WiSioux Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 I don't know if I am biased because I am a student, but once again student behavior at hockey games has become an issue. I was just wondering what some of the other fans that have been to the Ralph's opinion of the student section is. In today's issue of the Dakota Student was the following memo: To: All Student Season Ticket Holders From: UND Athletics, REA Administration, Student Government RE: Student Fan Behavior at UND Athletic Events Date: Jan. 13, 2005 (yeah... it actually says 2005... it's not my type-o) Dear Student Hockey Fans: All season ticket holders are required to attend a MANDATORY meeting on Wednesday January 18th at 6:00 pm. We will meet in the lower bowl student section at REA. At this meeting UND and REA administration and staff will once and for all lay out our defination of acceptable behavior at all UND athletic events. Items to be discussed at this time will be: 1. Standing or obstructing the view of other fans 2. Vulgarity addressed to officals, visiting teams, event employees 3. How to properly show respect to officals and visiting teams 4. Excessive alcohol consumption UND and REA want to keep the excitement and enthusiam the students bring to the game, but the price you are asking to pay for this atmosphere is too much. Current and future seating plans will be determined by your wwillingness to conduct yourselves in an acceptable manner. We thank you in advance for attending this meeting. Sincerely, Tom Buning Director of Athletics Jody Hodgson REA General Manager Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Siouxdonyms Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 I don't know if I am biased because I am a student, but once again student behavior at hockey games has become an issue. I was just wondering what some of the other fans that have been to the Ralph's opinion of the student section is. In today's issue of the Dakota Student was the following memo: To: All Student Season Ticket Holders From: UND Athletics, REA Administration, Student Government RE: Student Fan Behavior at UND Athletic Events Date: Jan. 13, 2005 (yeah... it actually says 2005... it's not my type-o) Dear Student Hockey Fans: All season ticket holders are required to attend a MANDATORY meeting on Wednesday January 18th at 6:00 pm. We will meet in the lower bowl student section at REA. At this meeting UND and REA administration and staff will once and for all lay out our defination of acceptable behavior at all UND athletic events. Items to be discussed at this time will be: 1. Standing or obstructing the view of other fans 2. Vulgarity addressed to officals, visiting teams, event employees 3. How to properly show respect to officals and visiting teams 4. Excessive alcohol consumption UND and REA want to keep the excitement and enthusiam the students bring to the game, but the price you are asking to pay for this atmosphere is too much. Current and future seating plans will be determined by your wwillingness to conduct yourselves in an acceptable manner. We thank you in advance for attending this meeting. Sincerely, Tom Buning Director of Athletics Jody Hodgson REA General Manager I haven't attended any games this year, but did attend all home games from when the new arena opened in 2001 through last season. Student behavior at the new Ralph has never matched the level of behavior of students at the old Ralph. I don't mean that the students at the new Ralph are worse than past student members, but rather, quite the opposite. Plain and simple, students at the old Ralph had A LOT more leniency to behave in whichever manner they wanted too, for the most part. They didn't sell alcohol in the old Ralph, but it didn't stop it from coming in. Dead rodents (and a live one once) entered the building every time we played the Gophers, and found there way to the ice following Sioux goals. Students were just as hard, if not harder on the refs, as well as opposing players, and because of the size of the old Ralph, the noise level of the student section elevated to levels that have not yet been obtained at the new building. Unfortunately, the new Ralph is a business. They have a lot more customers to please, and that is most likely the bottom line as to why there seem to be so many more restrictions to the students at UND now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HockeyMom Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 To All Student Season Ticket Holders: I was once a Univerity of North Dakota student standing, swearing, over indulging in alcohol and just plain making other teams feel not welcome in our house.......it was a very memorable time, that I would do over again without hesitation. I very rarely attend a game where I'm not looking at the student section and wishing I could be in the middle of it. I'm sorry that money has become such a big issue at hockey games....but that's what it all comes down to. MONEY. If it were up to me, you would have a majority of the lower bowl at Engelstad Arena. The rest of the lower bowl tickets would be given to actual hockey fans. I would love to see that place rocking......you know, like it used to.....back in the day. YOU are the University of North Dakota. It's YOUR University. It's YOUR football team, it's YOUR hockey team, it's YOUR basketball team. Without YOU there is no University. You haven't done anything more than what a lot of us used to do.......I hope that the University of North Dakota keeps this in mind when they discuss this matter with you. That is all, HockeyMom- Class of '96 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Siouxhockey78 Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 Its a fricken hockey game not a tennis match. I think games at the Old Ralph were more fun and wild then the New Ralph. I know we have one the best or thee best arena and its a honor to play there but come on crowd lightened up a little bit and have some damn fun. It's seem since the new ralph no one wants to get wild and crazy which you can do without causeing trouble. People just wanna sit there and have fricken social hour all game. If you even get up and get a little crazy people look at you like your nutz. If it wasn't for the Student Section maken noise I get this feeling I'm sitting at a tennis match because its so quiet in there. When the student section get's wild and crazy people complain and they get looked done on for cheering and having fun at a hockey. come on that is totally retarded. I am a huge fan of the sioux but at Gopher games its like a complete 360 from their crowd at home to our crowd at home. Man that whole place get's rocking chatting, cheering and so on. You don't see that at the ralph from our whole crowd. Well bottom line is this is hockey and not a tennis match and for the fans that wanna have social hour the whole game go to the fricken bar or something and give your tickets up to fan's that wanna take part in the game. Go Sioux.... Joey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagies Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 I haven't attended any games this year, but did attend all home games from when the new arena opened in 2001 through last season. Student behavior at the new Ralph has never matched the level of behavior of students at the old Ralph. I don't mean that the students at the new Ralph are worse than past student members, but rather, quite the opposite. Plain and simple, students at the old Ralph had A LOT more leniency to behave in whichever manner they wanted too, for the most part. They didn't sell alcohol in the old Ralph, but it didn't stop it from coming in. Dead rodents (and a live one once) entered the building every time we played the Gophers, and found there way to the ice following Sioux goals. Students were just as hard, if not harder on the refs, as well as opposing players, and because of the size of the old Ralph, the noise level of the student section elevated to levels that have not yet been obtained at the new building. Unfortunately, the new Ralph is a business. They have a lot more customers to please, and that is most likely the bottom line as to why there seem to be so many more restrictions to the students at UND now. I think you hit it on the head, with one addition. The times, they are a-changin'. I'm not going to get into the argument about what should or shouldn't be acceptable, but in general, as time goes on society is looking to clean things up a bit. Some things make sense and some don't. I agree with Siouxdonyms that the Ralph is a new and different situation and that is probably behind part of this. I also think that society in general has changed some over time and that's part of the reason as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
01grad Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 YOU are the University of North Dakota. It's YOUR University. It's YOUR football team, it's YOUR hockey team, it's YOUR basketball team. Without YOU there is no University. HockeyMom- Class of '96 And without the University, there wouldn't be a city of Grand Forks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goon Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 To: All Student Season Ticket Holders From: UND Athletics, REA Administration, Student Government RE: Student Fan Behavior at UND Athletic Events Date: Jan. 13, 2005 (yeah... it actually says 2005... it's not my type-o) Dear Student Hockey Fans: All season ticket holders are required to attend a MANDATORY meeting on Wednesday January 18th at 6:00 pm. We will meet in the lower bowl student section at REA. At this meeting UND and REA administration and staff will once and for all lay out our defination of acceptable behavior at all UND athletic events. Items to be discussed at this time will be: 1. Standing or obstructing the view of other fans 2. Vulgarity addressed to officals, visiting teams, event employees 3. How to properly show respect to officals and visiting teams 4. Excessive alcohol consumption UND and REA want to keep the excitement and enthusiam the students bring to the game, but the price you are asking to pay for this atmosphere is too much. Current and future seating plans will be determined by your wwillingness to conduct yourselves in an acceptable manner. We thank you in advance for attending this meeting. Sincerely, Tom Buning Director of Athletics Jody Hodgson REA General Manager So now there is going to be a lecture on appropriate behavior at sporting events. Anyway us other older vulgar people can go to this and find out if we aren't violating public decency laws? I am pretty sure that some of us might be in trouble too. Its a fricken hockey game not a tennis match. I think games at the Old Ralph were more fun and wild then the New Ralph. I know we have one the best or thee best arena and its a honor to play there but come on crowd lightened up a little bit and have some damn fun. It's seem since the new ralph no one wants to get wild and crazy which you can do without causeing trouble. People just wanna sit there and have fricken social hour all game. If you even get up and get a little crazy people look at you like your nutz. If it wasn't for the Student Section maken noise I get this feeling I'm sitting at a tennis match because its so quiet in there. When the student section get's wild and crazy people complain and they get looked done on for cheering and having fun at a hockey. come on that is totally retarded. I am a huge fan of the sioux but at Gopher games its like a complete 360 from their crowd at home to our crowd at home. Man that whole place get's rocking chatting, cheering and so on. You don't see that at the ralph from our whole crowd. Well bottom line is this is hockey and not a tennis match and for the fans that wanna have social hour the whole game go to the fricken bar or something and give your tickets up to fan's that wanna take part in the game. Go Sioux.... Joey John McEnroe basically broke a lot of the same rules of decency when he played tennis so that might throw that argument out too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DamStrait Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 Here we go again.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Siouxhockey78 Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 So now there is going to be a lecture on appropriate behavior at sporting events. Anyway us other older vulgar people can go to this and find out if we aren't violating public decency laws? I am pretty sure that some of us might be in trouble too. John McEnroe basically broke a lot of the same rules of decency when he played tennis so that might throw that argument out too. You right.....He was the the bad boy of tennis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
01grad Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 And without the University, there wouldn't be a city of Grand Forks. Oh, and if they didn't have the University there, Grand Forks is a city I probably would have never thought of visiting. So, my point is the same is HockeyMom. The people of Grand Forks are forgetting that the hockey team is for the students and the University. Don't get me wrong, people should still behave in a somewhat ruly manner, but to take it this far is pretty absurd. What are fans like at the football games now? Are they any different than at hockey? Why is the focus always on hockey? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiouxTupa Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 Figures they have this meeting during one of my classes.... Not that I really want to get into this anyway. Seriously, the horse is dead, dead and bloody and there is hair everywhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Sicatoka Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 Let me make one small statement. Please, please, consider it thoughtfully: UND is using the moniker "Fighting Sioux." If (I said "if") the Sioux tribal committees around the state were to come in with positions in favor (or at least not in opposition) of the name with a "clean up your act*, you're representing us" provision, what would you say then? Remember, the tribal councils have been at UND very recently. (See today's Herald.) Now this. Nothing in this world happens in a vacuum. There are no coincidences. * meaning be polite to others, don't be vulgar, respect folks around you, and conduct yourself in public in a sober manner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
airmail Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 Right on Sic. There are undoubtedly more important things at stake. I am a huge fan of the sioux but at Gopher games its like a complete 360 from their crowd at home to our crowd at home. Ummm... so the crowds are the same? ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sioux Hockey Fanatic Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 I don't think the student behavior is out of hand. I have recently been to several other college hockey events and thought the student sections there were much worse than at UND. If they are so upset about students standing then why don't they buy seats somewhere else, like the upper level or stay home and watch it on TV. If they don't want people acting like drunken fools at hockey games then they shouldn't serve alcohol, period. If they can't do math lots of college students are of legal age to buy alcohol, many of them buy it legally at games and drink it during the intermissions. I don't think all the concerns that they have are directly the students. I hear plenty of other things from other areas af the arena. I agree with Hockey Mom, with out the students there would not be a University or a team. Go SIOUX! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncle_Rico Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 I think the real problem, and I know its been posted before, is not necessarily the people of Grand Forks but the people of Grand Forks that now attend games at the new Ralph that didn't attend games at the Old Ralph. Its become a place to be seen and brag about how great of tickets they have and how they can afford to sit there. The people of Grand Forks, as well as the students, have shown how great of fans they are....on road games. The reason for this is the casual "so called" fans don't go to the road games, just the die-hard fans do. I remember two years ago on the night the Sioux were about to wrap up the McNaughton Cup and I was lucky enough to get tickets three rows from the ice to witness it and with about five minutes till the celebration (because UMD had just lost to Wisconsin) a group of about five people that were sitting in front of me got up and left to beat the traffic rather than witness the first WCHA championship the Sioux won at the new Ralph. Those are the people that are the biggest problem at the new Ralph, not the students. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diggler Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 I'm not sure what exactly UND, or more accurately a select and very small number of season ticket holders, expects or wants anymore. Seemingly they won't be happy no matter what students do. Behavior this year, other then the friday Denver game, has been much better just as it has progressively been every year. 1. No standing. - Fine for the most part. But it is ridiculous the way ushers are on students to immediately sit down and always be sitting down during every moment of the game. Hell we got yelled at for standing up during a stoppage in play. 2. No swearing. - Fine. I still don't think it's that big of a deal. But it is so trivial, who really cares? 3. How to properly show respect to the opponent, officials, etc. - So pretty much no taunting of the officials, opposing teams, etc.? This is just stupid. Talking to the players and officials, they don't care. They love it. They laugh. 4. Don't drink so much alcohol. -Then stop selling it. While students themselves have to take responsibility for their actions, UND can not sell it to the students, keep selling it to the students and then complain that the students are getting drunk. That's idiotic. If you are at a bar and totally smashed, they aren't supposed to serve you anymore. Why should being at a hockey game be any different? This is a losing battle for students though. They can not win. No matter what they do, someone at the games is going to have a problem with it. It's not worth geting upset about though anymore. Both Hodgson and Buning are pretty cool guys, they are just doing their best to make both sides happy. The problem is that one side won't be happy until the other side is no longer allowed in the arena. Much of the problem is the completely inconsistant policies and enforcement from REA. Students do not know what is expected of them from one week to the next. And there certainly is no consistentcy from one year to the next. Everyone needs to actually work out a long term permenant plan instead of having a week to week and year to year, fly by the seat of our pants who the hell knows what's next plan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shep Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 As a season ticket holder and a former student who attended the games at the old Ralph, I agree with those who say it's not worse than it was in the past. It is however about MONEY. I have good seats behind the net so I'm not near the student section so I have no idea what type of vulgarity the letter is suggesting nor do I think that standing has been a problem this year. I wish the students were more involved. A lot of us old farts do just sit there waiting for something to happen though I despise that stupid noise meter thing they put up on the big screen to get us to "make noise" as compared to having the team cause us to do so. Bring these messages to the meeting to show to Dr Buning that many of us have no problem with student behavior. (Though I suppose those in charge may tell you they don't give a crap what some idiot named Shep has to say about the subject.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Siouxhockey78 Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 Right on Sic. There are undoubtedly more important things at stake. Ummm... so the crowds are the same? ;) 180 I mean.....Just saying the Ralph should be rocking everytime there is game not mean the big screen says get load and such. the casual crowd still hardly gets rocking...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCM Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 Weren't some people complaining about "classless" Canadian fans not long ago? If your standard of acceptable behavior is the lowest common denoniminator, then prepare to deal with fans of other teams who have the same standards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#1 Sioux Fan Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 I am a season ticket holder in the lower bowl of the ralph, graduated from UND in 2002, and am proud to be the #1 Sioux fan. Through out my college career and whole life, I have attend just about every Sioux home game and loved the atmosphere at the old and the new ralph. I believe the students today carry as much weight in the atmosphere as they once did in the old ralph. Meaning, you the students are the atmosphere that is SIOUX hockey(Look back at the Harvard and Bemidiji series - Talk about a lame atmosphere). Sioux hockey is a tough and rugged sport and the fans reflect that. That said there are rules that apply to the players and so should there be rules that apply to the fans. Besides a few curse words I personaly think that the students today are very well mannered. Put against students of the late eights and ninties, you students are like the nunnery. Dead badgers, gophers, and birds (Denver) litered the ice back than. Swearing was big but seemed outshined by the antics and overall Sioux support. Sitting or standing didn't matter much, because most the student section was not full for every game right along with the rest of the arena - no longer the case at the new Ralph. I have attended several games at other venues like DECC and Kohl and all students get excited and swear and stand during the game, even I still do that. Though in these arenas, students are tucked away in the corners and back. So the students are not as vocally or visibily noticable . I think that it is a hand full of students that come to the games that are drunk and disorderly that is making all the students look bad in the lower bowl at the Ralph. In order to keep the current setup in the Ralph, which is sweet for students- you may have keep these few students in check. The nickname issue some how being linked to how students act at one sporting event seem a little far fetched. If is the case we would have lost the nickname a long time ago! GO SIOUX -Sweep up the Gophs- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SFSIOUX#1 Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 If they don't want people acting like drunken fools at hockey games then they shouldn't serve alcohol, period. With that thinking then if people drive drunk, we should re-establish prohibition. In addition, we should outlaw guns because guns kill people and so on and so on. Whatever happened to personal accountability for one's actions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
airmail Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 The nickname issue some how being linked to how students act at one sporting event seem a little far fetched. If is the case we would have lost the nickname a long time ago! With all due respect, the NCAA wasn't harrassing us about it until recently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCM Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 (edited) The nickname issue some how being linked to how students act at one sporting event seem a little far fetched. Really? Here's an excerpt from page 10 of UND's lastest response to the NCAA: The University has been, and shall remain, outspoken in its commitment to maintain a respectful environment for all of its students, including its athletic teams. The President Edited January 13, 2006 by PCM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fedorov Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 I understand some of the concerns about students, but I think you need to apply everything to the "general public" as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCM Posted January 13, 2006 Share Posted January 13, 2006 I understand some of the concerns about students, but I think you need to apply everything to the "general public" as well. Very true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.