Spring Break
Is adopting BC's football team a worthy investment? Program offers a new sport for fans to enjoy
Ian Parker '10
Issue date: 3/21/07 Section: Opinion
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It might not be a very popular position, but it makes sense for St. Joe's students to have someone to root for during football season.
Any football team is better than none. Right now, when asked what college team we like, we're forced to say some other team's school. USC, maybe, or Florida. Whichever one we pick, though, it ends up being unsatisfactory. For any other sport, we know what the answer would be. Basketball? Oh, of course Saint Joseph's. Track? St. Joe's again. Every school needs a team it can unite behind, and, while supporting Boston College's team isn't the perfect solution, it's better than nothing.
Besides, even if we had a football team, how many people would actually show up? How many people show up to any sport but basketball here? It doesn't take much to recall empty bleachers at lacrosse and soccer games, assuming you were actually there. I've talked to people who didn't even know we had a baseball team. Let's face it. We're a one sport school, and we might as well not even delude ourselves about the chances of having an active football program. Why go to the expense of a football stadium if no one shows up to enjoy it?
It's not like we need our own football team, anyway. It's rare for a school the size of Saint Joseph's to have a great team in any sport. In this, we're already ahead of the small-school curve. Pouring an investment into our own football team would be stupid for any school our size. The stadium would have to be built, recruiting paid for, practice set up, coaches hired, and more land bought. Football is the most expensive sport for any college, and only the largest have any hope of being able to recoup their investment through tickets and souvenirs. The cost comes mostly from the stadium and from recruiting. Small schools face one other obstacle, too: they just never have decent football teams, and usually don't even try. The reason for this is simple: football is fundamentally different from basketball in its requirements from its players. In basketball, teams can get by with a mediocre team and one star starter. In football, the whole team has to match up with each other. There is no room for mediocrity, and St. Joe's simply does not and will never have the resources it takes to attract decent players.
Any football team is better than none. Right now, when asked what college team we like, we're forced to say some other team's school. USC, maybe, or Florida. Whichever one we pick, though, it ends up being unsatisfactory. For any other sport, we know what the answer would be. Basketball? Oh, of course Saint Joseph's. Track? St. Joe's again. Every school needs a team it can unite behind, and, while supporting Boston College's team isn't the perfect solution, it's better than nothing.
Besides, even if we had a football team, how many people would actually show up? How many people show up to any sport but basketball here? It doesn't take much to recall empty bleachers at lacrosse and soccer games, assuming you were actually there. I've talked to people who didn't even know we had a baseball team. Let's face it. We're a one sport school, and we might as well not even delude ourselves about the chances of having an active football program. Why go to the expense of a football stadium if no one shows up to enjoy it?
It's not like we need our own football team, anyway. It's rare for a school the size of Saint Joseph's to have a great team in any sport. In this, we're already ahead of the small-school curve. Pouring an investment into our own football team would be stupid for any school our size. The stadium would have to be built, recruiting paid for, practice set up, coaches hired, and more land bought. Football is the most expensive sport for any college, and only the largest have any hope of being able to recoup their investment through tickets and souvenirs. The cost comes mostly from the stadium and from recruiting. Small schools face one other obstacle, too: they just never have decent football teams, and usually don't even try. The reason for this is simple: football is fundamentally different from basketball in its requirements from its players. In basketball, teams can get by with a mediocre team and one star starter. In football, the whole team has to match up with each other. There is no room for mediocrity, and St. Joe's simply does not and will never have the resources it takes to attract decent players.
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