Football may attract the largest number of fans and basketball the most dedicated, but in order to truly appreciate what makes collegiate sports so special, go watch a Stanford tennis match.

The experience at the Taube Family Tennis Center is unlike any other. No other sports venue on campus offers fans the opportunity to watch, influence and interact with the players the way Stanford tennis does.

What makes a Cardinal tennis match so special, you ask?

First, due to the large amount of seats and relatively small amount of spectators, you are guaranteed a first-row seat. And first-row seats at the Taube Center practically mean you are on top of the court. Better cover your mouth when you sneeze or that loogie is flying over the net.

Stanford tennis isn’t the only team with a good stadium, though. The first row of Sixth Man stands on the court and any fan can sit right behind the dugout at Sunken Diamond.

True, but what differentiates tennis is the impact and influence those fans can have on game. Yell all you want at a basketball game and you would be lucky if an opposing player heard you two or three times a game. The Red Zone can scream continuously for four quarters and Stanford Stadium wouldn’t even come close to rivaling Husky Stadium or Death Valley in decibel levels.

At Taube, every yell, chant, joke and cough you utter, the player hears. Without the background noise of a football or basketball game, there is simply no way to drown out the 15 or so odd fans that are making noise.

Take the USC match on Feb. 27, for example. Then-No. 1 Steve Johnson faced Cardinal junior Alex Clayton. Johnson made no friends for himself, constantly protesting calls and complaining to the umpire. A group of students was riding Johnson pretty hard, and by the second set Johnson snapped. After Clayton hit a ball deep, the Trojan yelled “That one’s for you guys,” pointing to his hecklers.

Once Johnson acknowledged the crowd, he was done; Clayton went on to close out the match in straight sets. Upon losing, Johnson threw his racket, resulting in a one-point penalty awarded to another match.

But it’s not just the opponents who acknowledge the fans. Watch sophomore Bradley Klahn play. After nearly every point (no exaggeration) he wins, the No. 1 singles and doubles player turns toward the crowd pumping his fist. That’s the equivalent of Andrew Luck running over to the Red Zone clapping his hands after every completion.

The players won’t just look toward you for encouragement; they’ll sit with you. During singles play, six matches are occurring simultaneously. When a player finishes, he goes up to the stands and sits with the rest of the fans, cheering on his teammates. Imagine Jeremy Green strolling over to the 6th Man after fouling out and chanting “D-Fense!”

It would never happen. The level of player involvement in tennis is unparalleled.

Still looking for more reasons? Go to five games and you qualify for a long sleeve, Cardinal Court workout shirt. Be one of the top 30 fans (measured by the amount of games you attend) and you get to rummage through all of the team’s leftover gear. Shoes, shirts, hats, shorts, fleeces, all of it.

There truly is no comparison to Stanford tennis.
Mike Lazarus doesn’t get nearly enough enjoyment out of spewing loogies onto the football field. Learn the rest of his sneezing habits at mlazarus “at” stanford.edu.ꆱ