Dear Louisiana State University fan base,

I would like to start off by saying that I have a good group of pals that are LSU students and fans. They are awesome. So if you’re one of my pals at LSU reading this, this is in no way aimed at you. :)

This is for the wild, crazy LSU fans that have made LSU the worst place to play at in the SEC. Now, in some ways, this is a great thing — others schools don’t want to play at Tiger Stadium.

Unlike Alabama, this is not entirely because of the competitive success of the LSU Tigers. They are a great team. They play well. They are talented athletes.

LSU fans are the real reason fewer and fewer fans in opposing colors have made appearances at Death Valley in the past few years.

I was beyond excited to make my first trip to Baton Rouge this past weekend, and man, I was in for a treat.

During the day, I was welcomed with sweet beignets, tasty gumbo and fresh seafood. I felt the same hospitality I feel when I arrive back home in Alabama.

Tailgating wasn’t too bad — granted, I was walking with a group of LSU fans, but I expected a lot more “tiger bait” chants than I received.

When I got to the stadium, my positive impression was completely reversed. Here are just a few of the ridiculous examples:

The 35-year-old man (tbh, he could have been 25, he could have been 45, so this is just a guess) sitting next to us grabbed someone in our group’s face to yell “Geaux Tigers!” Don’t touch us. That’s creepy. Don’t get in my face either. Your breath smells like corndogs.

He then proceeded to flip us off and curse in our faces. This was before the pregame had ended.

The grown man (who, may I mention, earlier told us he had kids) in front of us told us to “Shut the f*** up.” Oh, okay.

As the fans proceeded to leave when they realized the game was over for them, they cursed each other out loudly, as we celebrated our own victory.

Alabama has some rowdy fans. I know. We can be ridiculous. But win or lose, we all still love each other and the Crimson Tide.

The cursing at each other, yelling at people who are young enough to be their children and in your face-ness that I experienced was embarrassing to LSU. Y’all have a fabulous football program: don’t ruin it by treating other people like crap. There’s a difference between being rowdy and being mean.

Just food for thought, or your new big stadium won’t be able to sell out, 'cause no one will want to buy tickets to Death Valley anymore.

RTR,

Steph