FB: American Rivers Conference

[Klopenhiemer]

WH- you're roughly 1500 students off the Drake numbers. They like to say they have 5500 students, but that includes graduate, doctoral and law students. Actually, they usually have about 800 students in an entering class, although last year it was over 900. You probably won't see many of the graduate and law students attending games, unless they went to Drake for undergraduate. But to your point, they're still double that of most IIAC schools.

I still want to hear from someone who has actually attend both a Drake and IIAC game in the past few year. I would like to hear what you think? We can talk all the numbers that we want...I've seen both and I believe we're crazy to think Wartburg and Central would win 7 or 8 out of 10. From my observations, I think we would be lucky to go .500.

I agree whole heartedly with this statement. 

I didnt realize they counted grad students in that number. Either way, bigger than every IIAC school by 2 times other than I believe only Luther. Maybe BV is a lot bigger, I don't remember.
I only saw Drake play UNI and it was so ugly I didn't think they would hang with Cornell.

If BV counts all the centers that they have around the state then the number is well over 2,000 people.  The Storm Lake campus has between 1,000-1,300 depending upon the incoming frehman class and exiting senior class.  I have heard the Storm Lake campus has seen days where there were only 900 kids on campus. 

[D1HawkD3CUI]

This is my own opinion but I think Central fans are pretty...well, um...boring!

I don't want this to offend anyone, especially the parents of players because they obviously log a ton of miles to watch their sons each Saturday and a lot of them are great fans and great people but the Central crowds always seemed pretty pathetic for how good of a team we put on the field. I realize this isn't Big 10 football but even a small crowd can be fun/loud!

I was a student from 2002-2006, lived with many football/baseball players and I spent many fall Saturdays in Schipper Stadium and I was always so frustrated with our fan base considering how good we were/are.

First, the student section which should be the heart of any collegiate crowd was pretty bad, here's why in my opinion:

1. The A.D. -his nickname is "the fun hater" and he lived up to it.

2. The majority of the student body had little/no interest in supporting athletics. Usually the other athletes were the only ones who really cared about the other teams. There seemed to be a little animosity toward the football team from a lot of students actually.

3. Dry campus-Obviously drinking went on, but no tailgating of any sort minus one group that tried to make it fun at the games for everyone else (We tried and again I know it's not Iowa City or Ames. A lot of people probably appreciate that actually)

4. BKE frat's showing- The BKE's were the one "true frat" at Central and they used to be well represented and loud at the games. they had a bunch of funny cheers that were actually pretty good. That dwindled down to a handful of guys and that took a lot away from the games.

5. Unless it was a perfect fall day, people didn't even show up for the game. It didn't matter who we were playing or how big the game was, 72 and sunny or 3/4 of the student section was empty. A LOT of students go home on weekends at Central, they didn't really get the whole college thing.

6. The Pep Band-This has nothing to do with bad fans but they were pretty awful. I appreciated the effort but you don't have a pep band for football! We would be better off with music over the PA but I'm sure Al had a problem with that.

7. Iowa/ISU fans- A lot of students would rather sit inside and watch iowa or isu then walk to the field. I know I missed a few games for Kinnick myself but rarely missed a home game in my 4 years.

8. All the fun people were on the sidelines! When you have 130+ guys dressing for a home game, that's a lot of guys that probably would be front row making noise after tailgating all morning with us.

AAgain, that's probably what some people like about a D3 game, you don't have to worry about f-bombs all over and beer cans everywhere but Central games just lacked any sort of NCAA atmosphere. I have a great time at Wartburg, Simpson and even Luther but Pella just never seemed to get anyone excited.

I always felt bad for the players myself considering how hard they work and how successful they were but I guess they weren't playing in D3 for the big crowds or big game atmosphere.

Long post, i'll wrap it up.

[Walston Hoover]

Being part of the road crowd is more fun. Only diehards go to road games and they are there to cheer, not socialize.

[sc_stormchaser]

WH- you're roughly 1500 students off the Drake numbers. They like to say they have 5500 students, but that includes graduate, doctoral and law students. Actually, they usually have about 800 students in an entering class, although last year it was over 900. You probably won't see many of the graduate and law students attending games, unless they went to Drake for undergraduate. But to your point, they're still double that of most IIAC schools.

I still want to hear from someone who has actually attend both a Drake and IIAC game in the past few year. I would like to hear what you think? We can talk all the numbers that we want...I've seen both and I believe we're crazy to think Wartburg and Central would win 7 or 8 out of 10. From my observations, I think we would be lucky to go .500.

I agree whole heartedly with this statement. 

I didnt realize they counted grad students in that number. Either way, bigger than every IIAC school by 2 times other than I believe only Luther. Maybe BV is a lot bigger, I don't remember.
I only saw Drake play UNI and it was so ugly I didn't think they would hang with Cornell.

Yes, any of the UNI games would be hard to judge from....the IIAC needs to get on Drake's schedule so this can be settled. Can someone call the ADs at all schools involved? 

BV seems to use the same philosophy as Drake when it comes to overall student numbers. And BV is a little more of a stretch because, as Klop pointed out, many of the students aren't at the Storm Lake campus.

[D1HawkD3CUI]

This is what I have so far.  I'm not sure about a couple of spellings since they came from "secondary sources" ... If your name is missing, let me know on here.

IIAC FAN BASE
UD:  doolittledog, DBQ1965, Spurrier, WillieU, Keith45

Central:  dutchFan2004, Dutchfan1, Klompen, KCDutch, Dutchlb, oldbeake, Airborne Dutch

Wartburg:  Walston Hoover, sportsknight, Wartburg Fan, footballdaddy, TheOne89.1

Luther:  Ram2

BV:  The Show, Klopenheimer, BeaverOfYore

Coe:  Charlie Kohawk, coocooforcokohawks, Kohawk Krazy, the_mayne_event, Kohawk Remedy

Cornell:  Purple Hayes, Ash Park

Loras:

Simpson:  Storm-what?, sc-stormchaser, New Storm

Wartknight for the warts

D1HawkD3CUI for the Dutch obviously....

I think Central/Wartburg/Coe could play with Drake. We basically recruit the same kids and I don't think the talent level is any different. I would love to see an IIAC get a chance at Drake.

[Walston Hoover]

I know as of a couple years ago, there were a couple IIAC teams trying to get on Drake's schedule, but Drake would only schedule UW-P.  Playing an IIAC team is a lose/lose situation for the Bulldogs. Since the same guys are recruited right now, they can continue to say they are D1 and if they would beat an IIAC, its because they should. If they lose, there goes the whole mystique of being "D1"

[dutchfan1]

This is my own opinion but I think Central fans are pretty...well, um...boring!

I don't want this to offend anyone, especially the parents of players because they obviously log a ton of miles to watch their sons each Saturday and a lot of them are great fans and great people but the Central crowds always seemed pretty pathetic for how good of a team we put on the field. I realize this isn't Big 10 football but even a small crowd can be fun/loud!

I was a student from 2002-2006, lived with many football/baseball players and I spent many fall Saturdays in Schipper Stadium and I was always so frustrated with our fan base considering how good we were/are.

First, the student section which should be the heart of any collegiate crowd was pretty bad, here's why in my opinion:

1. The A.D. -his nickname is "the fun hater" and he lived up to it.

2. The majority of the student body had little/no interest in supporting athletics. Usually the other athletes were the only ones who really cared about the other teams. There seemed to be a little animosity toward the football team from a lot of students actually.

3. Dry campus-Obviously drinking went on, but no tailgating of any sort minus one group that tried to make it fun at the games for everyone else (We tried and again I know it's not Iowa City or Ames. A lot of people probably appreciate that actually)

4. BKE frat's showing- The BKE's were the one "true frat" at Central and they used to be well represented and loud at the games. they had a bunch of funny cheers that were actually pretty good. That dwindled down to a handful of guys and that took a lot away from the games.

5. Unless it was a perfect fall day, people didn't even show up for the game. It didn't matter who we were playing or how big the game was, 72 and sunny or 3/4 of the student section was empty. A LOT of students go home on weekends at Central, they didn't really get the whole college thing.

6. The Pep Band-This has nothing to do with bad fans but they were pretty awful. I appreciated the effort but you don't have a pep band for football! We would be better off with music over the PA but I'm sure Al had a problem with that.

7. Iowa/ISU fans- A lot of students would rather sit inside and watch iowa or isu then walk to the field. I know I missed a few games for Kinnick myself but rarely missed a home game in my 4 years.

8. All the fun people were on the sidelines! When you have 130+ guys dressing for a home game, that's a lot of guys that probably would be front row making noise after tailgating all morning with us.

AAgain, that's probably what some people like about a D3 game, you don't have to worry about f-bombs all over and beer cans everywhere but Central games just lacked any sort of NCAA atmosphere. I have a great time at Wartburg, Simpson and even Luther but Pella just never seemed to get anyone excited.

I always felt bad for the players myself considering how hard they work and how successful they were but I guess they weren't playing in D3 for the big crowds or big game atmosphere.

Long post, i'll wrap it up.

See, I had an entirely different experience while I was at Central. I graduated in 2000. Granted, I was on the sidelines, but it gave me a pretty good vantage point to see the students. Back in the day (what seems like 100 years ago, now) the students were loud and proud, lead by a pretty hearty Beake contingent. Maurer and Co. lead the Beake cheers and got everyone riled up. The Fun Hater was there, but he didn't dampen anyone's spirit. Everyone was there because the players were friends with people on campus....and well, it helped that we were good, too. The team had a pretty hearty following, and that's both home and away games. That was back in the day when they put in extra bleachers because they needed them, and proper tailgating was done in the Collegiate Center before kickoff. (Dry campus? Central is a dry campus?) Football kicked off weekend shenanigans -- if the team won, we partied and celebrated, if we lost, we drown our pain. Either way, we had to know the outcome of the game, so we were there. People didn't miss the action on campus in favor of watching Iowa -- people taped Iowa games and watched them later. I don't doubt what you are saying, but it is so odd to hear you explain it that way because I had an entirely different experience.

[DutchFan2004]

I know as of a couple years ago, there were a couple IIAC teams trying to get on Drake's schedule, but Drake would only schedule UW-P.  Playing an IIAC team is a lose/lose situation for the Bulldogs. Since the same guys are recruited right now, they can continue to say they are D1 and if they would beat an IIAC, its because they should. If they lose, there goes the whole mystique of being "D1"

It is not only a lose/lose situation for Drake but any of the top IIAC teams also lose a D3 game.  If you win or lose to Drake it does nothing to get you into the playoffs if you are a Pool C bid.  You are a game short when it comes to Pool C.  Why would Wartburg, Central, and Coe gamble with the schedule like that?

[Ash Park]

Those are numbers from all 8 home games.
Olivet had a horrible gate
and your home schedule this year brought in no big games. Probably a big part of it, but you guys darn near had the lowest attendance in the conference. I don't count Cornell since a large portion of their players and fan base are a greater distance away than most of the other IIAC schools.

I am at every Ram game in spirit.   8)

That is true about the distance thing, but also the small enrollment plays into their attendance as well. Of course the lack of wins does not help either, but also the fact that athletics are not endorsed at all at Cornell...hopefully that will change with Cochrane as the AD now.

[DutchFan2004]

This is my own opinion but I think Central fans are pretty...well, um...boring!

I don't want this to offend anyone, especially the parents of players because they obviously log a ton of miles to watch their sons each Saturday and a lot of them are great fans and great people but the Central crowds always seemed pretty pathetic for how good of a team we put on the field. I realize this isn't Big 10 football but even a small crowd can be fun/loud!

I was a student from 2002-2006, lived with many football/baseball players and I spent many fall Saturdays in Schipper Stadium and I was always so frustrated with our fan base considering how good we were/are.

First, the student section which should be the heart of any collegiate crowd was pretty bad, here's why in my opinion:

1. The A.D. -his nickname is "the fun hater" and he lived up to it.

2. The majority of the student body had little/no interest in supporting athletics. Usually the other athletes were the only ones who really cared about the other teams. There seemed to be a little animosity toward the football team from a lot of students actually.

3. Dry campus-Obviously drinking went on, but no tailgating of any sort minus one group that tried to make it fun at the games for everyone else (We tried and again I know it's not Iowa City or Ames. A lot of people probably appreciate that actually)

4. BKE frat's showing- The BKE's were the one "true frat" at Central and they used to be well represented and loud at the games. they had a bunch of funny cheers that were actually pretty good. That dwindled down to a handful of guys and that took a lot away from the games.

5. Unless it was a perfect fall day, people didn't even show up for the game. It didn't matter who we were playing or how big the game was, 72 and sunny or 3/4 of the student section was empty. A LOT of students go home on weekends at Central, they didn't really get the whole college thing.

6. The Pep Band-This has nothing to do with bad fans but they were pretty awful. I appreciated the effort but you don't have a pep band for football! We would be better off with music over the PA but I'm sure Al had a problem with that.

7. Iowa/ISU fans- A lot of students would rather sit inside and watch iowa or isu then walk to the field. I know I missed a few games for Kinnick myself but rarely missed a home game in my 4 years.

8. All the fun people were on the sidelines! When you have 130+ guys dressing for a home game, that's a lot of guys that probably would be front row making noise after tailgating all morning with us.

AAgain, that's probably what some people like about a D3 game, you don't have to worry about f-bombs all over and beer cans everywhere but Central games just lacked any sort of NCAA atmosphere. I have a great time at Wartburg, Simpson and even Luther but Pella just never seemed to get anyone excited.

I always felt bad for the players myself considering how hard they work and how successful they were but I guess they weren't playing in D3 for the big crowds or big game atmosphere.

Long post, i'll wrap it up.

Somehow I think it is sad that you equate people dropping f-bombs, getting drunk, and people making fools of themselves a good time or an NCAA experience. I can only speak for myself but the players parents put on a pretty good tailgate with some good food and good conversation.  I think SK had some good times with us.  I think of it as having a great cookout good friends and great times.  Fun, Family, and Football.  Does it get any better than that.  I have had a wonderful time being a parent of a Dutch player.  I am looking forward to seeing games without the worries of will my kid get up after taking a pounding.  I will still be at the games and tailgating.  That was a really great time.  Son #1 and his sons will be joining me cooking out pigging out on some great Dutch pastries.  I am not a prohibition guy but why does getting drunk have to equate to a good time?  Not opposed to someone having a Hamm's or two or even three but if you can not control yourself where is the fun in that? 

[DutchFan2004]

Those are numbers from all 8 home games.
Olivet had a horrible gate
and your home schedule this year brought in no big games. Probably a big part of it, but you guys darn near had the lowest attendance in the conference. I don't count Cornell since a large portion of their players and fan base are a greater distance away than most of the other IIAC schools.

I am at every Ram game in spirit.   8)

That is true about the distance thing, but also the small enrollment plays into their attendance as well. Of course the lack of wins does not help either, but also the fact that athletics are not endorsed at all at Cornell...hopefully that will change with Cochrane as the AD now.

I would agree that the AD has to rev up the support for the sports programs, but if the president of the Cornell does not get into it and get the faculty into it I don't see the AD being able to change that mindset.  If the AD changes them I think that will be a good start.  The sports programs give profs a way to cheer on the college.  It helps build a sense of loyalty.  I think one of the greatest things about Wartburg is them singing their unity song at school functions.  Wartburg does a great job of bonding the students to the institution and the other students that.  Not that everyone gets along great at Wartburg but I think this approach helps.  That and President Ohle supported and encouraged the sports programs as well as the other such as band and vocal.  I think WH can attest to making friends outside football and his major because he sang there.  All of these things help a school to bond.

[Ash Park]

This is my own opinion but I think Central fans are pretty...well, um...boring!

I don't want this to offend anyone, especially the parents of players because they obviously log a ton of miles to watch their sons each Saturday and a lot of them are great fans and great people but the Central crowds always seemed pretty pathetic for how good of a team we put on the field. I realize this isn't Big 10 football but even a small crowd can be fun/loud!

I was a student from 2002-2006, lived with many football/baseball players and I spent many fall Saturdays in Schipper Stadium and I was always so frustrated with our fan base considering how good we were/are.

First, the student section which should be the heart of any collegiate crowd was pretty bad, here's why in my opinion:

1. The A.D. -his nickname is "the fun hater" and he lived up to it.

2. The majority of the student body had little/no interest in supporting athletics. Usually the other athletes were the only ones who really cared about the other teams. There seemed to be a little animosity toward the football team from a lot of students actually.

3. Dry campus-Obviously drinking went on, but no tailgating of any sort minus one group that tried to make it fun at the games for everyone else (We tried and again I know it's not Iowa City or Ames. A lot of people probably appreciate that actually)

4. BKE frat's showing- The BKE's were the one "true frat" at Central and they used to be well represented and loud at the games. they had a bunch of funny cheers that were actually pretty good. That dwindled down to a handful of guys and that took a lot away from the games.

5. Unless it was a perfect fall day, people didn't even show up for the game. It didn't matter who we were playing or how big the game was, 72 and sunny or 3/4 of the student section was empty. A LOT of students go home on weekends at Central, they didn't really get the whole college thing.

6. The Pep Band-This has nothing to do with bad fans but they were pretty awful. I appreciated the effort but you don't have a pep band for football! We would be better off with music over the PA but I'm sure Al had a problem with that.

7. Iowa/ISU fans- A lot of students would rather sit inside and watch iowa or isu then walk to the field. I know I missed a few games for Kinnick myself but rarely missed a home game in my 4 years.

8. All the fun people were on the sidelines! When you have 130+ guys dressing for a home game, that's a lot of guys that probably would be front row making noise after tailgating all morning with us.

AAgain, that's probably what some people like about a D3 game, you don't have to worry about f-bombs all over and beer cans everywhere but Central games just lacked any sort of NCAA atmosphere. I have a great time at Wartburg, Simpson and even Luther but Pella just never seemed to get anyone excited.

I always felt bad for the players myself considering how hard they work and how successful they were but I guess they weren't playing in D3 for the big crowds or big game atmosphere.

Long post, i'll wrap it up.

Somehow I think it is sad that you equate people dropping f-bombs, getting drunk, and people making fools of themselves a good time or an NCAA experience. I can only speak for myself but the players parents put on a pretty good tailgate with some good food and good conversation.  I think SK had some good times with us.  I think of it as having a great cookout good friends and great times.  Fun, Family, and Football.  Does it get any better than that.  I have had a wonderful time being a parent of a Dutch player.  I am looking forward to seeing games without the worries of will my kid get up after taking a pounding.  I will still be at the games and tailgating.  That was a really great time.  Son #1 and his sons will be joining me cooking out pigging out on some great Dutch pastries.  I am not a prohibition guy but why does getting drunk have to equate to a good time?  Not opposed to someone having a Hamm's or two or even three but if you can not control yourself where is the fun in that? 

I agree...one thing that has changed the past few years at Cornell is the parents tailgate right by the team entrance. The parents are really starting to get more involved and actually inviting the students to tailgate with them. I haven't seen too many drunk idiots....not to say there isn't some alcohol being consumed but I don't see too many people getting out of hand which is a good thing in my opinion. I would rather have 4,000 sober or somewhat sober fans than 10 drunk idiots saying dumb s**t.

[the_mayne_event]

This is my own opinion but I think Central fans are pretty...well, um...boring!

I don't want this to offend anyone, especially the parents of players because they obviously log a ton of miles to watch their sons each Saturday and a lot of them are great fans and great people but the Central crowds always seemed pretty pathetic for how good of a team we put on the field. I realize this isn't Big 10 football but even a small crowd can be fun/loud!

I was a student from 2002-2006, lived with many football/baseball players and I spent many fall Saturdays in Schipper Stadium and I was always so frustrated with our fan base considering how good we were/are.

First, the student section which should be the heart of any collegiate crowd was pretty bad, here's why in my opinion:

1. The A.D. -his nickname is "the fun hater" and he lived up to it.

2. The majority of the student body had little/no interest in supporting athletics. Usually the other athletes were the only ones who really cared about the other teams. There seemed to be a little animosity toward the football team from a lot of students actually.

3. Dry campus-Obviously drinking went on, but no tailgating of any sort minus one group that tried to make it fun at the games for everyone else (We tried and again I know it's not Iowa City or Ames. A lot of people probably appreciate that actually)

4. BKE frat's showing- The BKE's were the one "true frat" at Central and they used to be well represented and loud at the games. they had a bunch of funny cheers that were actually pretty good. That dwindled down to a handful of guys and that took a lot away from the games.

5. Unless it was a perfect fall day, people didn't even show up for the game. It didn't matter who we were playing or how big the game was, 72 and sunny or 3/4 of the student section was empty. A LOT of students go home on weekends at Central, they didn't really get the whole college thing.

6. The Pep Band-This has nothing to do with bad fans but they were pretty awful. I appreciated the effort but you don't have a pep band for football! We would be better off with music over the PA but I'm sure Al had a problem with that.

7. Iowa/ISU fans- A lot of students would rather sit inside and watch iowa or isu then walk to the field. I know I missed a few games for Kinnick myself but rarely missed a home game in my 4 years.

8. All the fun people were on the sidelines! When you have 130+ guys dressing for a home game, that's a lot of guys that probably would be front row making noise after tailgating all morning with us.

AAgain, that's probably what some people like about a D3 game, you don't have to worry about f-bombs all over and beer cans everywhere but Central games just lacked any sort of NCAA atmosphere. I have a great time at Wartburg, Simpson and even Luther but Pella just never seemed to get anyone excited.

I always felt bad for the players myself considering how hard they work and how successful they were but I guess they weren't playing in D3 for the big crowds or big game atmosphere.

Long post, i'll wrap it up.

Somehow I think it is sad that you equate people dropping f-bombs, getting drunk, and people making fools of themselves a good time or an NCAA experience. I can only speak for myself but the players parents put on a pretty good tailgate with some good food and good conversation.  I think SK had some good times with us.  I think of it as having a great cookout good friends and great times.  Fun, Family, and Football.  Does it get any better than that.  I have had a wonderful time being a parent of a Dutch player.  I am looking forward to seeing games without the worries of will my kid get up after taking a pounding.  I will still be at the games and tailgating.  That was a really great time.  Son #1 and his sons will be joining me cooking out pigging out on some great Dutch pastries.  I am not a prohibition guy but why does getting drunk have to equate to a good time?  Not opposed to someone having a Hamm's or two or even three but if you can not control yourself where is the fun in that? 

I know at the Coe tailgate, the parents made the time.  Kids whould show up there in order to hang out with the parents.  Now, it is to say, when i was at Coe, the parents sure knew how to have a good time with the students.  it was a way for them to get out of their normal day-to-day routine and sort of relive the college experience for a few hours through their son's eyes.  they would also join us after the game for awhile at the bar down the street that we would frequent.  the owner of the bar was very good friends with the football players (especially the fraternity football players that lived right off the softball field for those who know where i'm talking about).  the owner even got to know know all of the parents, and became good friends with them as well.  they would drink their fair share of the alcohol being consumed there, but never got out of hand.  it was just a fun/great collegiate atmosphere that the parents enjoyed

[Ash Park]

Those are numbers from all 8 home games.
Olivet had a horrible gate
and your home schedule this year brought in no big games. Probably a big part of it, but you guys darn near had the lowest attendance in the conference. I don't count Cornell since a large portion of their players and fan base are a greater distance away than most of the other IIAC schools.

I am at every Ram game in spirit.   8)

That is true about the distance thing, but also the small enrollment plays into their attendance as well. Of course the lack of wins does not help either, but also the fact that athletics are not endorsed at all at Cornell...hopefully that will change with Cochrane as the AD now.

I would agree that the AD has to rev up the support for the sports programs, but if the president of the Cornell does not get into it and get the faculty into it I don't see the AD being able to change that mindset.  If the AD changes them I think that will be a good start.  The sports programs give profs a way to cheer on the college.  It helps build a sense of loyalty.  I think one of the greatest things about Wartburg is them singing their unity song at school functions.  Wartburg does a great job of bonding the students to the institution and the other students that.  Not that everyone gets along great at Wartburg but I think this approach helps.  That and President Ohle supported and encouraged the sports programs as well as the other such as band and vocal.  I think WH can attest to making friends outside football and his major because he sang there.  All of these things help a school to bond.

Yes you are right about the president getting on board as well. I still think Cochrane will help a ton, but yes the president needs to start backing the athletic programs more as well. It will be tough to get the faculty there to support athletics more, but I see Cornell starting to make some changes which is better than nothing I guess.

[the_mayne_event]

Those are numbers from all 8 home games.
Olivet had a horrible gate
and your home schedule this year brought in no big games. Probably a big part of it, but you guys darn near had the lowest attendance in the conference. I don't count Cornell since a large portion of their players and fan base are a greater distance away than most of the other IIAC schools.

I am at every Ram game in spirit.   8)

That is true about the distance thing, but also the small enrollment plays into their attendance as well. Of course the lack of wins does not help either, but also the fact that athletics are not endorsed at all at Cornell...hopefully that will change with Cochrane as the AD now.

I would agree that the AD has to rev up the support for the sports programs, but if the president of the Cornell does not get into it and get the faculty into it I don't see the AD being able to change that mindset.  If the AD changes them I think that will be a good start.  The sports programs give profs a way to cheer on the college.  It helps build a sense of loyalty.  I think one of the greatest things about Wartburg is them singing their unity song at school functions.  Wartburg does a great job of bonding the students to the institution and the other students that.  Not that everyone gets along great at Wartburg but I think this approach helps.  That and President Ohle supported and encouraged the sports programs as well as the other such as band and vocal.  I think WH can attest to making friends outside football and his major because he sang there.  All of these things help a school to bond.

Yes you are right about the president getting on board as well. I still think Cochrane will help a ton, but yes the president needs to start backing the athletic programs more as well. It will be tough to get the faculty there to support athletics more, but I see Cornell starting to make some changes which is better than nothing I guess.

Pfiefer (at Coe) is at every sporting event he can be at.  You could always smell his cigar smoke during the football games when you were getting close to the endzone where he sat.