Book Review: Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer

From the beginning, Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer was a book that really hit home for me. The author, Warren St. John, was originally from the Birmingham, Alabama area but had left the area (and the South) for school and then a career (replace Birmingham with Huntsville and that's not too far off for me). Like me, he was raised a fan of the University of Alabama and still has a love for Crimson Tide football.

Using this perspective (Bama fans can be some of the most deranged, for better or worse), St. John embarks on a fascinating journey into what makes the mind of a fan work the way it does. What causes the automatic "Us vs. Them" reaction? What causes the crowd mentality? What makes us want to cheer for a group of guys we have never met and might not even like if we ever did?

St. John spends a season among the RV'ers, a hardcore group of fans that drive motor homes to every game and spend a couple of days at what amounts to an extended tailgate party. We follow him through his trials in getting accepted into the group, meeting the various characters that ride this crazy circuit, through the ups and downs of a rollercoaster of a football season: 1999, which started with the coach getting sued for sexual harassment (bad), included a loss to Louisiana Tech (very bad), an overtime win against Florida (good) coached by Steve Spurrier (making it even better), a loss to Tennessee (bad for what felt like the 20th year in a row), a win at Auburn (very good), and another win over Florida for the SEC championship (also very good). We meet people involved with every aspect of the game other than the game itself. Ticket brokers? Yep. Students? Of course. Sports writers? Them too. Insane fans? By the score.

As I read the book, I was struck by the feeling that I know these people. Fine I didn't know these people. I didn't know Skipper, Chicken Man, the Heart Guy or the Bices, but I know these people. I've sat next to them at games. I've talked with them about the teams chances when I hardly knew them at all. A few years ago, on a flight from Cleveland where I had just gone for a job interview, I was seated directly behind a guy wearing a University of Alabama cap. That was all the help the conversation needed to get started, so that we could find out that we were both Northern Alabama ex-pats living in the same area of the Midwest. The hat immediately said, "one of us."

Throughout the book, Warren St. John tells his story with intelligence and humor. He is telling the story of being a fan, but with the full knowledge that this fandom is an unrealistic place. The fan is mocked and exalted on the same page, by the only person who can accurately explain both sides of the argument, a fan.

While I have never risked missing an organ transplant, or skipped a loved one's wedding because of a football game (hey, I was even in a friend's wedding during the Iron Bowl a few years ago...you know who you are), I loved this book and have to recommend it to anyone who is a fan or loves a fan.

Until later...

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