Editor’s note: The piece below is a republication of a 1961 opinion for The Daily Orange editorial board, written ahead of Syracuse’s football game at Notre Dame that year.

“Syracuse University is a school for students. It has the interests of the student body at heart.”

This is the claim that has often been voiced by University officials. It is a claim that cannot be substantiated, at least in one conspicuous instance—the scheduling of football games.

Football, with its color and excitement, is very much a part of the college experience. Syracuse undergraduates pay their general fee and are entitled to the privilege of watching their team perform.

And they do see the Orangemen in action in Archbold Stadium, four or five times each fall. However, for the past several years the best games have been played away from home, and the situation shows no signs of improving in the near future.

Last fall, our defending national champions played a nine-game schedule, with four contests in Archbold Stadium. However, the better games, Kansas, Army, and Miami, were held on the road. This season the same situation exists, as colorful games with Oregon State, Penn State, and Notre Dame take place on the road.

It’s the same story for next year, as the away schedule highlights games with powers like Army, Oklahoma, Pittsburgh, and UCLA. The home slate offers less attractive contests with Holy Cross, Boston College, West Virginia, and George Washington.

Looking even further ahead to 1963, the picture gets even bleaker from an undergraduate’s point of view. The Notre Dame game, which will be one of the top grid attractions in the nation that season, was originally slated to be held in Archbold Stadium. This would be considerably brighten an otherwise dull home schedule. But the University has decided to move the game into New York’s Yankee Stadium.

The reasoning behind this move is easy enough to follow. It can be summed up in one simple word—money. Naturally gate receipts for a game in New York would greatly surpass those for a contest in Archbold’s outdated concrete oval.

It seems, however, strange to us that at such a school for students, most students cannot even see the most important and exciting games of the football season.

Published on September 25, 2014 at 12:17 am