By Tom Jachym

I have been to sporting events across the globe, and frankly, what happens on game days in the Rose Hill Gym, beyond the boundaries of the court, is pathetic.

The first time my dad stepped into the gym, he just smiled and said, “nice.” The gym is beautiful, and lacks nothing in the way of character. Fans are what it lacks.

As a senior member of the band, I have been to just about every Fordham basketball home game over the last four years, excluding a few over winter break and those last spring semester when I studied abroad. I would venture to say that outside of players, cheerleaders and a few members of WFUV, I have been to more games than anyone else on campus. I have not lost faith in the team, but I have grown weary of the pessimistic nature of the students and their lack of fan support.

I arrived at college in 2010 knowing little about Fordham sports.  I have been a sports fanatic since the day I was born, but after visiting countless universities with giant sport cultures, I decided that I would choose my school based more on what would happen during the week than on Saturdays. Coach Pecora, coming from Hofstra, arrived with me in 2010. The team played well in comparison to previous seasons and will forever be remembered for bringing one of the highlights of my college life, the win over St. John’s and the subsequent storming of the court. (In case you did not notice, the Johnnies have not been back since). As we lost games toward the end of the season and missed out on the A-10 tournament, I found myself saying for the first time of many by the time I graduate, “We will be better next year.” Sure, we lost some games but it seemed as though the tide may have been turning. That was three years ago.

My friend has been dunked on by Ryan Canty in the Lombardi center, and I have personally been victimized by Leo Walsh in a pick-up game. I have no right to judge the performances of the players or the coaches, who certainly have more basketball skill and knowledge than myself. What I can speak to is being a fan.

Fordham’s website says 15,120 people attend the school and in a city of over 8 million people, we cannot fill 3,200 seats on a weekend! This year’s football team proved that winning games puts fans in the seats. But, does it really take an undefeated season and the prospect of a national championship for a few more people to go to games?

All that is missing (besides maybe a six-foot-seven-inch swingman) is positive support from the student body. College sports are as much about showing pride in your school and showing people from other schools what you are all about as they are about winning championships. Though it may not be a terrible bet at well over 1000-1 odds, this year’s basketball team will not win the national championship. Does that mean that when St. Bonaventure comes to town in the middle of February on a Wednesday night, we have to fill only a quarter of the student section and resort to barely-audible chants of “Where’s St. Bonaventure?” or “What’s a Bonnie?” as our team puts forth a lackadaisical second half effort and the Bonnies stretch the lead at the end of the game? Why cannot we instead prove to our brown-clad in-state rivals that we are not just a basketball team but instead a community that takes pride in all aspects of our school, sports included, regardless of their success, because they, like us, represent Fordham, a school that we all love? Why can’t we pack the measly 800 seats in the student section and overflow into the remaining unoccupied seats?

Stand in unison for a mere two hours and cheer not simply for men’s basketball, but because we are Fordham.

The idea of playing at Rose Hill should haunt opposing teams. We should have our small gym packed to over capacity, with people stomping and screaming from the balconies and the stands as the other team emerges from the dingy locker room beneath the court, just to have to push its way through a standing-room-only crowd to get on the floor.  At half full, the gym is intimidating.

So I challenge the members of the student body. If you have not been to a basketball game, go. If you have been and not stayed until the end, stay. If you have gone and sat the entire game, stand. And, if you are one of the few who is at every game standing and cheering, lead us.

Saturday, Feb. 1, the men’s team plays Rhode Island at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 8, the women’s team plays George Washington at 2 p.m. Let us get together and prove to our teams and everyone else that we are a proud school. I am tired of hearing that winning will bring fans.

Why cannot positive fans and great support breed a winning program? Our sports teams are some of the most visible representatives of our great university. We should be doing everything in our power to support them to the fullest.

Tom Jachym, FCRH ’14, is a history major from Granby, Conn.