ETSU’s Phony Closing

“Go Bucs!” is now said after every coach’s interview and press conference. And may be the most forced line in sports.

Go Bucs!

It seems like something natural for East Tennessee State fans to say; something to put on banners, bumper stickers, and T-Shirts.

Except what should be a hearty cheer coming from the stands or a natural greeting when two fans wearing ETSU gear meet each other walking down the street has become a weird closing for coaches to say and a tag line for fans to recite in leu of actual discussion on the team.

Listen to an interview or a press conference and the ETSU coach will invariably end it with “Go Bucs!”

Make a social media comment on ETSU sports, and rather than offering discussion on the point you have made, it has become commonplace to just reply “Go Bucs,” which does nothing but let the point you’ve made die.

To be clear, I have no desire to suppress natural cheering or enthusiasm for the Buccaneers. The success of this blog demands ETSU have a devoted fan base searching for knowledge.

It’s just the way “Go Bucs” is currently being used is not natural and makes fans appear to be drones.

The first time I can remember “Go Bucs” being used to close out an interview was when Jason Shay was the ETSU head men’s basketball coach. He used it as a closing in his pregame interviews with Bucs play-by-play broadcaster Jay Sandos.