Student reaction embarrassing, bratty

I too was shocked and a little disappointed when I heard that the Athletic Department would now start charging students for football tickets, but I was even more shocked and disappointed by the reaction from some of the students. I’ve overheard several say “screw Mike Hamilton” or proclaim that they now “hate UT.”

But perhaps the most embarrassing reaction is those asking to boycott the first UT football game. Really? $15 a game is all it takes for you to turn your back on UT football? If that’s how you feel, then maybe you’re doing everyone a favor by not showing up, because you’re probably the type of fan that shows up to the game extremely late (or not at all if it’s raining), hardly pays attention the entire time, impresses (annoys) everyone around you with your football knowledge (“tackle him!” or “score a touchdown!” on every play), makes sure to hit everyone around you with your shaker, blames anything bad on Phil Fulmer, and then leaves at the beginning of the fourth quarter.

So please, boycott the game, and ignore the fact that UT will sell the ticket anyway. I’ll be standing next to a true fan who thinks its a privilege just to be inside Neyland Stadium.

Brian Parker

Junior in computer science