I have heard contradicting versions of whether Mustipher was booed, he was the first PSU player hurt at 13:12 in the 1Q. So I just played my recording of the game to check.
You can hear a small smattering of boos while Mustipher was on the ground, but not its not as loud as the boos later in the game. This is probably why there is confusion on whether he was booed or not.
But I am told by people who went to the game that the boos were much louder. And it wasn't just boos for injured PSU players. There were boos when the wind was blowing the ball off the tee on the opening PSU kickoff! Iowa fans were booing early and often and many times it was just an over-reaction before any pattern was established. Now maybe later on, there were those 3 injuries that were questionable, but its still not obvious to me that PSU was faking injuries, even if the Iowa coaches think so. The fact that Iowa coaches are feeding into this behavior by fans is embarrassing as an Iowa fan. But I understand the fans were fired up in what was the biggest game at Kinnick since 1985, so I can cut them some slack, but normally I expect better from Iowa fans.
I'm certainly not a fan of LeVar Woods' actions on the sidelines, but my identity is not so wrapped up in Iowa football to be personally embarrassed. I have not and would not boo an opposing player, coach, team, or official for any reason so I don't feel accountable for others that chose to do so.
For whatever reason, something about fanaticism (sports at any level, politics, anything) gives our brains permission to turn off logic and run on pure emotion. That leads to a lot of stupid shit, of varying degrees. It creates a divisive culture, allowing us to vilify an entire group of people over the actions of a few.
Apparently, a PSU fan tweeted that he hoped all the kids in the Children Hospital died within the week. Does he represent all PSU fans? Obviously not. Nor are all Iowa fans represented by the few that found said PSU fan's LinkedIn account and tried to get him fired.
But what I find most tiresome about fanaticism is the willingness to pour over minutiae to find any nugget that can be used to attack, to vilify, to divide. The overreactions, the grandstanding, the intellectual dishonesty; it almost makes junior high drama seem palatable.
I've been pruning my sports consumption tree for a long time, and I'm considering chopping the damn thing down to take up fishing and golf full time. I'm only 42, but apparently already old and cranky. Get off my lawn.