From the comPost and Slurrier

Feb 16, 2017, 8:04 PM

Clemson fans....quit celebrating!!!!

That house in the neighborhood with the Clemson banner. You know the one. The place that never had a Clemson banner attached until the wee hours of Jan 10.

Or your friend at the gym with the national championship T-shirt. Same T-shirt. Every workout.

But what about that Gamecock fan at the office who suddenly started taking the long way around distant cubicles to reach the restroom? You guys used to be so close.

By the way, the guest speaker thing has taken on a whole new aura.

“Clemson fans can’t wait to hear you talk about the Alabama game,” the introducer guy said to me. “But, please, keep it brief. We have some suffering Gamecock fans that can’t take much more of this.”

Which begs a few questions, particularly in South Carolina, known for politeness, and Charleston, famed for friendliness.

What is proper celebration etiquette?

How long – or how much – are Clemson fans allowed to publicly enjoy the Tigers’ Jan. 9 College Football Playoff national championship game victory before officially becoming obnoxious?

Quiz question No. 1: What’s the best way to react to a finger-waving Clemson fan in the grocery aisle as February winds closer to March?

a. “Yeah, congrats, Frank. Again.”

b. “Do you know where I can find the cookie dough?”

c. “Wait ‘til next year!”

d. Flying groin kick

Clearly, this is a job for sports etiquette experts.

‘In your face’

Dr. Susan Krauss Whitbourne is a professor of Psychological and Brain Science at the University of Massachusetts. She is an adult development expert and author whose work has been featured on “The Today Show” and CNN, and in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Psychology Today and many other publications. She frequently discusses the psychology of sports fandom.

“Don’t be too ‘in your face’ to the USC fans,” Whitborune said. “They really are just like you, except their team lost. It’s too easy for the ‘in group’ to forget how much like the ‘out group’ they actually are.”

Yes, and some of them sleep with each other.

Quiz question No. 2: How long is too long for celebration displays involving clothes, car flags, hair-dye, house banners or brightly colored balloons tied to your desk at work?

a. A week

b. A month

c. Start of the 2017 season

d. Until the Bieber administration normalizes relations with North Korea

Richie Frieman is a manners and etiquette expert, the author of “REPLY ALL … And Other Ways To Tank Your Career” and has addressed sports issues in his Modern Manners Guy columns.

“Even the wildest parties have to come to an end sometime, right?” Frieman said. “And yes, celebrating a win can technically go on forever. Technically. I mean, I’m sure the Cubs will be drinking to their World Series win for a long time. However, making the world know that ‘your team’ reigns supreme loses its novelty after a few months.”

In other words, Frieman stresses, “A championship celebration isn’t your free pass to run around town with your face painted, and yelling at the top of your lungs for four months.”

The Taylor Swift way

Ah, and the slightly less in-your-face but nonetheless nagging habit of “humble bragging” – the art of thinly-veiled swagger rarely lost in translation.

Pop singer Taylor Swift has been dubbed a “humblebrag” master for, among other things, her surprised looks at award shows when announced as a winner. And various tweets.

Such as, “Sitting here with my new People’s Choice Award and Chinese food take out, watching Law and Order. Thank you for a beautiful night

”

And, “That moment when your cat casually walks up, then abruptly ATTACKS your custom satin Oscar de la Renta gown during your fitting for Met Ball.”

Quiz question No. 3: The best/most annoying “humblebrag” line for a Clemson fan is …

a. “No dessert – still trying to lose a little weight from all those dinners in Tampa.”

b. “Deshaun Watson’s family is just so nice; we really got to know them during all our College Football Playoff trips.”

c. “I’m going to go broke if Clemson doesn’t lose a few games next season.”

d. “So how was Birmingham?”

Perhaps Dr. Whitbourne summed up championship etiquette best when asked how long a celebration should continue.

“As long as you like, at least mentally,” she said. “Buying a T-shirt commemorating the event is a celebration that keeps on giving.”

It should be noted that Dr. Whitbourne’s office in Amherst, Mass., is in the heart of New England Patriots country, where they continue to celebrate a Super Bowl victory over the Atlanta Falcons that included a rally from 25 points down.

“For context,” Dr. Whitbourne said, “I just ordered a ‘Wicked Comeback’ T-shirt. Will enjoy it for years to come, I imagine.”

Follow Gene Sapakoff on Twitter @sapakoff

http://www.postandcourier.com/columnists/sapakoff-annoying-clemson-fans-envious-gamecocks-proper-celebration-etiquette/article_73cfcc08-f479-11e6-ab0e-438b24239b21.html