A Sporting Future

   At a time when seemingly everything HSU related is struggling financially, there is one anomaly.

    Sports.

    The HSU athletic program has not only stayed out of the “budget cuts” limelight, it’s slowly rebuilding and molding itself. It’s something that HSU might actually be known for in the near future. Something that students might identify with--the uptempo basketball teams, national-level softball team, and maybe even a winning football team.

    We think that new image is a good thing, even if it comes at strange times for HSU. The reason? It can bring our school and community together, which, in turn will help strengthen our HSU’s identity and focus.

    It started with the construction of Lumberjack Arena, which has already proved a formidable house for our basketball foes to step into.  The new venue offers an environment that fills up fast and gets loud easily.  With one look at the arena, it is clear that HSU is proud of its athletes.

    A few new coaches was the next step. Second-year football coach Rob Smith seems to have the program on the right track after a respectable 5-5 finish this fall. Even more impressive were the amount of fans that came out to watch home football games.

    After being thrown into the fire at the last minute, soccer coach C.J. Johnson looks like he was also the right call for the future. After losing eight of their first ten matches, the men’s team bounced back to a solid record.  And the women finished just under .500.

    Quality facilities and coaching staffs can only lead to one thing, and that is an entertaining product. Despite being DII, HSU is now on the map for big-time recruits. Most of the new recruits coming into all the teams this year are true freshman as opposed to junior college castaways.  We feel this will add to the strength of the various sports programs for years to come.

    Even with these improvements, games have continued to be free for students. In an area with so few things for students to do, sporting events are an enjoyable free thing to do.

    All these changes will probably lead to a new sports identity for HSU. Yes, we’ll always be associated with the sciences and smoking pot. But soon, maybe people with think of our dominant athletics and dedicated fans.

    We would like to feel that kind of pride--and maybe it will momentarily take our minds off a rising tuition and cut classes.  

 

1 comments

Tucker

Thu Jan 7 2010 14:01

How much money does HSU sports bring to the University versus its overall cost? You make it sound as if HSU is one step away from being USC.

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