We need to value our campus athletics

Perhaps we should look to American universities as a model of athlete appreciation

You know those moments, the ones where there are so few people in a room you stick out like a lightning rod? I do, and I’ve got a great example of it.

On a clear fall morning, myself and a few others headed to Richardson Stadium to watch our beloved Queen’s Gaels fight for an 8-7 win over the less-than-stellar McMaster Marauders.

It was a game of defence, injuries and the infamous rouge—a great way to spend an afternoon in Kingston.

The thing is, there were maybe 150 of us to perform the Oil Thigh at the end of the game. As I’m sure you know, the Oil Thigh only starts sounding really cool once you hit more than 200 people, and we need to discuss this fact.

We try to make football a big part of orientation week, where the confused frosh pose questions to their Gaels and Dons like, “are we yellow or red?” True story.

Equally important is the Homecoming game, where everybody attends the first half, watches the engineering students rush the field, complains about the weather and then leaves.

Then there’s the crown jewel of them all—the random team vs. Western game.

It’s a contest that usually draws an unimpressive crowd, and those that do come are Boggle fans who flip letters around on t-shirts in an effort to be provocative. Wuck Festern? This is getting silly.

There are a lot of sports being overlooked here. Rugby, basketball, volleyball, hockey and many others play in front of brutal crowds made up mostly of parents, a fair portion of whom come to support the visiting team. Why aren’t these teams supported by students?

Every third person on campus seems to own some sort of tricolour rugby shirt, yet few people walk over to Kingston Field to watch one of the best rugby programs in the country go to work.

We can watch hockey classics like Florida vs. Phoenix on TSN and think nothing of it, but we won’t take a five minute walk to the Memorial Centre to check out a free game—one with talented players and real rivalries.

How many of you watched the World Cup? Now, how many of you took in a game featuring our women’s soccer team, this year’s national champions?

There are always theories on how Queen’s can be more effective at getting students in the stands—it even came as a topic up in the recent AMS elections. But up until now, most “grassroots” efforts—initiated by the AMS or otherwise—simply miss the mark.

If only there was somewhere we could look to see what works and what doesn’t; perhaps then we could fix the problem.

Turns out, there’s a whole country.

Like it or not, the US does university sports right. My heart swells with envy every time I turn on the television to find a 100,000-seat football stadium packed to the rafters with student fans.

Think I’m exaggerating? Look up the ‘earthquake game’ to see how Louisiana State University fans registered on the Richter scale.

What compels students in America to support their teams with such zeal while Queen’s students spend their Saturdays doing anything else?

It’s certainly not because they have better incentive programs—they need to pay for tickets!

Rather, in my view, they appreciate their athletes because it’s the culture of their campus to do so.

Why do over 100,000 Michigan fans pack The Big House every Saturday, even when their team is awful? They’ve been doing it since 1927.

Why do Duke fans camp overnight to get basketball tickets? They’ve been doing it since 1906.

Why does Utah State superfan Wild Bill dress up like Mrs. Potts from Beauty and the Beast (among other outfits) and dance around at basketball games? I don’t know, but I’m sure he has a reason.

The fact of the matter is that if the Gaels are going to play in front of crowds for once, we need to change our expectations.

We have one of the oldest athletics programs in the country. It’s time to take some pride in it. 2010-11 was a big step in the right direction. The Frosh Week pep rally gave all first-years a crash course in Queen’s Athletics.

The fact they knew we were “the team in yellow” is miles ahead of the level of understanding displayed in years past.

Similarly, this year’s newcomers attended more sporting events than in years past. Ideally, these first-years who came to games—and left thoroughly entertained—will now tell their frosh in September, continuing the cycle and expanding the fanbase.

Some argue that Queen’s is already better than most Canadian schools when it comes to attendance, and that’s absolutely true.

However, when asked what they love most about Queen’s, most students respond immediately with “the spirit” and argue that it’s better than our rivals across the country.

If it’s true that the Queen’s student spirit is greater and more vibrant than the one demonstrated at other schools, we shouldn’t settle for being marginally better than Western or Toronto. We should set the standard.

If you truly believe that Queen’s has a special and unique spirit, do something for me. Prove it.

All final editorial decisions are made by the Editor(s)-in-Chief and/or the Managing Editor. Authors should not be contacted, targeted, or harassed under any circumstances. If you have any grievances with this article, please direct your comments to journal_editors@ams.queensu.ca.

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