By Nolan Cain//Co-Editor A big hit. A perfect throw. A brilliant shot. And the crazy guy in the corner yelling at the top of his lungs. Sports are about more than just the players, and these are three of the fans that make watching sports so great. I love sports. You love sports. We all love sports. Some of us like to play them, while others prefer the role of the fan. Either way, you are part of the game. The athletes don’t exist without the fans, and fans don’t exist without the athletes. While many travel to see the heroic exploits of their favorite athletes or the sheer spectacles that are many stadiums, they would be foolish not to pay attention to the fans. Sometimes it’s worth it to travel just for the fans. Let’s take a look at three super fans who go beyond the call of the average fan and help to create the unique atmosphere at a game. These three can be funky. They can be superstitious. They can be obsessed, but most of all, they are loyal. THE FANS Wes Henson a.k.a. Captain Dee-Fense A 64-year-old Baltimore Ravens fan, Captain Dee-Fense is a tribute to what a fan can accomplish beyond the field of competition. A season ticket holder since the creation of the franchise in 1996, Henson started that inaugural season in his Army dregs with a simple “Defense” sign, until a fateful encounter with a small girl changed him into a Baltimore icon. Dressed in his usual purple and white chains, camo pants, defense sign, Army medals and captain hat, Captain Dee-Fense can hardly hide in his upper deck seats at MT&T Stadium. Inducted into ESPN’s Hall of Fans in 2012, the Captain has used his position as a super fan to help the Baltimore community. Adam Glasser A North Carolina basketball fan, Glasser is the definition of a lifelong supporter. Born into a family of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill graduates, Glasser has been going to games as long as he can remember. Now a student at UNC-CH himself, Glasser has taken his fandom to the next level. Best friends with the walk-ons, Glasser is never more than a few rows from the action. He is the fan you know, who lives and dies with the fortunes of the team. You can recognize him at any basketball game in the Dean Dome with his usual Laney High School or Tune Squad Michael Jordan jerseys. Steve “The Mouth of the South” Roth A baseball fan at Elon University in North Carolina, Roth may be every athlete’s nightmare and every fan’s idol. If you attended an Elon baseball game between 2010 and 2013, you surely heard Roth’s self-described “awful voice” cutting through the air and into the players’ ears. Finding Roth is as easy as opening your ears, but his outfit is equally extraordinary. Roth covers himself in an Elon football jersey, an Elon baseball jersey, Aviator sunglasses and all sorts of bling before topping himself off with a do-rag and a black “Coach” hat. He will also be the only one holding a box of props with his sidekick Max Gongaware and shrieking until the opposing pitcher has to wear ear plugs. HOW IT ALL BEGAN Surely Captain Dee-Fense didn’t just wake up one day and decide that it was time for him to dress like a cartoon character and become the most famous fan in the stadium. In fact, if you listen to him, he is still just another fan in the stadium, but his clothes and demeanor all took shape during an early game in the Ravens’ Memorial Stadium. A small girl approached the tall, ex-Marine, who was dressed in Army clothes with a handwritten sign that read Defense. She asked him if he was the captain of the defense. Inspired by the child, he went to Walmart and purchased a costume that would soon become legendary in the Baltimore community. “I always loved defense,” Henson explains. “I feel like that’s the best way to build a winning team.” And just like that, Captain DeeFense was born. Glasser may not have an inception story with quite the same mystique as the Captain’s, but his fandom may run even deeper. Born into a Carolina family, Glasser is the definition of a Tar Heel lifer. “Both my grandfathers were professors at UNC,” Glasser says. “My mom and dad graduated from UNC. My brother graduated from here and two aunts went here.” Glasser’s family is a glowing example of a school being tied to a home. He grew up in a Carolina blue room, with posters on his walls and a dream of one day playing for the Heels. While Glasser never quite made it as a basketball player, topping out as a benchwarmer for his high school team, his best friend from childhood became a pretty good one. He still remembers the text that his friend James Manor sent him when he had made UNC’s roster as a walk-on in 2012. “Dear #1 fan. It’s official.” And just like that, Glasser went from fan to fanatic. He wasn’t just an ordinary fan anymore. Glasser had become as close to the team as he could have ever hoped. He created Dirty 30 Nation in support of Manor. Glasser was now fully committed to the team that he had spent his life following. For Steve Roth, the choice to become a super fan was a well-thought-out decision. Always a fan of baseball, Roth discovered that Elon had a good team that wasn’t getting much credit or support. “I grew up watching MLB mostly on TV, but actually being at a game in person, and games, in which the players can actually hear you…was something that gave me an evil grin, and the idea to heckle,” Roth explains. He loved the personal aspect of the game and how easy it was for the players to hear every yell he could muster, especially inside the cozy Latham Park. Roth simply decided that being a super fan would be a fun way to generate support for the team. Enlisting the help of his friend, Max Gongaware, a committed fan himself, Roth began to attend games and heckle the opponents. Roth’s voice quickly became as much a part of the game as the weather. He began to study his opponents, bring props (a Gongaware contribution) and before long Roth was being mentioned by opposing players for his heckling efforts. WHAT IT TAKES In his induction into ESPN’s Hall of Fans in 2012, Captain Dee-Fense met the Green Men of the Vancouver Canucks and Emily Pitek, a crazed Alabama softball fan. He noticed the defining characteristics of all of them. “We don’t take life too seriously,” Captain Dee-Fense explains. “We’re having fun. Not hurting nobody. Having a good time!” But they do take their fandom seriously. Captain Dee-Fense gets to the game a full 4 ½ hours early. He shakes hands, takes pictures and just enjoys the tailgate atmosphere. This is immediately noticeable if you run into Captain DeeFense before a Ravens’ game. He is friendlier than Mister Rogers and could have a lively conversation with a wall if he wanted. Between the adoring children and life-long Ravens’ fans, Captain Dee-Fense must pose for a thousand pictures; he smiles and waves for every one of them. “I love the fans,” Captain Dee-Fense beams. “They make me who I am! The players come and go, but the fans will be here forever. I was here when Ray Lewis and Ed Reed got here and they’re gone, but I’m still here!” The Captain spends much of the game wandering away from his seat behind the field goals in section 517. He is given free rein by the ushers to go in and out of sections and chat it up with the Ravens’ faithful. A self-described people person, Captain Dee-Fense does just about everything but sit still during a game. He loves to talk football, loves to cheer (his favorite is when White Stripes’ Seven Nation Army causes the fans and stadium to rock) and loves to put a smile on the face of the fans around him. “I would not rather be anywhere else,” Glasser says, without a hint of hyperbole in his voice. Glasser’s game days are a bit different from Captain Dee-Fense’s. He says that all he can think about is the next game during basketball season, and doesn’t understand why other students fail to line up two hours before each home game. “I had a midterm the day after James’ senior night, and I didn’t study at all for it,” Glasser admits. “I think back on it and I remember the game, but I don’t remember the midterm so it was definitely worth it.” Once inside the stadium, Glasser may never sit down. Whether he is standing in the student section or behind the Carolina bench, Glasser can be seen cheering like a mad man. He has special interest in Carolina blowouts, where Blue Steel, the walk-ons, get into the game. Glasser still thinks his greatest moment in the Dean Smith Center was when Manor dropped in two 3’s in one game for a career high, six points. Roth’s game days are a different animal. He studies, he memorizes, and he schemes. Roth plans each creative insult that he will hurl at his next target. Roth likes to provoke and bother his opponents to no end. He says it’s not uncommon to be threatened by an opposing player’s parents, although nothing has ever happened. Roth claims that he is just making bad jokes about the player’s stats, but scores of opposing fans might argue that he is a nuisance. This wouldn’t bother Roth a bit. He wants nothing more than to be a thorn in the opposing team’s side and loves that he has the power to actually influence the game. “Loud, prepared and relentless,” Gongaware describes his friend Roth. “Elon’s ballpark is one of the smallest in the nation. Steve might be one of the loudest people in the nation. Put the two of those things together, and there wasn’t a single person in that ballpark who didn’t hear what he had to say.” WHY THEY CONTINUE “I love it,” Captain Dee-Fense says as his eyes light up while explaining the joy of going to the games, putting a smile on the faces of other fans and cheering on his Ravens. “People always remember how you make them feel.” He’s traveled around the United States to root on the Ravens. From Seattle to Buffalo to the Super Bowl in New Orleans, Captain Dee-Fense has spent countless weekends following his favorite football team around the country. A natural teacher and talker, Captain Dee-Fense loves the community that comes with being a Ravens’ fan. He sees it as an opportunity to give back to Baltimore and make it a better place. Whether he is volunteering at a local school or attending a die-hard fan’s funeral, Captain DeeFense is a reminder that Baltimore is a unified place and everyone can support the Ravens. Captain Dee-Fense is at MT&T Stadium every Ravens’ game with the most fearsome outfit in the stands. Glasser has a different perspective on why he dedicates so much of his time to being a Tar Heel fan. He sees it as something he loves doing. A basketball fanatic who gets to see some of the best players in the world from an arm’s length away, he cannot think of anything better than being in the Smith Center on game night. “People take them for granted,” Glasser says. “They’re a huge part of the university.” He also loves the values that the UNC program has that are not always present at other schools. “We have kept the JV team,” Glasser says. “Most schools have cut it, but we’re committed to allowing hardworking students to get a shot as making the team.” This community feel is one of the reasons Glasser loves following the Tar Heel program. Glasser is in the midst of another exciting season in Chapel Hill, and although Manor has graduated, another good friend of Glasser’s, Sasha Seymore, is with the Tar Heels as a walk-on. Roth may be a hard core heckler, but he really is a sensitive fan at heart. He loves that his fandom has brought larger crowds to the games, entertained the fans and helped Elon win games over the years. A celebrity in the community, Roth occasionally signs autographs and is cognizant to never curse or yell anything too crude. He and his partner Gongaware remember the games as the highlights of their college career. “While most people look back on college, they remember all the parties they went to. I mostly just think back on Elon sporting events, especially baseball games with Steve.” Gongaware reminisces. Roth and Gongaware had to stop their Elon baseball fandom after they graduated and moved away, but their four-year reign as some of the best fans in college may one day resume. “I would have kept it up, but I’m not in the area anymore,” Roth laments. Maybe one day he will return and use that awful voice of his to cheer on Elon baseball again.
