Support Temple athletics with good sportsmanship
I would first like to applaud you for your support of both the men’s and women’s basketball teams this season. Your attendance and enthusiasm has helped our teams to great success and has truly made the Liacouras Center a “home” court.
Unfortunately, a select few fans at Tuesday’s nationally-televised win over Saint Joseph’s embarrassed the university. Chants of vulgarity directed at both Saint Joseph’s University as well its head coach Phil Martelli were in bad taste and went against not only our university and Atlantic Ten Conference code of conduct, but also common decency.
I have apologized to Saint Joseph’s University for this conduct, but now I urge you to be positive in your support of your Owls. Cheer on our student-athletes and never be disrespectful to the opposing team, its coaches or student-athletes.
I am proud of 99 percent of the students that have supported Temple in my four years as director of athletics, but it is that one percent that can make you, and your university, look bad.
Go Owls!!!
-Bill Bradshaw
Director of Athletics
Embarrassment retires Cherry Crusade T-shirt
As most of the students who attend any Temple basketball game know, there is a group of very dedicated students called the Cherry Crusade. They sit in the front of the student section, claim those prime seats that every student wants and every student has a right to, and lead the section in rooting for our team.
Yet last Tuesday’s game seemed to get out of control. As dedicated students, we are supposed to be leading the student section, also known as “The Nest,” in chants.
Prior to the Temple-Saint Joseph’s matchup, the Cherry Crusade sent an e-mail to its members saying that they were to keep the chants at this game clean: “CHANTS: PLEASE KEEP IT CLASSY!!! WE DO NOT WANT COACH CHANEY TO GET ON THE MICROPHONE AND START YELLING AT US.”
This didn’t seem to be the case. If you were at the game, you know what I am talking about. Chanting profanities at St. Joe’s, the cheerleaders and coach Martelli is, as coach Chaney puts it, “Not our way.”
There is simply no reason to be screaming “#*%& St. Joe’s” or “#*%& Martelli.” Cursing at the other team is not only disrespectful, immature and uncalled for, but also gives Temple University a very unprofessional and childish image.
It is the game that the fans come to watch; when they enter the Liacouras Center they should not be worried about the cursing that their child will hear tonight or how bad the student section will get tonight. A lot of that falls on the part of the Cherry Crusade, but I am not putting the entire fault on them. I am also blaming the student section in general.
It is the image that we as the student body put out there that adds to the value of our degrees. People remember the bad more often than they remember the good things that happen.
We all remember last year’s meeting versus St. Joe’s with the “Goon” incident, but no one remembers anything else about that game, how many points Mardy Collins scored or how many turnovers St. Joe’s had.
My point is simple: We as “The Nest” and the Cherry Crusade do not need to curse at the other team, flip off fans and badger the opposing team’s fans as they leave the arena. Cheers do NOT need to include profanity. In fact, it is against NCAA policy to act in that behavior.
As a member of the Cherry Crusade, I will not wear my Cherry Crusade T-shirt nor will I take part in these inappropriate chants. I hope that you will join me in only taking part in the cleaner more appropriate chants.
-Keith Wlosek
Sophomore, Architecture
Cherry Crusade member
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