They were well aware of the malicious chatter that can come from the angered pounding of computer keys. As much as members of the Oregon football team — a team that fell to 3-3 after a 45-38 double overtime loss to Washington State — did their best to not pay attention to it, they couldn’t completely ignore the noise on social media.
And there was a lot of it.
“It was a different start of the season than the fans or the media have seen,” Oregon senior offensive tackle Tyler Johnstone said. “Of course you’re going to have a bunch of people asking questions and jumping on the ‘Oregon sucks’ bandwagon, but we keep believing in each other, we keep pushing each other and we silence the noise.”
Since the loss to Washington State, Oregon has won its last three games. Subsequently, the noise on social media has changed its tune. The expectations for the team have changed, also. A return trip to the College Football Playoff is out of the question, but there’s still more on the line for the Ducks this season.
“It’s a matter of, ‘What do we want to be remembered by?’ ” Oregon center Matt Hegarty said. “I think preseason expectations go all over the place. But at a few points in the season things have gone all over the place, so I think we’re trying to solidify what people remember about this 2015 team — and that’s a team that competed and closed out the season the way they were supposed to.”
In recent weeks, fans have been more positive with players on social media. For some players, the back-and-forth nature of fans on sites like Twitter— where fans have an outlet of direct communication with members of the football team — is comical. Players share stories and laugh about it.
Oregon defensive back Arrion Springs remembers the time a fan tweeted at him, saying, “I don’t pay college tuition to watch Arrion Springs play football.” Springs said that same fan apologized to him last week. “So, we’re all good now,” Springs joked.
Oregon receiver Devon Allen has had similar experiences with fans on social media.
“One week, I’m the best football player in football history. The next, they think I should just stick to track,” Allen said. “That’s just how it is sometimes. You can’t really pay attention because people are going to say what they’re going to say. It’s not a big deal.”
With three games left in Oregon’s schedule, the “Oregon sucks” bandwagon that Johnstone mentioned from after the Washington State loss isn’t as full as it used to be. The team is on a positive trajectory and they want the fans to join them.
“I hate to sound disrespectful at all, but I always go back to the quote, ‘The lion doesn’t concern himself with the opinions of sheep,’ ” Hegarty said. “I’m a really positive guy, so if you’re not moving in that positive direction, then you’re kind of a sheep — and you tune those people out. Anyone that wants to be on board in a positive way, they can jump on board.”
Follow Joseph Hoyt on Twitter @JoeJHoyt.