We Need Fans in Stands
By Jonathan Tomczak
Santa Clara's men's basketball team gave No. 1 ranked Duke University one heck of game last month, losing to the perennial contender by only 13 points.
Did you hear about it? Possibly not.
Fair enough; that was during the break. But did you know that our tennis program is the strongest in the school's history, getting its highest ranking ever last season and winning its first NCAA tournament?
Thought not.
The fact of the matter is that Santa Clara's sports teams, successful as they are, don't get a lot of attention outside of the Sports section. Attendance to games (other than men's basketball) is relatively low. This invariably leads to people not discussing the games much the next day, as nobody was there to witness it in the first place.
In some ways, there are understandable reasons for this. Lacrosse, rugby, tennis and even basketball aren't as popular as college football, where we have no team (but hey, at least we're undefeated!). With so many different games to go to, it's possible to be overwhelmed. Finally, none of our teams are ranked particularly high nationally. If Duke wasn't so good at what it does, its culture of fanaticism wouldn't be so great either. If you're unconvinced about that, ask them about their football team. You'll hear crickets.
Still, all of these reasons can't help but sound to me, simultaneously, like excuses. Half the fun of a sporting event is basking in the combined support for your team with your fellow fans.
Whether the sport is terribly exciting or not isn't as important as whether you're excited to be there. If it's possible to muster up the effort to go out and party a couple times a week, surely getting a bunch of people together and going to a tennis match is easily doable.
If nothing else, attend for the athletes. These are students who dedicate enormous amounts of time to honing their skills. They get up extra early and work extra hard not because they have to, but because they want to play. Ranked highly or not, they work just as hard as any other teams, and deserve our support.
While they may not do it just for the fans, the support of their friends and classmates cheering them on is certain to have a positive effect. Perhaps, with more support, they may win more games, which would further generate support. However, somebody has to be the first in the stands. It might as well be us.