2008 Woodie Awards
Coming home to no vacancy
Geoffrey Parr
Issue date: 10/17/06 Section: Commentary
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Here's a two-part question for everyone reading this editorial: did you attend the football game this weekend? If you answered yes, then here's the second part of the question: were you actually able to watch the game? There's a chance that some of you can say yes, but there's an even greater chance that most of you would say no, or at least not without having to strain to get a limited glimpse of the action on the field. Truth be told, the game this past Saturday looked more like a Dave Matthews Band concert than a football game with so many people standing around the perimeter of the field.
Enough is enough. This university has got to do something in order to give people the opportunity to actually watch the football team within the confines of the stadium. UNH cannot continue to expect to be the central state university here in New Hampshire with an enrollment of over 11,000 students and play Division I football when its stadium has a smaller capacity than that of well over 72 high school stadiums in the state of Texas alone. The athletic department should be commended in setting up the bleachers in the end zone and at least trying to help the situation. But in reality, those bleachers are like putting a band-aid over an artery wound; it's a solution that is disproportionately overwhelmed by the actual problem. Compare UNH to the University of Delaware, which plays in the same football conference as UNH. UD has a similar enrollment to UNH (approximately 15,000). Furthermore, UD is a state university located in a state with a smaller population, which translates into less of a fan base. So how does UD manage to have a 22,000-seat stadium, whereas UNH is stuck with a rundown 6,500-seat stadium? It's simply inexcusable.
And it's even more inexcusable that recent graduates that came back for Homecoming Weekend this past Saturday had to pay $17 in order to get in the stadium, only to discover that there was nowhere to actually watch the game as well as anyone else who had to pay $17 for admittance. So, someone pays to get into the stadium to get a view that is hardly any better than what it was outside the gates.
Enough is enough. This university has got to do something in order to give people the opportunity to actually watch the football team within the confines of the stadium. UNH cannot continue to expect to be the central state university here in New Hampshire with an enrollment of over 11,000 students and play Division I football when its stadium has a smaller capacity than that of well over 72 high school stadiums in the state of Texas alone. The athletic department should be commended in setting up the bleachers in the end zone and at least trying to help the situation. But in reality, those bleachers are like putting a band-aid over an artery wound; it's a solution that is disproportionately overwhelmed by the actual problem. Compare UNH to the University of Delaware, which plays in the same football conference as UNH. UD has a similar enrollment to UNH (approximately 15,000). Furthermore, UD is a state university located in a state with a smaller population, which translates into less of a fan base. So how does UD manage to have a 22,000-seat stadium, whereas UNH is stuck with a rundown 6,500-seat stadium? It's simply inexcusable.
And it's even more inexcusable that recent graduates that came back for Homecoming Weekend this past Saturday had to pay $17 in order to get in the stadium, only to discover that there was nowhere to actually watch the game as well as anyone else who had to pay $17 for admittance. So, someone pays to get into the stadium to get a view that is hardly any better than what it was outside the gates.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Mike Gauthier
posted 10/17/06 @ 9:04 AM EST
So, two or three years from now, maybe UNH doesn't have such a competitive team, and there's a LARGE construction area taking up a significant portion of the athletic fields, where the new 30,000 seat Verizon Stadium is being built. (Continued…)
brian
posted 10/17/06 @ 9:11 AM EST
Do you realize that they just cut 6-7 varsity sports last year. Now you want them to build a bigger stadium because the football team is having a good year? What happens when the football team starts losing again and the football games go back to less then a 1000 people in attendance. (Continued…)
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