Twice in as Many Days...Holy ****

OK, so in my effort to get back on the ball here is my column from the last issue of The Tack. It is more applicable to my school, but I think alot of this can be applied to sporting events in general. And of course to being a soccer supporter because of the way we are encouraged to cheer so creatively.

And without further ado...

Three things happen annually at this time of year it seems. The Super Bowl, the closing of the international transfer window, and the yearly email from President Fred Moore warning us about our actions at basketball games on campus.

Last month students were reported to the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) for abusive chants directed at players on the Loras college team and at game officials. Last year we all received the same email regarding student chants at a home game against Central.

Why has this become an annual tradition here in Storm Lake? It would seem that the reason is less ground in sportsmanship and more due to the amount of families with small children that come to the games. I can recall instances during the NCAA tournament in which visiting fans chanted anti-BVU songs and were left alone but our own students were stifled if a cheer was started by anyone that wasn’t a cheerleader.

I was all set to tear down the administration’s need to sanitize everything that happens on campus so that more community members will pay to see the games, but something on television changed my perspective. The University of Minnesota (U of M) was hosting the Denver University men’s hockey team when senior defenseman Mike Vannelli notched his first career hat trick. For those of you unfamiliar with hockey the typical celebration for such a feat is to toss hats and caps out onto the ice. Unfortunately some students and fans saw the need to throw the posters that were handed out before the game onto the ice as well.

Seeing this left me, and this column, in a state of limbo. If such a knowledgeable crowd can do something so stupid how can I try to defend our basketball crowds who are very near as knowledgeable about that sport? How can I sit here and say that we are responsible enough to police ourselves when this tells me that we are not?

I think a realization that these lapses in judgment have been few and far between and show no proof of getting worse. I’ve always been an advocate for support stemming from the stands and not the boardrooms or pom poms. I think the line has to be drawn at sexual or racial slurs and obscenity (because if we can’t be more creative than four letter words that is sad) and anything short of that should be allowed and encouraged.

The opposing team should not feel as comfortable playing in Storm Lake as they do playing at home, if they do then we as fans have failed But at the same time they should never, EVER fear for their safety.

Laying it out simply everyone needs to realize that this should be a college first and foremost. Students should be encouraged to come up with creative ways to throw the opponents off of their game, and if they do cross a line (which should be more lax than it is now), but not before, then the administration needs to set in. Also community members need to realize that this is a college campus and that college kids have a, shall we say, more extensive vocabulary than you may want your kids exposed to. If you don’t want to run the risk of them overhearing an innuendo or an off color comment than think twice about sitting next to the student section.