EDITORIAL: Division I atmosphere relies on student, fan support base

If a student at the University of South Dakota were to look on any social media site on game day, the argument of whether or not our team won/lost because of the lack of fans could be seen among the stream of posts.

Although it isn’t a direct causation, the lack of students at games can have an effect on the players, but more importantly it’s an embarrassment to the university. USD has made considerable efforts to get students to games, and now it is time for the students to meet them halfway.

We are a Division I university, which means we compete with the best of the best. While we may only be in our third year of being D-I, our athletic standings are beginning to improve and a majority of students are not around to witness it.

This is a problem that is consistent throughout the whole year. We are all familiar with the whole student section leaving at halftime of the football games — this is upsetting to athletes, and anyone who has school spirit is also offended. We understand it can be hard to keep school spirit up, but by leaving you’re bringing others’ spirit down as well.

Basketball, track, soccer and other sports are a whole different aspect to this problem. At these games, students simply do not go. One may argue that most basketball games are during the week, which means students either don’t “feel” like going or they are busy.

For those not “feeling” like attending the game, was binging-watching Netflix more exciting than making the most of your four years here and making memories that you’ll never get to experience again?

Look at the surrounding universities in our league, or at other D-I schools. There is so much fan participation at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, it is practically a holiday every weekend. From tailgating in front of the field, to having surrounding bars and restaurants hold specials for the game, everyone is involved and no one is not “feeling” it. If one were to watch their games on television, they would not see fans leaving at halftime, even if the Huskers were down for the count.

The same is true at South Dakota State University. Frost Arena is pretty much full at every basketball game, and the sense of spirit at these events is enthralling and gives you a sense of immense pride.

Going to a basketball game in the DakotaDome is embarrassing from an attendance standpoint. Think about those who are watching, like USD alumni. Why would they want to come back to their alma mater and cheer on their team if current Coyote fans won’t even stay for the whole game?

Furthermore, why would they want to financially support the university when they don’t see students living the experience they remember when they were in school? What students don’t realize is that the action of leaving or not attending events at all directly contorts people’s perception of our university and student body.

The university has already tried to get students to the games. Paw Points were created to reward students for attending events — the students even receive points for staying the entire length of a game. What does this say about our fan participation, if our university has to bribe its students to come to the game?

There isn’t much more the university can do, besides have winning teams — but that it is an unfair expectation. Students must remember that we are still transforming our athletes and athletic programs to a Division-I standard, but this also includes transforming the mindset of everyone, including non-athletes.

The fact of the matter is, we must understand that there is such a thing as losing, but like the team, we must accept it and show our continued support to our athletes no matter what.

Although the athletes are the ones playing the game, it takes a joint effort of students and athletes to make the games exciting, and only when students go to the games will the events feel like a D-I atmosphere — win or lose.