UC Urges, Basically Begs, Students For Unwavering Support Of Football Team

Oct 19, 2013; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bearcats head coach Tommy Tuberville takes the field with his players before the game against the Connecticut Huskies at Nippert Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Leifheit-USA TODAY Sports

It’s been pretty well documented how Cincinnati’s student section has been less than supportive this year and at times downright embarrassing. Typically the issue is not with the students showing up to the games. They do, in droves, and are loud from the onset. And to their credit, the students have a long history of selling out their 6-8k allotted seats at Nippert Stadium even before the season begins. That same deep-seeded loyalty can’t be said of the tens-of-thousands of other attendees (or non-attendees) at football games over the years.

The main problem this season is that the students aren’t staying for entire games. I’m not sure what it is (running out of beer money, allergies to afternoon sunlight, aversion to metal bleachers) but for whatever reason they make a break for the exits at halftime, leaving a swath of empty seats behind the south endzone. Not exactly the best thing the players should see when they run out of the cave to begin the second half. Thankfully, Rally Cats, the student-led diehard fans of Bearcats athletics, was proactive enough to garner their opinions and make the experience better.

I’m not sure what findings of that survey were. I’d hope they were encouraging and steps are being made to improve the students’ experience such that they stay through at least the 3rd quarter of close games. But now it seems UC is breaking out the heavy artillery, coming right at them with testimonials from the football players themselves.

Well, whatever they have to do to keep the students at games, especially with a critical one against Louisville right around the corner, I’m all for it I suppose.