Get on the wagon...

You have to love this time of year. Baseball is finally starting to mean something, even if its one of the most boring sports out there. Sorry, but Barry Bonds' home run chase didn't captivate nearly as much as a feat like that should have, regardless of the issues surrounding his Royal 'Roidness. Soccer fans can relish the recent flurry of great MLS matches and the start of the European leagues which are always entertaining. College and professional football are wrapping up the preseason and getting ready for the real stuff. And of course, the new national past-time of fantasy football has many a fantasy owner gearing up for their most special time of the year, the fantasy football draft.

It is without question the best time of year to be a sports fan.

Unless of course, you live in the South Florida area where the pathetic bandwagoners and constant whining from "sports fans" do a great job of ruining the best time of year.

South Florida teams have been lucky in relatively short existences as sport franchises to be very successful. The Dolphins can lay claim to the only undefeated season an NFL team has ever seen. The Canes have 5 football national championships to showoff to all their "rabid" fans. The Marlins have 2 World Series titles in less than 20 years -- or more than what the Red Sox, Cubs, and Mets can say combined in that span. Since hockey really doesn't count, we'll leave the Panthers alone, but they did have a nice run with the Beezer in the mid-90's as well.

So, how does the South Florida sports fan base reward these organizations? Lets take a look:

Miami Heat
Before Shaq and D-Wade, did this franchise even exist? Sure Hardaway and 'Zo were around, but even in the heat (pun intended) of the rivalry with the Knicks, fans didn't really take to the NBA in South Florida on a regular basis.

Fast forward to Shaq, D-Wade, and an NBA championship and suddenly the streets of Miami are teeming with Heat die-hards. The passion was there...it was White Hot!

Time came for a run at a repeat...but the fans were nowhere to be found. Shaq was taking his normal regular season break, D-Wade was hurt on and off, and the supporting cast was lead by Jason Kapono...yes, the UCLA sharpshooter himself.

So, maybe it wasn't the best basketball to watch, but your team was the DEFENDING CHAMPIONS...SHOW UP! The sea of empty seats game after game showed most South Florida sports fans true colors.

Florida Marlins
This team's fan base is by far the most pathetic. With all the success the Marlins have had, it's an absolute joke that they can barely average 10,000 fans a game. Ok, maybe its a bit more, but still, it is poor at best. The excuses given for non-attendance are laughable. "It's not a stadium made for baseball." Weak. "The traffic is atrocious." Weaker. "I don't want to make the trip because there is always a chance or rain." Weakest.

Sure the two fire sales after World Series titles were probably not easy to swallow, but the team has proven time and again that it can and will rebuild into a winner. The fact that they want to build a new stadium for this team would be the biggest waste of private and/or taxpayer dollars.

Miami Dolphins
Aside from Dan Marino and the '72 undefeated team, these fans probably have the biggest gripe overall. The team has had a playoff drought that ranks among the worst in the NFL including the Detroit Lions, Arizona Cardinals, and Buffalo Bills. Of the local sports teams (college and pro), they are probably the least fair-weathered, but they have definitely been showing signs of late. Poor choices at head coach (Nick Saban is known by many a local 790 the Ticket sports radio listener as Osabin Bin Lyin) and some questionable drafts of late don't help either.

University of Miami Hurricanes
I'll preface this next one by saying that I firmly support the Florida State Seminoles, an obvious arch rival. However, that in no way will taint the argument against this band of front-running "fanatics."

Temple comes to town...10,000 fans. UNC comes to town...29,000. Virginia Tech...49,000. The capacity at the Orange Bowl is 72,000+. Your main rival, aside from Florida State, comes to town and the stadium is 32% empty. Deplorable. Woeful. Just poor.

South Florida may be a hotbed for the athletic talent on the field, but that talent is not supported on a consistent basis. Forget consistent, that talent is not even supported on a marginal basis.

So with the recent announcement that the Canes would be moving to Dolphins Stadium starting next year, the "fanbase" was outraged. Upon hearing of the possible move, they staged a protest on a sunny weekend at the OB. The turnout was tremendous...a whole 75 people! What passion!

It's been funny to hear the complaints from these "diehard" Canes supporters.

"I won't drive to Dolphins Stadium, it's takes to long from my home." - Understood, I'm sure the people in LA, NY, and Boston have a rough time too.

"We won't have a home field advantage there." - Hate to break it to you, but when you don't show up, that is generally what happens.

"I'll miss the atmosphere from the OB." -Yes, it is tough to not have to deal with leaky urinals, horrible parking, and abysmal stadium management from a usually corrupt City of Miami.

Alright, it's not just me people. Dan LeBatard, he of Miami Herald, ESPN the Magazine, and substitute PTI fame, had this to say. It's pretty obvious that the UM braintrust made a business decision. Maybe if the fans showed up in force for every home game and not the 1 or 2 big ones per year, the OB situation could've came out differently. But even if it didn't, you turn your back on your team because it's going to play at a different stadium a little further north? Nice support, diehard.

So in all, what a great time of year. That is, unless you live in the front-running, bandwagoning capitol of this sports crazed country, M-I-A-M-I!

That's right....LA has been passed, sports fans. We have a new king!