With the last game at University Hall scheduled for Sunday, it was only appropriate that the Hoo Crew have a surprise in store for its loyal members.
After all, the 200 plus student fans that make up the group were required to go to at least eight of nine home games this basketball season, according to the group's Web site, or risk getting kicked out of a group they paid 20 dollars to join. The dedicated Virginia supporters that trudged out to these contests and maintained their membership status deserve something special for the final game of the regular season, which will also be the last game ever played in the arena.
So you can imagine the look on all of their faces when they found out that for the Maryland game the Hoo Crew members would be unable to gain admission to the game using the same Hoo Crew membership card and T-shirt that got them into games all season.
Surprise!
When students signed up for the Hoo Crew earlier this season, they were informed that their membership cards would get them into 10 games this season, the Maryland game being one of them. In fact, the Web site still lists Maryland as one of those games and I'm confident that dozens of Hoo Crew members will show up on Sunday trying to get into the arena the way they have all season, only to be cruelly turned away.
Unfortunately, this seems an appropriate end to a season that has seen an unprecedented divide among the Virginia student fan base. I never thought I would see the day where there would be animosity among student fans, but that is exactly what has happened between Hoo Crew and non-Hoo Crew sections of the arena. I'm sure having Hoo Crew President Graham Tucker get booed at center court by several students in attendance at the Virginia Tech game two weeks ago is not what the Virginia Athletics Foundation and Student Council had in mind when they established the group this summer.
The Cavaliers have excelled on the court and are one win away from earning a .500 record in the ACC for the first time in four seasons, despite the fact that the establishment of the Hoo Crew has caused a serious schism in the stands this season. And now, Hoo Crew members won't even get the chance to see their beloved Cavaliers try and get their eighth ACC win and keep NCAA tournament hopes alive.
Technically, these Hoo Crew members did have a chance to register for tickets through the online SHOTS program, which non-Hoo Crew members had been using to get into games all season. But since first years make up a majority of the Hoo Crew, they are most likely completely unfamiliar with the system. Additionally, these students had to register for a ticket within a 48-hour period three and a half weeks before the contest, much earlier than the usual seven days that have been the standard for securing a ticket through SHOTS.
Chances are the Virginia Athletics Foundation is responsible for shutting Hoo Crew members out of the season finale, most likely out of fear that few of them would show up for a game during the weekend at the front end of Spring Break. But even if this is true, the Hoo Crew executive board should have fought to the death for their members' right to attend the games in the same fashion they've attended them all season. These guys stood idly by as their peers were squeezed out of the picture for tickets to not only the most pivotal game of the season, but one of the most important games in the history of the Virginia basketball program.
While this is a terrible way for the Hoo Crew to close out the year, it gives students who were lucky to score tickets a chance to make a statement. For the first time all season, the Virginia student fan base has the chance to unite and cheer on the Cavaliers together, without segregated seating and a mandatory dress code. Those hideous Hoo Crew T-shirts should be kept at home, and fans should come together to help cheer the Cavaliers to victory over Maryland.
Maybe that unifying spirit can even be carried into next season. It might even inspire the Hoo Crew to adopt a more inclusive policy that works to bring Virginia student fans together. I know it sounds crazy, but it just might work.
It is time for Virginia students to stop blindly embracing a group that has been marred by shoddy management and unreasonable rules and regulations. With one of the top facilities in the country set to open across the street from U-Hall next season, it's important that something is done to try and include all Virginia students.
And let's try and keep the surprises to a minimum.
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