The University of Memphis had every right to sell 392 of our student seats! Yes, you heard me right! The article stated that the student section was nearly sold out on four different occasions last year.
This year, I believe the student section will be near sold out on four occasions as well. The Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisville and DePaul games in particular will be the ones.
The thing that is most disturbing to me and other students as well is that school spirit has all but evaporated.
For example, at the University of Tennessee game, half our student population will wear orange and white instead of blue and gray.
When you scope out the campus at any giving time, you can spote a Tennessee hat, an Ole Miss shirt or some other university’s apparel.
If you are a student at The U of M, you should support our athletics, regardless of whether our team is having a winning season or not. It’s in the support, not the record. Let the coaches worry about the records; it’s our job to do the supporting.
In a recent Daily Helmsman article about the number of seats being slashed, a student made a statement for the general public that irritated me.
“Once the team starts winning, then the student section will start to fill up.”
That portrays our city as bandwagon fans. What, you might ask, is a bandwagon fan? This is a person who only cheers for the team when they are winning.
This is one of the reasons the student seating is being slashed.
I remember three years ago as a freshman during the Tic Price/Johnny Jones era; there were very few students at the games. Granted, the home schedule wasn’t that exciting, but you could always find me in the student section rooting for the team whether we were playing UT-Martin or CBU.
But where were all of those die-hard U of M fans that belong in the student section?
This year, we are ranked 12th in the nation, and everyone is excited about the U of M basketball season. Do you think that everyone in town will come to see the games?
No — those bandwagon fans will be at the Tennessee, Arkansas, DePaul and Louisville games. But how many do you think will be at the Southern Louisiana, Eastern Kentucky, Austin Peay and Christian Brothers games?
So I have come up with a number of reasons why you should support the home team:
1. It is free, unlike the Grizzlies games that may cost anywhere from $50 up.
2. There is free parking, unlike those parking lots that cost you $10.
3. There is free transportation: The University provides a shuttle to and from the Pyramid from several different locations in the city. And last but not least,
4.You can cheer for the home team and see your fellow classmates in action up close and personal.
The louder the cheering, the harder the team will work to conclude the game positively.
As an extra-added attraction, the Tigers will do several ESPN highlights during the game to keep you on the edge of your seat.
If you are a student, you need to be standing on your feet and cheering your Tigers to victory.
Don’t convenience yourself with gracing the Tigers’ presence at a few chosen games. They need you there for every game.
After having been on ESPN and interviewed by the local sports news, I can report to you as well that Memphis basketball is as exciting as it was when we had players like Penny Hardaway, Cedric Henderson, Keith Lee, Lorenzen Wright, Elliot Perry — and the list goes on.
Who knows. It may not be too far in the future when you may see more Memphis Tiger basketball players on the NBA list, like Kelly Wise, Dajuan Wagner and Earl Barron.
Be a part of their original fan club.
There is no reason to get angry at The U of M for slashing your student seating. The only person to blame is yourself.
Make a statement and support the home team.
Go Tigers Go!
