Do "Nerds" Not Enjoy Sports, Or Just Not Mainstream Ones?

[Xannidel]

I am a nerd and I played American soccer for 9+ years. I have stopped playing but that was not because I would prefer to play games but because of what my high school coach told me.

 

[funnydude6556]

So I suppose that despite being an active, popular, social individual, the fact that I pay video games makes me a nerd.

The term is an anachronism if you ask me, but the answer to your question is that yes, I do like sports, I like Fencing and Kung Fu.

Mainstream sports rather bore me.

Who called you a nerd for playing video games? Takes more then that to be a nerd.

As I said, the term doesn't make any sense to me, because the set of criteria that make one a "Nerd" don't apply to the people who are called "Nerds"

A nerd is an obsessively studious person, to the point that they ignore and lack other skills, usually socializing. This applies to a lot of people I've come across, and most of them didn't play any more video games or read any more comics than the average person, but you'd never hear someone obsessive about religion or football called a nerd, so the term is misused.

I guess that the answer to the OP's question is that your interests can't define you as a nerd, so yes, there are plenty of nerds who basically do nothing else but obsess over sports.

But even if the term is used correctly, it's a pretty hateful thing to insult someone who's only crime is being boring or studios, so I say don't use it at all and stick to real insults like "You're an insecure, mean spirited jackass who needs to put down other people to feel good about yourself. In other words, you're the kind of person who calls people nerds"

I don't like the culture surrounding the term "Nerd", and I think it'd be best to put down the word permanently.

The problems seems to stem from the media. A lot of TV and Movies revolving around high schools play up this idea of what a typical "Nerd" is. A lot of people think so much about the stereotypical nerd they just forget what the word actually means.

 

[GoldenEyedScout]

I personally enjoy hockey. I'm trying to decide on a hockey team. I like Vancouver, in part because geographically, they are the closest, but they have been quite good the last few years, and suddenly becoming a fan would seem like I was bandwagoning them.

Also, MMA and hockey are both mainstream, so don't act like you're somehow different than everyone else.

The Philadelphia Flyers are always open to accepting new converts.
And true, they are mainstream, however, depending on your location, you're unlikely to hear people shooting the breeze on Georges St. Pierre or Demetrius Johnson, but are far more likely to hear people talking about the Lakers, or the Cowboys, or whoever.

Flyers? What are those? What sport is that? THERE'S NO HOCKEY. WHAT HOCKEY? NEVER HEARD OF IT. *Quiet sobbing noises, whilst cursing the NHL and NHLPA can be heard*

It's okay, we'll get through this together, I promise.

 

[Jaeke]

I played Defensive End for Football (American) for 4 years. I was MvP for two of those and won the championship once.

I'm 6' 2'' and play basketball just about everyday (I just suck at dribbling ), I also love wrestling, if it weren't for the $200 paycheck it takes to join the team I would totally go for it. But I do plan on joining weightlifting next year (my max is about 120 lbs right now, which isn't much considering I'm 135 lbs but for the length of my arms it breaks about even).

I can also name every single Daedric Lord and their Oblivion plane, explain the power-level hiearchy of every major character from Lord of the Rings, name the entire Norse Pantheon, have played over 200 games (yeah I actually counted it up the other day to about 221, not including browsers like League of Legends or casuals like Angry Birds/Castle Crashers) had 5 max level chars on World of Warcraft and Guild Wars (I vaguely recall one on Dark Ages of Camelot when I was young) have a 4.09 gpa, and can also play the theme song to Halo, The Elder Scrolls, and Legend of Zelda (Zelda's Lullaby) on guitar.

So yeah, nerds can like sports too.

Captcha: sky's the limit

Appearently.

 

[ElectroJosh]

Seems like the answer here is: yes.

In my case I love Rugby which, living in New Zealand, is the majority sport. I also enjoy basketball (and wish I could find people to play with socially) and follow the Formula 1, rugby League and tennis a bit. But I have nerd credentials; play magic, play video games (particularly rpgs) also I read a lot of sci-fi and fantasy. I also used to get "teased" (not in a mean way though - just from some of my friend's older siblings) back in school for being a gamer - but by time I left High School gaming wasn't considered fringe anymore

I have quite a few geeky friends who are not at all into sports and others that, like me, are obsessed.

 

[Terminate421]

I'm not a fan but I enjoy watching the following:

Gators, Ravens, Dolphins, and the Cowboys games.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

If I didn't enjoy sports, I wouldn't be despairing at all this NHL lockout bullshit.

 

[Coppernerves]

Do Nerds not like mainstream sports?

Well, what is a nerd? Do they have to be socially inept, or physically unfit, or sexually unattractive to count? Or do they just have to be really into sciences and technologies of various sorts?

I think spectating sports is a primarily social activity, supporting your team and bonding with the crowd, therefore social ineptitude certainly retards the ability to enjoy most mainstream team sports.

There's lots of strategy within sports, and a lot of scientific things which go into making a good athlete, like diet, psychology, the biology of exercise and fitness, the physics and biomechanics of the perfect drop-kick.

But there are a lot of other areas of science and technology, most areas of them aren't the above, so most nerds have other interests.

 

[Griff]

I've gone off football.But thats probably since my local team is so awful it was just painful to watch. I've always loved playing sports, more than watching them but I'm getting particularly keen at the moment about international Rugby, I generally support the home nations inc. All Ireland.

On the other hand I do keenly follow the SC2 E-Sport scene.

 

[yankeefan19]

I love Baseball with a passion (just look at my username), although many have called baseball "the nerd's game". I also watch American Football and soccer but I don't follow them as religiously as I do Baseball. I also sort of follow professional Starcraft.

 

[Danzavare]

I love watching Tennis and the Fifa World Cup. I also enjoy some of the unconventional sports in the Olympics (EXTREME badminton for example).

As for playing, I enjoy basketball, hiking (If it counts) and I think I'd enjoy kayaking if I had the chance to do it more than once. I had mixed feelings about PE in school. It was great playing sport with people I know and liked but being forced to play rugby with jerks more than half the time wasn't fun (That and I can't stand NRL/AFL/Grid Iron/Anything similar).

 

[conmag9]

It varies by person. I, for example, despise nearly all sports as a ridiculous waste of enormous piles of money (buildings, equipment, paychecks for professional athletes etc.) with extremely little to recommend itself with. Some are worse than others, but the idea of moving a ball from one spot to another (by carrying, dribbling, hitting, kicking, what have you) seems very boring. I've seen cities pay millions of dollars in constructing sports stadiums, on the HOPE that MAYBE the Olympics might come here. The fact that this happens makes me furious. Yeah, we could have used that money to pour into infrastructure, or research, or social improvement, but I'm sure building something primarily on the odds that a one time event occurs here would be a perfectly acceptable alternative. UGGG.

 

[RamirezDoEverything]

I like football. Patriots fan.

Spoiler

I'm a Pats and Orioles fan. Something the old man and I can talk about. I certainly can't talk about vidya games or the fucking about I do online.

 

[synobal]

I enjoy sports just not the 'fan' culture around them. You try to have a reasonable discussion about why one team is better than another and it devolves into fanboism rather quickly. It makes console wars look tame.

 

[Ljs1121]

Watching sports is lame.
Playing sports is fun.

I agree with this wholeheartedly.

However, I do watch my state's teams every now and again partly for the lolz and partly just so I can have something to talk about with other people.

That being said, go Bears.

 

[siddif]

Im a huge nerd (many people will agree with me on this) I absolutely love ice hockey (specifically the UK's EIHL but occasionally NHL when I can see the matches)grew up watching a lot of WWF/WWE and am quite fond of Gaelic football (especially when my home county is playing) so on personal experience I'd disagree though I'm not a soccer or american football fan at all.

 

[COMaestro]

Sports have really never interested me. I played various sports as a kid, actually had a pretty big interest in pro hockey and watched it and played roller hockey a lot in my junior high years, but it went away once I hit high school. I know many of the rules for most American sports but I get bored to death watching them. I went to my high school football games to hang out with a friend more than to watch the game. I only went to one game during my college years, and again more because I was going with friends than because I wanted to be there. When my friends got together to watch the games on TV after we graduated, I would often bring a book to read. I played my GBA (Zelda: the Minish Cap) during an entire pro basketball game I went to with friends.

I think it is because I have no vested interest in who wins these games. It does not affect me in any way. I'd rather read a book or watch TV or a movie as there is at least a story to enjoy there. I'd rather play a game as I have some effect on the outcome. Playing a sport is enjoyable though, but I've never had much in the way of stamina in order to run around a lot. But passing a ball or frisbee back and forth or shooting hoops, etc can be a lot of fun.

 

[AsurasEyes]

MMA and paintball are the reasons I'm a skinny kid rather than a fat one.

 

[woolfie]

No, we hate sports. All of them. Ever. >.> <.<

What are you looking at?

to be honest i could see how supporting arsenal could lead to a hatred of sports.....