St. L 2 - Colgate 5

[rhovorka]

The Director wrote:

I agree, Jeff.  And I resent the generalizations being made here.  There are a few bad Colgate students - just as there are a few Cornell students who are di*ks.  You know that.

I figured I'd be accused of generalizing.  Generalizing is saying "All Colgate students at the games are this way."  If you read my post again, I said that I think that the percentage of this type of fan happens to be higher at Starr for whatever reason...and it's more than just a "few" a-holes.   Of course each team has their share of bad fans, and I've been embarassed on several occasions to be associated with some Cornell fans.  I have known in the past, and know now, a decent number of what I'll call "good fans" at Colgate.  So just watch the backlash when you accuse me of blindly trashing Colgate, or any kind of generalization.

I would guess that part of the problem at Starr is both the Rink admission policy for students, and the configuation of the seating.  Were Colgate to charge students a couple of bucks to get into the arena, you would probably cut down on the number of people who don't care about the game...that is get the real hockey fans in there.  That's probably an unpopular choice, but most people would agree that it would reduce the number of idiots just looking for a place to throw a few back and pick fights before the parties start.  At Cornell, students have to shell out $90+ for season tickets.  At that price, you better care about the team, and it gives you a vested interest in NOT getting kicked out of the arena.  

Second, the fact that Starr has general admission student seats right behind the visiting bench makes it pretty easy for an incident like the one on Sunday to happen.  I seem to remember Dartmouth having to close off the rows immediately behind the benches at Thompson Arena last season for this exact reason.  Mushing visiting fans in with that GA only leads to more unfortunate incidencts.  In my years, I've been spit at, shoved, and had objects thrown at me at Starr simply for wearing a different shade of red.  Lynah has a good set-up in keeping the students seperate from the visitor section, and nearly all of the interactions between the two are of the harmless, yet entertaining, chanted variety.

As far as placing the blame for Sunday, I have a feeling that there was more to it than just the soda.  That said, Joe Marsh runs a good program, and I'd be willing to bet that there was at least a talking to that particular assistant.



Post Edited (03-13-03 02:00)

[Ben Flickinger]

I'll reiterate my absolute shock that Colgate students were drunk at a hockey game.  ::twitch::

I mean, the ones who showed up to Thompson last year for the playoffs and decided to sit next to Dartmouth's student section rather than across the ice with Colgate's visiting section were just outstanding citizens, even going so far as to fill the air with a nice alcoholic aroma.

And then when they tucked their tail between their legs after Summerfelt scored in 2OT, they were shouting at Dartmouth fans to be happy and "gay" from their car as they high tailed it out of town.

Yes, I was quite impressed with Colgate students... ::rolleyes::

[Ben Flickinger]

[q]I seem to remember Dartmouth having to close off the rows immediately behind the benches at Thompson Arena last season for this exact reason.[/q]

Actually it's the visitor's penalty box, not the bench, and it's this season, not last season. From what I heard one school complained about their players being verbally abused by the students and the Dartmouth rent-a-cops decided to just block off about 25 seats immediatly around the box rather than be forced to actively watch the area during a Dartmouth PP.

[Adam 04]

On a related note. One time this year a guy that was in section C dumped a cup of soda on a player in the penalty box. Although this was inappropriate on his part, the player in the box definitely provoked the situation by spraying water over the glass. I think it started when the player threw a tantrum in the box, he got heckled a bit for his antics, then sprayed his water on many innocent fans. I guess the NCAA rules state that only positive interactions between fans and participants are allowed. I understand the plight of the players and coaches, if they can't have negative encounters with fans, why should the fans be allowed to get away with all the negative stuff? In a situation like at Colgate where the students can act like little sh[]ts (don't think there will be any ramifications for their actions) it speaks volume about the institution as a whole. I don't believe the coaches should be held responsible for the situation. Colgate should be held responsible for lack of policy and enforcement. However, the coach should be held responsible for his actions. Retaliations is not the best means to induce a change or resolve a problem.