we are tired. He put it in a perspective for everyone to really understand that
the average football player has a lot of weight on their shoulders and they love their fans, so for
that reason thats why he believe that the fans are over dramatic for their team. However, Trey
felt that the reason why people who are less interested in football, becomes fans when watching
the games, they see how intense the football games are and they see how everyone are so happy,
and excited the adrenaline from them rubs off on them, and puts them in a happy mood and when
creating memories for the human brain they would always want to revisit that moment. I could
understand where he was coming from when stating that statement, because each time the brain
has been exposed to an exciting part of their life they seem to revisit it in their mind and always
want to revisit that moment. I learned this in psychology and I understood why he said this,
because it was a true fact.

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Trey mentioned that Practice is the base of this sub-culture. Practice takes up majority of
the time for a college football player. Although, it is college football even when on the practice
field the supporters of the Ram Football team are still there. I asked him the time of the day that
they have to attend practice he said for many players practice begins in the morning and then
they have class to attend throughout the day. Then they have an afternoon practice as well;
including film to watch to view the mistakes and great plays that was made throughout the game.
Trey felt as if they didnt receive the support of the fans at the game and outside of the game
football wouldnt be as important in America. They love when fans are happy, screaming and
hollering in the stands it shows them that they are a great team.
.

After meeting with Trey Foogie and observing the Scenery at the football game, also
reading background history of Football in America I understood. I now understand why Football
Fans are so supportive of their team, and the reason why they may get hostile at games or even
start dancing at games as they may feel like they are on the team. If you didnt know the
subculture of Football you wouldnt understand. Football Teams take their fans very serious,
they receive confidence from the fans, and gain trust within their team because of this. Without
any fans Football wouldnt be a #1 sport in America. Each individual who makes up a football
team have their own motivation and goal at each game. Having that fellow support from a fan
can actually make their dream or goal come alive in the game. However, Fans see it in a different
ways as the Bleacher Article mentioned they see it as a competition and if this team win and I
support them I can prove to everyone that my team is the best. Some fans have their favorite
player which makes them act excited or hostile in a game. Football provides a bonding time and

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as each of the player plays the fan feel as if theyre on the field playing with them thats why it
such a big sport. I mentioned in my paper when I was observing the scenery I notice myself
getting so involve in the game and when I read the bleacher report it made it all clear why people
are so excited at games, because everyone in the stands of a stadium feels as if they are in a
competition or they are on the field playing. What I have learned from doing this ethnography, is
that America is #1 in football and why football is so important to each and every one on the day
of the game or after. Furthermore I learned the reason why football can be so contagious to each
and every one who is attending the game.

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Citation Page
"Bleacher Report." Bleacher Report. Web. 19 Apr. 2016. <http://bleacherreport.com/>.
Interview Trey.Foggie