Photo: C.P.StormEvery time an opposing player is penalized at a University of Michigan home hockey game, the student fans begin chanting long strings of obscene epithets. After the first few times this happened, the band began playing loud music (lots of drums) to drown this out. This is a repeated game, with the students as the first-mover (strategy: chant/no chant), and the band a follower (strategy: play/don’t play).
By now, with many rounds (penalties) having occurred during games, other fans can’t hear the students at all; the second they begin to chant, the band begins playing.
This is not a desirable equilibrium for the students. What should they do to have some impact (assuming they aren’t just chanting to hear themselves)? They will always be first-movers, which is a disadvantage in this case; but perhaps if they randomize chanting (chant only at random penalties) they can surprise the band and have a few seconds of audible chanting.
Of course, after a while the band will simply start playing at every penalty, so randomized chanting won’t work either. I think the equilibrium is that the students will never be heard. Is there any hope for them?
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Students should make it a three stage game:
1.) Chant/Don’t chant
2.) Play/Don’t play
3.) Throw stuff at band leader/Continue to chant
Message cards, ala Kim il Sun (and the PacTen fans)?
They should begin their chanting whenever the band stops playing. This makes the band the first mover by extending the game to 2 acts.
Sneak a lion into the game. When the first player of the opposing team is ejected, wave a slab of beef under the lion’s nose, take the lion off his leash, and throw the the beef into the band’s section. This will not only let the students get their obscene words in after that particular penalty; it will also let the band know who’s boss in the future.
The band is made up of students also, right? It doesn’t seem like it should be that hard to influence the band with peer pressure outside of the stadium.
The students need to switch roles with the band.
Maybe if they add another game to this where the band is the first-mover (strategy: play/don’t play), and the fans become a follower (strategy: make noise/don’t make noise) they could use that to bargain against the band.
If the fans started making noise (using noisemakers, etc.) to drown out the band, I’d bet the band would eventually quit playing music to drown out the fans.
For the band to be able to play their music, they would have to let the fans do their chants…
I was part of U of M’s hockey band for two years during undergrad, and I have to say that listening to the student section cheer was one of the most amusing parts of the experience.
I agree with Steve; the band can’t play during the game so cheers after or before the break would be the most effective.
What a sad state of affairs – the home advantage provided is being compromised when the band and crowd compete. Arguably, the UofM players lose.
A better approach by the hockey team/administration would be to instruct the referees to give the home team a bench minor penalty every time the obscene chant is heard. After a few power-play goals scored against them, the students themselves will be screaming obscenities at any student daring to start the chant.
Then they should post up some clever cheers or distribute song sheets – band and crowd working together…