Tagged: football
School Spirit on the Rise at MU?
When you go to a Division I school, one thing that is expected of the students is to go to home sporting events to show your fan support.
During the fall season, MU is home to four teams that are held here on campus in West Long Branch. If you look up in the stands at any game, you will notice a mix of students and people from the community in attendance cheering on the Hawks.
Yes, the University is considered a suitcase school for the underclassman, but students still take time out of their day and night to go to home games. Showing fan support at the University is a must, and if the visiting team comes in here knowing we have the best student sections in the NEC, they will be scared.
The four teams that have games on campus are football, men’s and women’s soccer and field hockey. Between the four teams, no team ranks lower then fourth in the conference in home attendance. People want to go to games at home simply because it is a great place to be and see friends and classmates.
Not only does the attendance at games make the game experience fun for the fans, it also helps the teams play better and get pumped during big plays.
“Energy level becomes much higher, athletes really appreciate them being there whether it’s friends or classmates or if they have no idea who they are, it just gives them a whole other layer of fandom for the students when they come out on campus,” Matt Harmon, a communication professor and sports broadcaster explains.
The school football team is in its 20th season and is doing better than ever. So far, the Hawks are 2-0 at Kessler Field, as they average just under 3,000 fans per game. Compared to when the team started in 1993, more and more people around the community have been coming and increasing in numbers every year.
“Attendance has gotten better; there has been more interest in it, in almost two decades of having the program, people are aware that Monmouth has football, where in the first couple years a lot of people didn’t know about it,” mentions Harmon.
If there isn’t a football game going on, you could always find the fans under the lights at the Great Lawn. Both the men and women soccer teams play there and fan support is big as you always see the new and the old faces in the crowd.
“They have a very good group of diehard supporters but we want those numbers to grow where we are and keep multiplying,” says Eddy Occhipinti, Assistant Athletics Director of Marketing.
The Hawks have the ultimate home field advantage as they are a combined 8-1-2 when playing outside of Wilson Hall and with people not so familiar with soccer coming, they can get more students into the sport and increase the group of die hards. When the men’s team has been as high as number 19 in the country, it’s no wonder students flock to the games.
A team that many people forget about here at the University is the field hockey team, which plays at So Sweet a Cat Field. Yes, they are having a rough season, due to their nonconference scheduling, however they are still ranked third in attendance in the NEC.
Being able to have two teams nationally ranked in the top ten play at MU this year, was a big boost to get fans to come to the games. “A key to building attendance at sports like field hockey and lacrosse is finding the niche markets that we can market to,” Occhipinti stated in regards to marketing the team more. Next time the Hawks are home will be October 19 as they face Bryant.
No matter what athletic event you are at, whether its games or practices, there is a good chance you will see one fan in the stands, and that is President Gaffney.
“We ought to encourage this because I think it does a lot for the general morale on campus, the spirit on campus, gets us connected to our alumni, so I try to support athletics whenever I can,” says President Gaffney.
He went on to say, “I want everyone to get something out of it, I think it’s fun, it brings everyone together, and sets a good example for good team spirit.”
Since approximately 12 percent of the student body are varsity athletes, President Gaffney feels that supporting the Hawks is important as it will connect the campus with the community and allow people outside this area know who MU is. He feels that the names on our jerseys are important and we should represent the school as best as we can.
The University’s athletics have been getting bigger each year, big enough for local professional athletes to make appearances at home games. New York Knicks guard JR Smith was spotted at the football home opener against Rhode Island, as four-time Olympic Gold medalist Christie Rampone was seen at the women’s soccer game Friday night. One player who has yet to be seen this year, but always makes sure he goes to at least one football and basketball game every season is Dallas Cowboy wide receiver Miles Austin. Continue to show your Hawk pride at the next MU game. Who knows who you could be sitting next to as you cheer on the Hawks.
**This entry was posted in Monmouth University’s The Outlook on October 3, 2012 by myself http://outlook.monmouth.edu/index.php/sports/397-school-spirit-on-the-rise-at-mu **
Ray
@raymalaspina
Week 3 Picks
***Half of this entry was done before 1pm so I would have the Giants/ Panthers game in here before the game started****. After a weak week 2 in the NFL, my picks may not be looking so good. Dont worry though, they will be getting better and you should agree with most of them. 20 teams going in to this week are 1-1, that is a league record. With that being said here are my week 3 picks:
Giants/Panthers
Big Blue heading down to Carolina for their third game of the season on the third different night. Eli and the Giants will come on top even with 4 starters out due to injury
Rams/Bears
With all the talk about Cutler this week, the Bears will get themselves together and beat this surprise St Louis team
Bills/Browns
Not an exciting game, but Buffalo will win in Cleveland
Buccaneers/Cowboys
Bucs lost a close one last week in the Meadowlands, as did Dallas in Seattle, so both teams need to come back to their winning ways. With the game being in Dallas, the Cowboys will come up on top by a TD
Lions/Titans
The Lions are stronger than the Titans
Jaguars/Colts
Luck got his first win in his career at home, and he will be getting number 2 this weekend
Jets/Dolphins
Tebow makes a return to Florida and will try to help Sanchez and the rest of the circus to victory
49ers/Vikings
My opinion San Fran is the best team in football
Chiefs/Saints
Very tough game to pick, but I think Brees will be able to help the team get their first win of the season
Bengals/Redskins
Bengals will know how to play RGIII plus RGIII will have an off game- he’s human
Eagles/Cardinals
Arizona is the surprise team so far this season and will continue to stay undefeated
Falcons/Chargers
Falcons another good team, will head west and earn that victory in a tight game.
Texans/Broncos
Peyton will continue his no huddle and pull it off at Mile High
Steelers/Raiders
Oakland still looking for a win, but Pitt will continue rolling from last week and get the W
Patriots/Ravens
Game of the week, Tough losses for both teams last week. See it here first, 27-24 Baltimore last second game
winning field goal
Packers/Seahawks
Seattle is a tough place to place, just ask Dallas, but Green Bay will win this Monday night showdown
These picks should be better than last week. Sorry for the pick opinions being a little short, just want to get all the picks in.
Week 2– 7-9
Overall– 17-15
Ray
@raymalaspina
Week 2 Picks
As week 2 kicks off tonight in Green Bay, its time for another week of NFL picks. Being able to go 10-6 on the hardest week of the year for picks, I think this week will be a bit easier to make picks after seeing every team last weekend. The top 3 games of this week are all primetime, so you should be tuned in.
Before I get into my picks, I would like to say i was impressed with the replacement refs. There were only a few questionable calls, but nothing drastic like the pre season. Word is that they are scheduled up to week 5, so we better get use to them.
Bears/Packers
Its gonna be close, but the Bears will march up to Lambeau and give the Packers their second loss at home of the season. It’s hard to believe but I feel it will happen
Chiefs/Bills
2 teams looking for their first win of the year, KC will win this by a touchdown
Browns/Bengals
ALthough Cleveland kept it close til the end against the Eagles last week, the Bengals will come up on top this week
Vikings/Colts
After a rocky debut, Andrew luck will be getting his first win of his career at home in front of the home crowd
Raiders/Dolphins
People say the Dolphins will be the worst team in the league this year, that will continue as the Raiders will roll through Miami easily
Cardinals/Patriots
Not even a question, New England will win by at least 3 touchdowns
Buccaneers/Giants
The defending Super Bowl Champs lost a tough one last week, but they will not fall to Tampa at home. Giants will get first win of season
Ravens/Eagles
Ravens played to great last week to lose this one against Philly, Ravens are also the team I think will represent the AFC next February
Saints/Panthers
After a tough week 1 loss, the Saints should get their act back together. They experienced 1 week without Peyton, so now they know what to experience the rest of the way.
Texans/Jaguars
I said it last week and I’ll say it again, people have been talking about Houston and how good they are supposed to be, they should be able to roll right through the Jags
Redskins/Rams
RGIII played phenomenal last week, and I can guarantee he will have another great game this week in St Louis
Cowboys/Seahawks
Romo had a great game against his NFC East Rival, and the looks of it he will continue so as the Cowboys head out west.
Jets/Steelers
Tough loss for Pit last week, however they will bounce back this week against the Jets. People in the NY area are already praising this Jet team even though they won 1 game and it was against Buffalo. This week will be an eye opener for them
Titans/Chargers
San Diego looked good last week, Tennessee did not. It looks like both teams will continue to go in the same direction as last week, as San Diego will come out on top
Lions/49ers
All I can really say about San Fran right now is wow. The played great last week and are my NFC team for the big game in February. The most hype about this game will be after the game watching to see if both head coaches shake hands, because we all remember what happened to them last time they played each other
Broncos/Falcons
What can I say, I was wrong. Peyton Manning did a lot better than I expected. He struggled at first, but once he got into the no huddle, he was back to his old self. He keeps it up this week, and the Broncos will roll to 2-0
Those are my picks, we will see next week how they turned out. Let me know your picks and what you think
Last Week– 10-6
Overall– 10-6
– Ray
@raymalaspina
Week 1 Picks
Tomorrow night marks the kickoff to another football season where the Cowboys try to knock down the defending Super Bowl Champs on national TV. For the entire season, make sure to check out this blog to see my picks for every game all the way to the Super Bowl. Some picks may be outrageous while others will be what everyone thinks, but I like to put up a challenge. Now as all football fans know, week 1 is by far the hardest week to make picks because every team is undefeated and has a clean slate. Looking at stats from last year, you could say I will have a few upsets this week. I will give you my weekly and season record every week before my next picks. The teams in bold are who I pick. Leave your comments here or send me a tweet
Week 1
Cowboys vs Giants
As the Giants did in 2008, they should come out strong in week 1 and come up big
Colts vs Bears
Luck had a great preseason, but first real game may let the nerves kick in
Eagles vs Cleveland
Patriots vs Titans
Falcons vs Chiefs
Jaguars vs Vikings
Redskins vs Saints
First game without Sean Payton will be tough, dont think Saints can pull it off
Bills vs Jets
Tebow mania will come out big in the first game and continue their losing ways in this division contest
Rams vs Lions
Dolphins vs Texans
49ers vs Packers
My opinion best game of the week, will go down to final play
Seahawks vs Cardinals
Panthers vs Buccaneers
Bengals vs Ravens
Chargers vs Raiders
Steelers vs Broncos
Manning will struggle coming out because he missed all of last year and will need time to adjust to the Rocky’s
-Ray
@raymalaspina
Replacement Refs to open Week 1
As the 2012 NFL season is just 6 days away, the league has announced that the replacement refs will be in full effect for week 1. How do we think this will turn out, most likely a disaster, but you know what, these refs are human just like us and everyone makes mistakes. As bad calls will most likely be called in every game, it will still be fair simply because every team will have replacement refs. If some games had replacements and others didn’t it would not be fair, but since they all will be using the replacements, it will fair across the board.
As we saw this preseason, some of the refs get confused with players, teams, rules, and ball positioning. We have seen 2 balls placed on the field in 2 different spots at the same time, a touch back when the ball landed on the 4 yard line and not the endzone, and also players being called for a penalty when they were no where near the scene of the crime, just to name a few. Clearly the refs made some big mistakes which got coaches and players mad and also gave the crowd a good laugh. Just like the preseason is practice for the players, it is also practice for the refs.
With the starters on all teams getting all the playing time, the refs will have more pressure in week one then they have all season. The last time replacement referees were used was week 1 during the 2001 season during the last strike.
If you ask me, we will see bad calls, but also see some good ones. With the pressure on this week, the refs will have big shoes to fill. As everyone will be hating on the replacement refs, I will be looking on the brightside as should you. That is, football fans can no longer yell and criticize the real referees after seeing the performance of the replacements, it makes you respect and be thankful that the NFL has great referees and all they want to do is continue to do their job without getting a pay cut. Let this strike end fast and hopefully in week 2 we can see the men who help make this game the way it is back on the field. Week one will be interesting and lets just see how many of those refs will be seen on tv for their mistakes.
Early next week I will be posting my week 1 picks.
-Ray
@raymalaspina