The Red and Black

Issue date: 8/27/07 Section: Opinions

ROBINNS EXUME

University football has fumbled the ball before the first snap of the season; the student ticket situation has gotten out of hand. Thanks to a new misguided policy, tickets will be just a dream for many students.

I received an e-mail from the Athletic Association saying that according to a "record number of ticket requests," I would not receive any tickets. Who knew so many University students would request tickets?

The new policy, which places a student's current semester load over a student's total body of work, exposes two major flaws.

By emphasizing a full course load, seniors such as myself who do not need 12 or more hours to graduate get bypassed and placed in the lowest priority position.

I understand the University's attempt at rewarding students who are taking a full load, but this system penalizes those who have put in work and want to enjoy some quality college football. Would the Athletic Association prefer students in my position to fill the rest of our schedule with classes we don't need just to move up the priority ladder?

There should be more tickets allocated to students. With a stadium that holds 92,746 people and a student body of 33,959, shouldn't there be more than 18,026 student tickets available? This means students get to occupy just 19.4 percent of the stadium's capacity and just 53 percent of the student body get to go to the games. I know the Athletic Association has obligations to other fans, but isn't this "college" football, where the team is comprised of student-athletes who represent the students who attend the school? While attending University football games is not a God-given right, it is a integral part of the college experience that should be enjoyed by as many students as possible.

The student body should not battle for the scraps that are left over after all the big spenders and big businesses get their cut. While every student may not be given the opportunity to attend every home game each season, there must be a change to the current ineffective system. Although I am not professing to have all the answers, I do have some suggestions that might work for the current system:

• Make the ticket request an option when students are registering for classes in the fall. This will let the Athletic Association know exactly how many students want tickets so they won't be floored by a "record number of ticket requests."

• This will hopefully allow them to free up more tickets for a higher percentage of students. This current system wants to reward students taking a full load. How about the students who actually excel in the classroom?

• GPA should be factored in ticket priority system, giving extra points to students with a GPA between 3.0 and 4.0 and fewer points for those who don't.

• Incoming freshman will be prioritized by their high school GPA. A student who is taking less than 12 hours in his or her final semester should never be prioritized lower than a freshman. While that student should not be on top of the list, seniors should be guaranteed at least three home games.

In other news, the Atlanta Falcons are planning to cut all ties with Michael Vick. It's good to know that at least somebody has their priorities in order.


- Robinns Exume is a sports stringer for The Red & Black.

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