The Fanatic Four: Fandom at George Mason University

With homecoming in full swing, the Patriot Platoon will once again fill the student section of the Patriot Center Tuesday, Feb. 16, for the men's basketball game against William & Mary. Here, in a picture from last Tuesday's home game against VCU, they sport tri-corner hats and contributed to the attendance record that was broken that night.  
(Photo by Student Media Photography Manager Peter Flint)

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They stand one next to the other, their game faces on and sheer excitement among them. They each stare intently into the mirror. Their work is precise and well-rehearsed, not to be taken lightly. They methodically cover their faces in paint, half green and half gold. The wigs, headbands and wristbands go on next. They exit the men’s restroom in the Patriot Center and make their way to the designated student section — the front row of the student section, of course.

“Let’s go guys, let’s go! C’mon!” 22-year-old George Mason junior Jon Byrum yells to his four companions.

This is the pre-game ritual of the avid members of Mason’s Patriot Platoon. The Platoon, a fan club intended to generate support for Coach Jim Larranaga and the basketball squad, creates a sea of yellow in the student sections located in the end zones at each home game.

Three seniors, Sean Gagnon, 22, Brian Glaser, 21, and Marc Kotwicki, 23, join Byrum in the front row. These four fanatics arrive early enough to claim the same four seats at every game; then the pre-game painting ritual begins.

“I love the rush building up to the game, that feeling of anticipation,” Kotwicki said. “Getting all done up before the game is almost as fun as the game itself.”

The Patriot Platoon, which was established in 2003 by the George Mason Athletic Department, began as a small club of just 25 members to promote the mid-major basketball program. However, following the team’s miracle run to the Final Four in Indianapolis in 2006, the team has received national attention and the Platoon’s membership has skyrocketed. Currently, the fan club is comprised of over 550 members.  

All 550 Platooners sport a yellow, club-issued T-shirt to the games. Yet, the “fanatic four” go beyond the majority of the club members, adding creative garments to the look. Glaser wears a green collared shirt under the T-shirt, green shorts, long green socks, a yellow wig, wristbands, a beaded necklace and aviators. Unlike his four companions, he does not paint his face.

“I got the yellow afro midway through the Final Four season and I’ve stuck with it,” Glaser said. “And eventually I just felt like I needed to add something else to the look, so I started wearing the aviators instead of painting my face.”

Inspired by Glaser’s yellow wig, Byrum added a green wig to his already fanatical look. Also new to his outfit this year is a Nike Dri-Fit long-sleeve green shirt under his T-shirt.

“Last year I just wore a regular long-sleeve green shirt and I got way too hot during the games, so I put in a little money this year and got the Dri-Fit shirt,” Byrum said. “So my outfit should look and feel better this time around.”

Byrum, Gagnon, Glaser and Kotwicki do much more than just look the part. Similar to the players on the court, each one of the fanatics has their own role in the group.

“All four of us bring something to the table,” Byrum said. “Marc will just yell anything crazy, Sean and Brian start the chants when the cheerleaders don’t and I’m the smack-talker.”

Byrum, a junior from Woodbridge, Va. who transferred to Mason from Indiana State, has been an avid sports fan his entire life. A Wizards and Redskins season tickets holder since he was a child, he has always been surrounded by sports. He chose to attend Indiana State because Larry Bird led them to the national title game against a Magic Johnson-led Michigan State team in 1979. Not satisfied with the school, however, he wanted to find somewhere closer to home. Naturally, he decided to come to Mason following their run to the Final Four in 2006. He joined the Platoon as soon as he arrived on campus.

“I saw the Platoon as an opportunity to get out and meet new people,” he said. “When it comes to sports, I’m probably the craziest person you can find. I go all out no matter who I’m rooting for, so I wanted to find some people like me.”

There are several perks involved with joining the Platoon. Members get priority seating in the student section at every home basketball game. Whereas the doors open an hour before the tip-off for regular students, Platooners can enter the arena an hour and fifteen minutes prior to the tip. Each year, members get the yellow T-shirt, have pregame tailgates with free food and have access to a team practice. Also, members get first priority to tickets for all of Mason’s post-season action, including the CAA and NCAA tournament games.

“For the Final Four game, Platoon members were the only people who could just buy tickets without camping out,” Gagnon said. “I had to camp out for the tickets because I wasn’t a member at the time, so I joined the Platoon the next year.”

Gagnon, a senior also from Woodbridge and a latecomer to the world of sports, only attended two of the team’s regular season games his freshman year in 2006. However, his interest in the game of basketball was sparked during the team’s success in March Madness. He attended the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games against Wichita State and UConn at the Verizon Center, and then traveled to Indianapolis where the squad lost to Florida in the National Semifinal. He has been to every home game since.

“I wasn’t a fan before, but when we made it to the Final Four, the energy there drew me to the sport,” Gagnon said. “Now I just go crazy at every game; it really is a lot of fun.”

Glaser, unlike Gagnon, has been playing basketball since he was 8 and it has always been one of his passions. His older sister attended Mason and was part of the “Green Machine,” which is the student pep band. Living just a few miles away in Vienna, he began coming to games his junior year of high school to watch her and loved the environment in the Patriot Center. Glaser has missed just one home basketball game since he was a junior in high school, and he joined the Platoon his freshman year at Mason.

“The Platoon provides such a great atmosphere at home games,” Glaser said. “It all starts with the Platoon — other students look to us to lead the cheering. We really help get all the fans into the game.”

From being the first people to turn their backs during the opposing team’s starting line-up introduction to being the first to raise their arms high into the air for free throws, the fanatics lead by example for the other Platooners. Even from ten rows back in the student section, the fanatics can be heard over the other screaming Patriots.

The loudest is Kotwicki, a sixth-year senior who has also been into basketball his entire life. He played AAU basketball from ages 9 to 14, played Varsity for Fairfax High School and was recruited by Randolph-Macon to play Division III ball. However, not feeling like it was the right school for him academically and being a fan of Mason basketball, he instead became a Patriot and joined the Platoon his freshman year.

“The Platoon members are die-hard fans; we convince those fair-weather fans to come to games and get crazy,” Kotwicki said. “Every college needs that group of wild fans who yell at the camera, heckle the opponents and dress crazy as hell at games, and that’s what the Platoon is all about.”

Certainly the “fanatic four” are not the only Platoon members partaking in the rituals of fandom. The sea of yellow that is the Platoon stands the entire game, sings along with the “Green Machine,” yells the cheers along with the cheerleaders, heckles the opponents and makes as much noise as possible throughout the game.

Coach Larranaga and his crew were a perfect 14-0 in front of the home crowd a year ago. At home this season, the squad is 11-1 overall and 7-0 in conference games. However, the squad is just 4-7 in road games and 1-2 at neutral sites. The loss at ODU over the weekend dropped them into third place in the CAA with a record of 11-4. 

The Platoon was out in full force when the VCU Rams came to town last week during the blizzard. The already intense rivalry reached an all-time high thanks to the “GMU vs. VCU Facebook Face-Off,” which Mason won in the final seconds, just like the game. After trailing by as many as 13 points, the Patriots tied it up in the final seconds of regulation and eventually won in overtime 82-77. The next home game is Feb. 16 against William & Mary, followed by the Homecoming game against the College of Charleston on Feb. 20.

“Before the Platoon was created, we really didn’t win very much,” Gagnon said. “The club started three years before I got here, and we’ve just been winning ever since. And I think the fans have a lot to do with it.”

Coach Larranaga and the players do not overlook the importance of a supportive fan base. Following Mason’s victory over Liberty in the home opener this season, Larranaga thanked the student section for providing so much passion and energy. As the Platoon continues to grow, the squad continues to get better and better in the Patriot Center.

Creating a passionate and electrifying environment has become a defining characteristic for the major powerhouse basketball schools. Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium, Kansas’ Allen Fieldhouse and Michigan States’ Breslin Center have all become famous for their wild and devoted students. Mason still has a long way to go to reach this level, but the “fanatic four” are laying the foundation necessary to generate a more celebrated student section in the Patriot Center.

“It’s cool to be on TV, but that’s not why I do this,” Byrum said. “Being an athlete myself, I know how a crowd can affect a game. If that means getting crazy and jumping up and down, then so be it. And it really is an adrenaline rush for us, too.”