Daily Campus Column: Please, stop shaming students for not going to games.

[Hankster]

Given the cherry seats and Temple wearing white I would have guessed this was a Temple home game. Not for nothing, Cincy is playing all their home games at Northern Kentucky University this season.

Agreed. I was about to post the same. @Temple. I also noticed where Cinncy is playing their games.

 

[traitor71]

It boils down to people wanting to have fun. It's why people sometimes don't even want to leave a tailgate to go into the stadium, because they are having more fun outside. This is the same dynamic in that watching these games just isn't fun at all, so people aren't going to want to invest the time.

 

[Robertelamin]

Our students are lame. Shame. Shame!

 

[JMick]

For one thing they are better students than 7-8 years ago. The high cost of tuition at private schools has resulted in more applications from students with higher SAT scores.
UConn and other state universities were backup schools for decent students in the past. This is no longer the case. It isn't cheap to go to UConn but it is still a bargain compared to private schools.

It really started to get harder to be admitted in 2008-2009 when the economy crashed. Academically there isn't a huge difference between the class of say 2014 and 2021. The difficulty peaked somewhere between the two

 

[cohenzone]

Getting into UConn now is getting closer and closer to impossible. Unless you're a top student in your class in CT you aren't getting in. Hence the better education less school spirit.

Yeah, students don’t show up at Duke, Stanford or Michigan. Darn those studious geeks.

Reality. UConn fans are generally speaking fair weather fans. It’s been that way forever. Calhoun chastised fans for not showing up for an NIT game. The product is hard to watch. The big expense season ticket holders are diminishing and/or don’t show up if they can’t be excited or unload their tickets. The students get the worst seats. The league is uninteresting with zero natural rivals.

 

[JMick]

And I'd argue that shift began in the early 2000s. I was there from 99-2003. When I first got there, UConn was easy to get into, a lot of the campus was still old and dumpy, and it was absolutely a party school. Most fun I've ever had in my life. When the men won, things started to change. The smart kids started coming in and campus life changed. More rules and regulations; different expectations, etc. There's no way I could get into UConn today. I think the students are still "into" basketball, but these are kids who grew up with them winning 4 titles in 15 years; not watching the rising but underachieving teams of the 90s or our relative mediocrity in the 80s and before.

I think you'd find it hard to see a bigger transition than 2010 to 2014. The parties may not have been as big or as good but they were still plentiful Thursday to Saturday. By the time I graduated they were completely gone due to new zoning laws, ordinances and arrests or the threat of arrest.

 

[auggie22]

It boils down to people wanting to have fun. It's why people sometimes don't even want to leave a tailgate to go into the stadium, because they are having more fun outside. This is the same dynamic in that watching these games just isn't fun at all, so people aren't going to want to invest the time.

It really is as simple as that. You need to write an article.

 

[Huskybass]

I have attended games every season since 1983, when as a student it was literally $1 and show your student ID.
Some years I went to every home game, plus away games in cities like Boston, New York, Philly, and D.C.

I gave up my season tickets after Boat's senior year and have only attended a handful of games since then. I am content to watch the games on TV now. The matchups just are not compelling at all. It's either watch UConn get destroyed by the good teams or watch them struggle to beat teams like Columbia, Monmouth and USF.

When UConn starts playing smart, tough basketball consistently the crowds will return, at least to some degree. But very few are going out of their way to see the type of performances we have grown accustomed to over the past 4 seasons.

 

[August_West]

I’ve been to everything under the sun. From World Series, NFC Championships, Final Fours, NHL playoffs, NBA playoffs to the America East Tournament, Roller Hockey International, the D3 College World Series and everything in between.

Lol you've never even been to a superbowl. Sad.

 

[HuskyHawk]

It boils down to people wanting to have fun. It's why people sometimes don't even want to leave a tailgate to go into the stadium, because they are having more fun outside. This is the same dynamic in that watching these games just isn't fun at all, so people aren't going to want to invest the time.

I'd argue that they don't really even understand fun anymore. Or how to manufacture it. Going to a game with a group of people, marching your way to Gampel, then surrounding yourself with your comrades in arms and screaming or yelling together. Riding the emotion in the building, then going out after to Ted's of Huskies or whatever. Yeah...there is no way that can compare to watching YouTube videos on your phone, alone in your dorm room.

They are socially stunted individuals. I admit that the team isn't compelling. But it will be back, and once you make the emotional investment, it sticks with you.

 

[whaler11]

Lol you've never even been to a superbowl. Sad.

Once you’ve been to the medal session of bungee jumping at the X-Games... you are just chasing the dragon.

 

[UChusky916]

not for nothing, the school pretty much started to destroy the off campus huge parties starting my sophmore year 06' at Carriage and Celeron. My freshman year in 04'-05', every weekend felt like spring weekend

2010 was the last relatively good year. Carriage and Celeron were still open and there were always parties Thurs-Sat up and down hunting lodge rd. After the cancellation of spring weekend 2011 it was all gone.

I started in Fall 05: Agree with that timeline as well.

I attend '06 and graduated '10 and I agree with the timeline above. I felt like freshman year the UConn campus was may more rowdy. I lived off-campus my Jr and Sr years and we had to make our own parties most of the time. Glad I got to attend a real spring weekend all of my 4 years though before '11 ended it.

 

[polycom]

Unless you are talking about JUST Uconn not sure I buy that. Some of the crazier party schools and schools with a lot of spirit tend to be the really good schools, like the Ivys and schools like Stanford. The higher academic standards go hand in hand with students who just want to blow off steam with parties and cheering on sports teams. I had a few friends who went to Yale, Upenn, Brown, Colombia and briefly dated a girl from Cornell and the stories I heard...! At least in regards to parties. Plus other really good schools like Wisconsin, Michigan and VTech and those types.

How do you explain Duke fans?
I have to disagree with your theory.
Worse education may equal greater partying and tomfoolery, but better education does not equal less school spirit.
My floor in the Jungle way back when was sloppy drunk 50% of the time and not one person on the floor went to games of any kind.

Huh? Tell that to Duke, BC, Yale, NYU ( well maybe you have a case with the Violets) but school Spirit and better education are not linked

Yeah, students don’t show up at Duke, Stanford or Michigan. Darn those studious geeks.

Reality. UConn fans are generally speaking fair weather fans. It’s been that way forever. Calhoun chastised fans for not showing up for an NIT game. The product is hard to watch. The big expense season ticket holders are diminishing and/or don’t show up if they can’t be excited or unload their tickets. The students get the worst seats. The league is uninteresting with zero natural rivals.

All of you have mentioned the anomaly schools. Exceptions to the rule but not the rule, my cousin plays football at Harvard they do not care except for when they play Yale, I've been to the games and he's also said this verbatim. Michigan has a tradition of winning, similar to Duke. As academic standards increase the type of student attending the school changes accordingly. This is similar to the argument people make about dropping out of school because they think they are the next Zuckerburg or Gates when in reality the vast majority of entrepreneurs graduate college.

 

[cohenzone]

All of you have mentioned the anomaly schools. Exceptions to the rule but not the rule, my cousin plays football at Harvard they do not care except for when they play Yale, I've been to the games and he's also said this verbatim. Michigan has a tradition of winning, similar to Duke. As academic standards increase the type of student attending the school changes accordingly. This is similar to the argument people make about dropping out of school because they think they are the next Zuckerburg or Gates when in reality the vast majority of entrepreneurs graduate college.

UConn fans have always been fair weather. Always. And the ridiculous league compounds the trait. It’s unprovable, but I suspect that if Syracuse, Providence BC etc we’re coming in, there would routinely be many more students and non students showing up even for this team, not to mention that we might be getting higher skill recruits. We are not close to being comparable to the Ivies as far as the scholarly skills of the overall student body. And we had a strong winning tradition longer than the current student have been on earth.

 

[boog204]

I think you'd find it hard to see a bigger transition than 2010 to 2014. The parties may not have been as big or as good but they were still plentiful Thursday to Saturday. By the time I graduated they were completely gone due to new zoning laws, ordinances and arrests or the threat of arrest.

I'm sure it was... And here's my "back in my day moment..." If you were there 10-14, then you have no idea what Kill-a-Keg, Yale Bowl, Penny/Nickel Night, Slutski's and X-Lot were really like. You never went into the bathroom at Husky Blues and saw an orgy of hallucinogenics while August played Help>Slip>Frank. The Jungle ceased existence and was just North Campus.

Not trying to throw shade, I just vividly remember my junior and senior year wondering "what the &u(k happened to the Delta I used to know..."

Maybe the best way to view it is that the transition from the late 90s to 00s was idiots (such as myself) to smart kids. Then 10-14 was smart kids to really smart kids? I was an okay student and there was never any doubt that I would be accepted. I'm a high school teacher (define irony) and UConn is a destination school with a difficult admission rate for even some of our best.

 

[JMick]

I'm sure it was... And here's my "back in my day moment..." If you were there 10-14, then you have no idea what Kill-a-Keg, Yale Bowl, Penny/Nickel Night, Slutski's and X-Lot were really like. You never went into the bathroom at Husky Blues and saw an orgy of hallucinogenics while August played Help>Slip>Frank. The Jungle ceased existence and was just North Campus.

Not trying to throw shade, I just vividly remember my junior and senior year wondering "what the &u(k happened to the Delta I used to know..."

Maybe the best way to view it is that the transition from the late 90s to 00s was idiots (such as myself) to smart kids. Then 10-14 was smart kids to really smart kids? I was an okay student and there was never any doubt that I would be accepted. I'm a high school teacher (define irony) and UConn is a destination school with a difficult admission rate for even some of our best.

The only one I won't give you is nickel. There was literally nothing else to do so it was always crazy

 

[methodology]

They should just move the court into homer babbidge

Problem solved

 

[UConnDan97]

The women have no problem selling out...

Yes. And I would argue that the women have a much larger contingent of "non-cellphone-addicted, enjoy the moment because life is too short" crowd. My mom is one of them...

 

[8893]

There are so many other things to shame college students about before worrying about their lack of passion for our flagship school's banner sports program.

 

[QDOG5]

while his 50-something dad in an Eagles jersey is rockin' out and enjoying the moment (put the freakin' phone down!). I think there is a parallel between that moment and what we are seeing.

A couple of years ago my son was staring at his phone for what felt like an hour. Finally, in a rage, I yelled at him to put the damn phone down. He handed me the phone and as I looked at the screen he said politely "I'm reading a book Dad". I immediately signed up for AARP. Every generation is different and that will never change. BUT if you have a well coached basketball team people will always go watch.

 

[8893]

A couple of years ago my son was staring at his phone for what felt like an hour. Finally, in a rage, I yelled at him to put the damn phone down. He quickly switched the screen from Tinder and handed me the phone and as I looked at the screen he said politely "I'm reading a book Dad". I immediately signed up for AARP. Every generation is different and that will never change. BUT if you have a well coached basketball team people will always go watch.

fify

 

[BRG 1]

UConn fans have always been fair weather. Always. And the ridiculous league compounds the trait. It’s unprovable, but I suspect that if Syracuse, Providence BC etc we’re coming in, there would routinely be many more students and non students showing up even for this team, not to mention that we might be getting higher skill recruits. We are not close to being comparable to the Ivies as far as the scholarly skills of the overall student body. And we had a strong winning tradition longer than the current student have been on earth.

Think of it this way. People from the same family / friends going to local schools i. e. " I am going to visit my cousin at PC with a carload of friends",
or, we are going to meet my family with my dorm mates at the XL Center. "

What are the odds that members of the same family have a kid at UConn and at East Carolina?
Also in the past UConn would attract "C" students with a personality and a propensity to have a good time and less the students with all work no social skills. PC for 30 years students couldn't wait to move off campus Junior year. At PC had to build dorms because Students NEVER wanted to move off campus. Kids have much more options. 20 years ago we had phones, not smart phones , 16 bit video, not today's sustems. Dorms at UConn in the early 90's looked like State Prison, now they are palaces.

 

[UConnDan97]

A couple of years ago my son was staring at his phone for what felt like an hour. Finally, in a rage, I yelled at him to put the damn phone down. He handed me the phone and as I looked at the screen he said politely "I'm reading a book Dad". I immediately signed up for AARP. Every generation is different and that will never change. BUT if you have a well coached basketball team people will always go watch.

Was he doing that next to Justin Timberlake?

 

[boog204]

Dorms at UConn in the early 90's looked like State Prison, now they are palaces.

Without derailing, I was at West for two years. To my knowledge, they still have not been renovated so they are still in their vintage Soviet state, right?

It's funny, I did two years in West and then two years in Carriage House. Luxury!

 

[JMick]

Without derailing, I was at West for two years. To my knowledge, they still have not been renovated so they are still in their vintage Soviet state, right?

It's funny, I did two years in West and then two years in Carriage House. Luxury!

I think west and commons were knocked down for the new gym. Not positive though

 

[BRG 1]

Without derailing, I was at West for two years. To my knowledge, they still have not been renovated so they are still in their vintage Soviet state, right?

It's funny, I did two years in West and then two years in Carriage House. Luxury!

Figure of speech to make a point. Point is dorms used to be stale boring places with few creature comforts, people only stayed to sleep and study, ergo almost forced to get out and socialize.

 

[Guapo]

I was there from 2009-2013.

There was definitely a transition but I think maybe its being a little dramatized here, especially in relation to the students.

What's not being dramatized here is the police presence.

You wanna talk about the Soviet Union? Try getting into Carriage or Celeron in the fall of 2012...

Anyway, I'm "old" now, but something tells me there's still plenty of alcohol (and other substances) consumed on weekends up in Storrs.

 

[Guapo]

Why does this board think students want to go to watch these game and do cheers and chants? Who made the correlation between partying and student sections? Weird

All the cool parties I ever went to involved coordinated chanting and cheering.

You're the weird one!

 

[8893]

Why does this board think students want to go to watch these game and do cheers and chants? Who made the correlation between partying and student sections? Weird

Maybe, everyone who ever went to college before now?

 

[Tommyboy]

I will shame the students whenever I feel like it.

It’s my god-given right as an alum.

Hell yeah. And when I was a student we shamed the alumni. "Go Alumni, Beat the traffic! Go Alumni, Beat the traffic!". Good times.