Sportsmanship vs. Atmosphere

There has been a lot of recent debate in the papers and on the internet concerning the behavior of University students, especially in the context of the conduct of Gopher fans during and around sporting events. Issues range from complaints from the larger Minneapolis community about rowdy behavior on weekends and in the late hours of the night, to issues with the student section using foul language to intimidate opposing teams at games.

On one side of the issue, people take the side of the students: after all, they are college students, and they're doing "what college students are supposed to do." It is ridiculous to assume that fans of college sports will sit idly on their hands and applaud as if they were watching a golf tournament, and then go home and peacefully drink tea: college sports are special because of the fans and the atmosphere surrounding the games. It's no coincidence that 21 of the 22 largest stadiums in the U.S., including all of the top ten, house college football teams.

On the other side of the issue is the assertion that students are representatives of the University of Minnesota, and should conduct themselves as such. They should respect the community, opposing teams, and fellow students in the name of good sportsmanship. This does not necessarily mean “no fun,” but there are serious issues to be addressed in the conduct of some fans that are deeply engraved in their vision of the “college experience.”

It is here that we find ourselves at an impasse: the administration and community-at-large would like to see more respectful students, but students are unwilling to give up the culture and traditions that have developed on campus for the past 150 years. Both are advancing their agendas in the name of creating a "better game day experience." They are equally admirable goals, and are part of what makes our University great.

Possibly caused by the infamous "hockey riots" following the Gophers' 2002 and 2003 NCAA Hockey Championships, the University of Minnesota has repeatedly imposed sets of rules on the student body in a well-intentioned but feeble attempt to control fan behavior. These have taken many forms: the "Student Code of Conduct," the "Fan Bill of Rights," and most recently, the "Fan Code of Conduct."

Through all of these additions and changes to policy, one thing has remained constant: the University of Minnesota has not taken any real steps toward improving the atmosphere at sporting events. Yes, the rules technically absolve the University of any wrongdoing or responsibility for fans' actions (after all, it is ultimately up to the individual to obey rules), but if the University is truly serious about improving fan conduct, they must do more than develop guidelines for fans.

First, they must directly and non-arbitrarily enforce the rules that are in place. Aside from the alcohol policy, the "Fan Code of Conduct" is largely a joke--has anyone ever seen someone get kicked out of a game for swearing at the referees? Disciplinary action is currently only taken for offenses that are otherwise punishable under the letter of law. Publishing a newsletter doesn't do anything to influence fan behavior short of increasing the number of paper airplanes thrown on the field. If the rules in place are not enforceable, they should be replaced with ones that are.

Second, the University must actively help to replace the practices that they oppose. Tradition, no matter what it is, is still just that--tradition. For a tradition to "die" peacefully, a suitable alternative must be proposed and accepted. Currently, when the administration does manage to exact a change in the cheers (usually by prohibiting the band from playing the appropriate cues--hardly a good solution), students are liable to act out in ways that are worse than the original "offense." This is the cause of the viscous cycle in which we are currently trapped, resulting in increasingly Draconian policies dictating behavior that--as previously mentioned--are rarely enforced, and an overall disdain for said rules among the fans they are prescribed to.

To date, both the students' and administration's actions have been similarly polarizing to the opposite party. Admirably, neither has compromised their primary principles. It is an unfortunate consequence of the human condition that University policy is much more flexible than the mob mentality of 10,000 students; the University must begin to work proactively with fans to change the common perception of a “college atmosphere” to the kind of game day experience we can all enjoy.