There are different types of sports fans.

There are the fans who watch their favorite team try to win a championship or their favorite player hit the winning shot. Then there are fans like Rich Drouillard, 68, who watch simply for the love of the game.

“I’ve been coming to these softball games since I moved to Chico, which was in 2005,” Drouillard said.

Drouillard mainly attends the Chico State softball games but he did go to the cross-country California Collegiate Athletic Association finals at Hooker Oak Park to support the ‘Cats this past fall, he said.

Prior to moving to Chico, Drouillard lived in Santa Barbara and worked in project management for a defense company. The beauty and size of Chico drew him to live here once he retired.

“I lived in Santa Barbara and once I stopped working I couldn’t afford to live there anymore,” he said. “I’ve been to Chico before and wanted to live in a smaller town.”

When Drouillard is not watching the Chico State women’s softball team, he enjoys catching other softball games on television.

“Stanford and Cal are the two teams I root for on TV,” he said. “I need to keep it close to home and pick Northern California teams.”

As for the ‘Cats, he hopes it will be a good season for Chico State.

“I’d like to see them a little bit better,” he said. “We have a great pitcher and just need to wake up our bats more often.”

Sergio Sanchez can be reached at [email protected] or @sergechez on Twitter.