Wednesday night proved once again how special Aggie fans are. After days of camping outside, USU students flooded the Spectrum in anticipation of the men’s basketball team’s 37th consecutive home victory.

Propelled by one of the loudest and most raucous crowds I’ve experienced in my time at USU, the Aggies delivered again, beating hated in-state rival BYU. Due to the growing home winning streak, the move to the WAC and increased national recognition, much has been made of USU students and the environment at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. Having grown up in Cache Valley, I’ve attended Aggie basketball games for the past 20 years and they are only getting better.

“The students were just fabulous, they set the whole tone for how it’s going to be. They might go over the edge a little bit, that’s OK by me. It might not be OK by everybody else, but it’s OK by me,” said USU head coach Stew Morrill after the Aggies victory Wednesday night. “I used to tell them go right up to the edge. Now they’ve done and gone over the edge – so what? They were big time tonight.”

Though Utah State has always been tough to play in the Spectrum – the Aggies are 455-155 (81.3 percent) in the 40-year history of the building – the Aggies have reached a new level under Morrill. In his 12 seasons at the helm, Morrill’s teams are an astounding 162-12 (93.1 percent) in the Spectrum.

Wednesday marked my final game as an Aggie student. On that note, I elected to spend it as part of the Aggie Student Section and not on press row. It was a decision I’ll never regret.

Utah State has, by far, the best and most dedicated fans in the state. Not only do they pack the Spectrum for home games, but they travel well too. I’ve been lucky enough to cover USU athletics for three semesters now as a member of The Statesman and have seen many home crowds silenced by the Spectrum on Wheels.

Some – especially fans, coaches and teammates from rival schools – say USU students are crossing the line. However, the majority of the insults, though loud, are good-natured college fun.

I’m proud to have been a small part of a group that has become one of the most feared in all the country. I’m proud to be an Aggie. There are no better fans than those found at USU – certainly not in this state.

Though it is unfortunate that not every student who wanted to go to the game was able to make it inside the Spectrum Wednesday, the fact that USU has that problem – despite one of the largest student sections in the country – is humbling.

Utah State, hey Aggies all the way. Go Aggies, go Aggies – hey, hey, hey.