So this happened, and frankly, while I do share some of the same gripes on occasion, they're only momentary, and then I remember that it's Thursday night in Blacksburg.
http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/21542/thursday-night-games-are-a-...
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next time we have a "what's wrong with the student section?" thread this should posted as exhibit a
What a moron. This is the stereotypical girl who goes to the homecoming game and then leaves at halftime because they finished announcing the Homecoming court. You don't like that there isn't much parking? Then take the freaking bus! You're telling me you can't walk a little farther for the bus or for class one day per year? I really wish people like this didn't get tickets to games, we'd be louder without them.
Apparently, her bus can't turn down her street.
Or something.
I understand the argument. We are an institution of higher learning first, so why should the athletics department dare to affect the academia in any way.
Well, Virginia Tech hasn't always been as highly regarded of an institution as we are now. As our football team became more nationally prominent, so did the name of our school. It bought us extra exposure nationwide, forming a "brand" for the school. The administration has been able to feed off of that, bringing in extra revenue from both endowment and from corporate partners that we wouldn't have had 25 years ago.
And even then, I don't buy the argument that it severely disrupts the learning environment. The students taking a break from tailgating to make that "skip-or-fail" (sic) class are going to try their damnedest to sit in the back and not draw attention to their drunk selves. Any other class (which is to say, most), they just aren't going to show up.
Well said. I wouldn't even go
Well said.
I wouldn't even go so far as to say 25 years ago. You could go back only 10 years and have a good argument. The hilarity is it is ONE DAY. ONE. ONE.
Get over it.
If you don't like how your bus can't make the turn, RIDE A BIKE. WALK.
And if the "games are tiring," how exactly does moving it to another night make it less tiring? Are Saturdays less tiring? I don't know about you, but I would go to bed at 4 AM after a long Friday night just to get up 3 hours later to start tailgating. Thats tiring. And love of school.
She suggests that we have a game on Sunday night. That proves that she knows nothing about football and her whole piece is complete nonsense and her opinion is completely invalid. College football on a Sunday night? What is going on in Blacksburg these days smh
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but jeeze. What a stick in the mud. "Fun inconveniences me! Traffic being slow for one day makes my life harder!"
Everyone is entitled to their opinion but she clearly doesn't know enough about football to write a piece about something so important to the VT community. That's my beef. College football on a Sunday night??? I'm confused.
Traffic?
She is clearly not from NOVA or the traffic wouldn't bother her at all.
wrong
She's from Arlington. I looked her up on FB because I intended to send her a message letting her know she doesn't know enough about football to write that piece but decided not to waste my time.
Her CT profile says Arlington. Nuff said.
My bad
She is clearly just a complete moron then.
My thoughts...
Is that Joey Phillips as a child?
/dead
Geesh
did this chick transfer from LOLUVA?
She went to the wrong university.
Like OMG!
I bet it's Dinich writing under a pseudonym. Would explain a lot of the grammatical errors.
+100000000000
Who let this person into Virginia Tech?
There are two 'downsides' to a Thursday Night Games (neither of which I consider a downside, but other fans do, and, neither of which were addressed in this article):
1) It can be a hassle for traveling fans to take two days off of work.
2) The academics on campus down like having their teaching schedule interrupted.
I don't know for sure, but I assume the fans who complain about point 1) are older, wealthier, and probably donate more to the university/athletics then the average fan, thus their voice is a little louder. As a student, who pays a very expensive tuition, and actually lives in Blacksburg, I like to think my voice should be more important than said donor. Even though I am graduating this spring, and likely wouldn't be able to make a Thursday night game, I understand what Thursday football means to Blacksburg, and was equally appalled as the rest of Hokienation.
In response to point 2), big time college sports are a university's largest marketing tool. In Michael Vick's two years playing here, admission increased 30%, Research spending and revenue increased drastically. Given the positive benefits, professors can change their routines one afternoon a year.
Now to address the article's real stupidity:
"Why not a Friday night game? Or a Saturday night? Even a Sunday night would be better because nothing happens on Sundays."
Friday night is when high school football plays. Given that one of our goals is to increase visibility to high school football players, this is counterproductive. Not to mention that traveling fans would still have to spend a work day traveling, so this does nothing to address point 1), thus is an awful idea.
We would all love a Saturday night game. Unfortunately, VT cannot request this time slot; this is prime time slot, and TV networks will put the most attractive game of the weekend here. Unless we are that game, it won't happen.
On Sunday night, our team would have to compete with the $9 billion/year entity known as the NFL. I'm sure our visibility would skyrocket if we played then (hopefully everyone could catch my sarcasm there).
While I understand that Thursday night games can be a hassle, please do your research before posting such an ignorant editorial. I'm not an English major, but I am well aware that if you make an opinion, you need to support it. This writer failed to do so, and failed miserably.
Point 2
And sometimes it isnt even football. I remember hearing how much Butler, VCU, and GMU gained through the extra advertising and donations from alumni after their Final Four runs. Plus hearing how many more student applicants were received which helps the university grow. Success in sports brings in money through both the athletic department and the university
Dissappointment
I don't want to disrespect this young woman; I'm really trying to keep an open mind about this, and consider both sides of the Thursday night game debate. But here's the thing:
I grew up about 1600 miles away from Blacksburg, but grew up a Hokie fan because my mom is a Blacksburg native and VT alum. I couldn't afford to go to VT as an out-of-state student, so I did my undergrad at a VERY small school that had no real sports teams to speak of. There were a couple club sports (Rugby and Soccer) and that was it. There was absolutely no sense of school spirit. I don't even know what our official school colors were.
I worked my ass off in undergrad so I could have the opportunity to come to VT for grad school and at least have a couple years to experience being apart of Hokie Nation (and earn an engineering degree from one of the best programs in the nation). And now that I'm here, its kind of disappointing to see so many students take this opportunity for granted.
I realize that cheering for sports teams isn't most student's top priority (and it shouldn't be, we're all here to learn) but you have the opportunity to be apart of something so cool and so unique in addition to the great education; I just don't get why you don't want to fully embrace that. Just having the ability to watch Division I sports is an incredible privilege, and as Hokies, we not only have that, but we also have an outstanding football program that plays in one of the best college football venues in the nation. To me, that opportunity is worth far more than the small inconveniences a Thursday game might induce.
I've only been to one night game at Lane--The Georgia Tech game this past year. I had to pay $50 bucks for a scalped ticket, and if I could go back and do it again, I would pay $100. I didn't get a ticket for the FSU game through the student lottery and overheard a kid in Lavery that day telling his friend "he didn't know if he was going to the game or not." It was slightly infuriating, but mostly just mind-blowing. WHY WOULDN'T YOU GO?
Maybe I'm biased because I, like many of you, have a love for sports that, at a minimum, borderlines the 'unhealthy' realm. But I think it's fair to say that night games at Lane are among the most awesome events a college student will ever experience, and being afforded the opportunity to be apart of that every year, to have an outlet to display passion and spirit for the school where you chose to matriculate on the national scale, isn't that worth more than a bus being crowded?
No Disrespect?
I'll go ahead and disrespect her. She does not attend the same school I do. This young woman is a wahoo.
And as a wahoo, she should be burned at the stake like a wahoo.
Goodness, if the students at our school had even HALF of the passion for our program that you do, we would be so much better off.
It's students like you, petebuddywilson, that our university needs more of. After reading your comment, I strongly encourage you to buy season tickets next year so you don't have to worry about getting tickets through the lottery. Make sure to pick up your #BeatBama tickets as well.
wow
STOP KILLING HOKIE SPIRIT &
STOP KILLING HOKIE SPIRIT & TRADITIONS!
Now that Thursday nights are gone is the next thing to go Enter Sandman because the entrance on the new video board will be too loud and too high def?
The times they are a change'n...
To many complainers in the world.
The problem is complacency. Most students who enrolled after 2008 have either become complacent or their expectations are ridiculous. We've been to 4 BCS bowls in 6 years. In my 4 years at Tech in the MVs, I got to go to Miami for the Orange Bowl twice, Atlanta for the Chick Fil A Bowl and New Orleans for the Sugar Bowl. I consider myself to be pretty lucky. Does anybody think about how many bowl games UVA went to during that time? Here's a hint, it's about the only thing less than the number of fans at their Spring Game. Many students don't understand the value of a strong student section or they expect us to be undefeated every year because of our success. They don't understand what it means to go to a game, yell as loud as you can, not have a voice until the next Friday, and then do it all over again. It doesn't matter if it's a nooner or a Thursday night game, nothing but a change of attitude will get the students to change. I do see the possibility of some good coming out of the lack of a Thursday night game though. Students might actually appreciate them more and understand how exciting they are. Let's only hope that something will change because our student section is pretty poor at the moment across all sports.
I agree. I started coming here in 2010 but I've been diehard since 1999. I love being able to go to Lane and seeing people throw paper airplanes annoys the crap out of me. Be loud, not annoying.
For the love of all that is good in this world
Can the paper airplane thing just die? Please? I've never been more annoyed with my fellow students than that awful night when we lost to UNC in 2009. It was a close game and all the students in the East stands were more concerned with making their tickets into airplanes than actually supporting the team. I wanted to slap every one of them in the face. Please, people. Save that crap for your most boring classes. Lane Stadium is for yelling and jumping, not paper airplanes.
Some girl two seats over from on of my friends threw a plane at the Duke game last year, he grabbed it out of the air, crumpled it, and threw it on the ground.
Tell him thank you for me
This scene freaked me out as a young kid
It used to be pizza boxes and ice filled plastic cups...
I'll take paper planes over that anyday.
I have had the wonderful privilege of attending VT for 4.5 years as an undergrad, and am 1.5 years complete of a 2 year Master's program. I was only able to attend one game my freshman year of 2007. Take a guess as to which game that was. VT-BC, October 25th, Thursday night home game against the #2 team in the country. I was completely soaked, yelling my lungs out the entire game, only to be devastated in the last two minutes.
How did that affect my team spirit?
Here's how:
Every year since, I have purchased season tickets. I have seen every VT-ECU game in person (including the blocked punt loss in Charlotte). I have been to every Charlotte ACC championship we have played in. I grudgingly had to sell my ticket to the Boise game because my Public Speaking professor wouldn't allow us to present our speeches early. However, I was able to attend a Fedex game this past season only to see us lose in dramatic fashion to Cincinnati.
My Virginia Tech passion is still very much alive. Through all of the heartbreak that I have witnessed, there has been so, so much more elation. I have made my mistakes (the worst moment of my football spectating career was walking out of the Nebraska game after the field goal put us down 15-10, leaving us with under two minutes to play to win the game), but I have also witnessed wonderful, amazing moments. David Wilson's kickoff return TD against GT on Thursday night, with Rock Carmichael getting the pick in the endzone to seal the win. The Richter scale event that was Miami last season (which my parents were lucky enough to attend as well). Two of the greatest moments in my life. Not sporting moments, but moments. Those are memories I will never forget, and will tell my children and grandchildren about.
Coming back full circle, the author of this op piece is someone I do not want to be associated with. Is she really a Hokie?
I am, I know that without a doubt. I am a Hokie for life.
At TKP, you're preaching to the choir
For the most part, the people that read TKP are true fans, the ones who share your plight.
We are the ones who enjoy the atmosphere of Lane just as much as the game itself.
We are the ones who would sit at our computers and hit that F5 key every hour (or 5 minutes) after the Russel Athletic bowl, hoping to see some shred of news about our impending coaching changes.
We are the ones who stick it out week in and week out, through sun, wind, rain and snow, just for the privilege of doing what we can to cheer our team to victory.
We are the ones who yell until we are hoarse for the next 6 days, just to do it again on the 7th. And we like it.
We have all seen our team's triumphs, as well as our heartbreaks. Personally, I've been able to watch Michael Vick invent the "backflip touchdown" against JMU in 1999. I witnessed our chances of taking down what is regarded as one of the best teams in college football history, the 2001 Miami Hurricanes, slip right through Ernest Wilford's hands. I've been there for blocked field goals against WVU as well as withstanding the cold rain as Matt Ryan torched our defense for 2 late touchdowns in 2007. Hell, I left Chicago in the early hours of Thursday morning in 2011 and drove 11 hours to Blacksburg just to watch us play UNC, weeks after doing the same to see the atrocity otherwise known as the Clemson game.
The people that need to read what you wrote aren't on TKP, and most likely don't even know it exists. They are the ones who treat football games as a social gathering, the ones who don't know to yell on defense, the ones who leave at halftime because they're bored and would rather be drinking. The people who show up wearing THE OPPOSING TEAM'S COLORS because it's the homecoming game, and their fraternity/sorority happens to be blue, and then the north endzone is empty after halftime because they only bothered to show up because they wanted to see who was named Homecoming King and Queen.
I never sat in the student section until 2007, but even in the 5 years since then I am disappointed by how terrible it has become.
Band Wagon
This girl did not become a Tech fan until Spring of 2009 after finding out she was accepted.
Politely Disagree
I would like to address this issue you have brought up. I hate to admit it, but I only became a Tech fan after being accepted. Growing up in a family of UK and Marshall fans, I had no reason to cheer for Tech, except when they played wvu. I went to Auburn my freshman year and only started to have interest in Tech once I found out how much my high school friend loved it. I came to visit one weekend (spring, so no football) and fell in love with the school and students. That is when I applied to transfer, but I still certainly didnt consider myself a fan yet. I spent the next 2 months hitting refresh on my application page every 5 min just praying I would be admitted. When the page said ACCEPTED I immediately became a fan since I knew how amazing Tech was even on a non-football weekend. To say she is a band wagon fan only after acceptance is accusing everyone who didnt grow up a fan of not being a Hokie. Three years and a diploma later, I am sure as shit a HOKIE UNTIL I DIE.
Also, I did not -1 you, I just disagree with your opinion
That is not band wagon
I was not an avid Tech fan until I enrolled. Before I had no real investment in the school, none of my relatives had graduated from Tech, and I had no reason to like them except that the people in my hometown liked them. If I had liked Tech then, that would make me a bandwagon fan. Liking them now makes me fervently proud of my alma mater.
This girl is not a bandwagon Tech fan. She is not a Tech fan at all.
Correction
I did not explain myself clearly with the "bandwagon fan" statement. You both are correct and I agree that MANY people who go to Tech are very loyal. We are are all on same page here. Should have worded it differently.
My biggest problems with the article are that she uses classes as an excuse and tries to use the corps as supporting evidence. As a cadet who has had evening classes on Thursday nights, this is preposterous. If I can go to my 5 PM class, get something to eat, change uniforms, warm up with the band, and march down for the Hokie Walk before screaming my head off, she can damn sure walk an extra hundred yards for parking, OR JUST STAY THE FUCK HOME. Second, there are few people in the corps who don't like going to football games. The freshmen love it because they get a break to have a little fun. The rest of us love it because formation on Friday gets canned. Plus, if you have some pressing academic issue, you aren't actually required to go. If you have a test or a project, the corps doesn't make you go to a football game, so long as you tell someone ahead of time. It's articles like this that make the CT such a joke.
Y'all getting real angry over one person's opinion.
It's embarrassing to read your stuff too. Grow up.
Isn't that the point of a message board?
It is.
I'm not saying don't post, but it still doesn't change how I feel reading some people's replies about this. There's a difference between disagreeing strongly and acting childish.
So meta
someone complaining about people complaining about a person complaining...
Haha. I'm not complaining about it, for the record, just had to point it out!
Ironic
Individuals are expressing their opinions about something they read. You're doing the exact same thing with this comment. No one has been forced to read anything. You may find the comments in this thread embarrassing, but it's also apparent that the individuals posting here also found the females article embarrassing. Pot, meet kettle. Just sayin'
BOOM. ROASTED.
I think the main problem with her piece (and why it is getting criticized so much) is because she sided with an unpopular opinion and really didn't make anything but self-serving or illogical arguments to back her case. That's fine and all, but you have to expect a backlash is coming, and she did, "I know, I know, real Hokies live for night games. Whatever. Bring on the anonymous comments."
Now this,
I agree with.
Joe, leave.
The internet is no place for people who actually know how to write. You don't belong here. There's too much logic and reason in your post and the fact that it makes so much sense is likely screwing with some people' heads. Message boards are for irrational, emotionally-charged posts with plenty of grammatical errors. Figure it out.
Well, Alright Then
maybe the CT is trolling for views.
Exactly. She didn't really have any logical or valid arguments against a Thurs night game. There was no evidence of how damaging those darn footbawl games are to the institution of higher learning that is Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. It was about how SHE was inconvenienced. Maybe if she had a real thought out and logical argument, with evidence, for example citing a student poll - or a poll of almuni/townsfolk - there wouldn't be as much backlash.
And her comment at the end was just her being a snotty bitch because she knows she is in the minority on this issue.
If she's in a relationship, I pity the poor bastard
I think it's, if she was in a relationship. Can't imagine too many guys would be like, "yup, that's my gurl!"
MUST........ RESIST........ FACEBOOK STALKING
Already did it. She has a boyfriend.
The comments are the best haha
this is exactly why it was time not to have a Thursday nighter.
her points are valid. It is a hassle.
But when you go a year or so without it, it's a good hassle. Like Busch Gardens. Or a blind date. Or going to the beach.
It was stale, this piece proves that point. There wasn't a Thursday night game worth getting excited about this year, but next year.....next year....we'll be ready.
To be honest, if there was ever a year not to have a Thursday night game, this would be it. Hopefully fans will be more excited about it next year and we can get a good, TNF-game-worthy opponent to make it exciting.
Can't say I agree.
Thursday night games weren't "worth getting excited about" because they were particularly good matchups. Usually they are against mid-pack ACC teams.
We've had a few against top schools (2007 BC and 2012 FSU are the main ones), but BC was surprisingly good in 2007, that wasn't supposed to be a top-10 matchup at the time. We were #9, and they were unranked.
They were "worth getting excited about" because they were football games. In Lane Stadium. On Thursday night.
And, blind dates? People like to do those?
That's a good point. In my 4 years here (so far), I've had zero trouble getting excited about Thursday night games. I've been just as pumped for GT and UNC as for FSU. And as Joe said below, having our 3rd or 4th best game on Thursday would be pretty ideal. Having a good chance to win, as well as saving better games for a potential primetime matchup on Saturday, definitely makes those games a good fit for Thursday.
My point: I want people to be excited about Thursday night games and not take them for granted. Maybe this little break will help that happen.
I understand why students are unhappy about this
You've only got 4 or 5 or 6 of these......... so you don't want to lose one of them.
But from what I could tell, this was never a bad thing for students.
For us young and young-at-heart adults, it really became a fairly significant PITA.
I assume people like to do those...
...when, following my analogy, they haven't had any other date in a year.
I have had two girlfriends in my life and haven't "dated" since before most of our current players were toddlers.
I actually think that's what's wrong with the Thursday night model. We shouldn't play our best, or even second best game on Thursday. Those should stay on Saturday so there's a chance they move to primetime. Weaver's goal should be to get our 3rd or 4th best matchup on Thursday night so we're guaranteed that primetime slot, with the chance to play into others.
Dammit Joe
There you go using logic again.
That assumes Weaver controls it.
Which is part of this whole fallacy. Weaver has justified that some of us were tired of it and it's no big deal. But it's not like ESPN said, "Hey, ACC and Jim Weaver, we'd like to have you play UNC on a Thursday night in Blacksburg!" and Jim Weaver said, "Nope, we like our town quiet mid-week, thank you Mr. Exposure Machine."
But, back to your point, it's not like Jim Weaver said he'd love to have Duke (our 4th best game, seriously...) as our Thursday night game to ESPN. They tell him which game they want, and those options were UNC or nobody this year.
So, maybe to your point as well, being positive.........maybe Weaver did say no, that he wanted to keep UNC on a Saturday to get a primetime slot.
This year 'Exit Light, Enter Night' wont make as much sense as it did on a Thursday..
well unless we sneak into a primetime saturday night game..
#vatech
The fact she used that hashtag to promote the article shows she isn't one of us
Since she was bitching about the Roanoke Street bus I am assuming she is a sorority girl who frankly doesn't care about the football at all. Please don't associate me or most of the other students here in with that crowd. Those people belong at UVA.
She's just happy her Thursday social with PIKE won't get cancelled now (Like OMG they are so hot). I'm sure she's thrown a paper airplane in her days at Tech.
What if we made our home-and-home with OSU starting next year a Thursday night game to open the year? UNC is playing USCe in the opening Thursday night of the season, why not do that with OSU?
No thanks
That's going to be a Saturday prime time game. Keep it that way.
not necessarily...
if we have another sub-par season, it won't even be one of OSU's top 4 matchups...
I never did value the content of the CT much, anyways. Especially their opinion pieces.
Did Heather Dinich change her name?
Exact Opposite
She mentioned students going and posting on VT Confessions how they're glad there isn't a Thursday night game... NO ONE HAS DONE THAT. Students are pissed off that there isn't a Thursday night game, and beyond pissed off at Weaver.
Bitch Please
Hows about NO.
May I recommend a communications course, similar to COMM 3064. Since, her skills of persuasion are sorely lacking.