juju uit
Paula Lavigne
OPINION
EDITOR
Kasey Kerber
EDITORIAL
BOARD
Brad Davis
Erin Gibson
Shannon Heffelfinger
Chad Lorenz
Jeff Randall
Our
VIEW
Show some
support
UNL needs to keep
funds for departments
Those in counseling psychology or
geography departments may have felt
a little isolated and dejected lately.
In counseling psychology, people
with high expectations for one of the
oldest, accredited counseling psychol
ogy programs have felt the cleaver fall
slowly as their resources dwindled
away.
Many resources moved when the
university targeted the school psy
chology program for enhancement two
years ago.
In geography, the university split
the department ranked in the top 20 in
1997 and created the new geosciences
program.
Now, only six faculty members
remain. One more may retire; another
may leave.
Both departments contain students
who began work in their programs sev
eral years ago, sinking tuition dollars
and research hours into a degree they
expected would have the reputation to
back it.
Both departments contain frustrat
ed faculty members who work desper
ately to maintain excellence.
Right now, the university is disap
poahtHig^hese ^roups^ ... .)
anted, the university acts in the
best academic interests of the majority
of students and faculty when it creates
new areas of strength.
But when it builds these areas with
existing departments’ resources, it
must also support moves that will help
the departments left behind.
In other words, students and faculty
have devoted boundless energy to keep
their areas among the best. The univer
sity should keep its end of the academ
ic bargain by contributing the appro
priate resources.
Faculty in both departments now
call merging with another graduate
program vital to survival.
Arts and sciences Dean Brian
Foster said he would support such a
merger for geography.
But in the Teachers College, Dean
James O’Hanlon said he did not know
if he would combine the program with
another.
In both cases, administrators
should view making department-sav
ing policy decisions a priority and not
allow once top-notch programs to slip
through the cracks.
Allowing excellence to be defeated
is bad policy, especially for a universi
ty trying to add jewels to its academic
orown.
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Haney's
VIEW
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Physical attraction
Rugby is cooler than football
SHAWN MEYSENBURG is
a sophomore news-editori
al major and a Daily
Nebraskan columnist
I’m about to make a statement
that may anger quite a few people.
This opinion is also a bit out of
season, but the recent celebration
during which Tom Osborne (and our
football team) was honored got me
thinking about football.
And rugby.
My opinion is this: Rugby is way
cooler than football will ever be.
Before I attempt to explain why I
feel this way, I need to be honest
about something.
I don’t know a damn thing about
rugby. I don’t know any of the rules,
and I sure as hell don’t know what a
“scrum” is.
But, although I don’t know much
about the sport, I still feel that I can
make a strong argument for why
rugby is way hipper than (even
Husker) football.
First of all, rugby players don’t
wear pads. To me, football would be
way better if the players didn’t wear
pads.
I mean, what’s die point of watch
ing a bunch of guys pound the snot
out of each other if they’re just going
to wear a bunch of protective gear?
Rugby players, on die other hand,
J--—• ■■■■■' * ' 1 1 — --
do battle without such protection. To
me, this situation is much more inter
esting.
Football would instantly become
twice the sport it is if the players
refused to wear pads. i
The second thing that makes
rugby cooler is the pace of the game.
There’s too much starting and stop
ping in football, if you want my opin
ion.
The faster-paced nature of rugby
makes it more fun to watch. Maybe
the NCAA could adopt a more fluid
approach to game play. If this hap
pened, football would be almost as
cool as rugby.
My next reason for favoring
rugby over football concerns uniform
design. I’m not about to say that
rugby uniforms are swank enough to
be worn out for an evening of night
clubbing, but, let’s face it, they’re
much better-looking than football
uniforms.
Those tight-ass, knee-high,
knicker-looking pants have got to go.
They’re hideous. Those mesh jerseys,
too, are in desperate need of a re
design.
Finally, if the players must wear
helmets, couldn’t the helmets’ design
be improved? I mean, have you ever
seen old pictures of football teams?
Those old leather helmets that Knute
Rockne wore may have been pretty
useless, but at least they looked
good.
My next reason for feeling that
rugby is cooler than football is that,
from what I’ve heard, rugby players
are better sports than those over
hyped prima donnas on college foot
ball teams.
I sincerely hope someone calls
me on this if I’m wrong, but I’ve
heard after playing a blood-drawing
game, two rugby teams who have
done battle will get together and
party.
If this is true, I think that that’s
great. Could you see our beloved
Huskers and their opponent hanging
together and throwing down a bunch
of cheap beer after a game?
I didn’t think so, but wouldn’t it
be great if they did?
This brings me to my next reason
for favoring rugby over football.
Rugby players sing songs. Obscene
songs. Songs that test the limit of
First Amendment rights and would
make even the saltiest sailor blush.
Football players don’t have
songs. Too bad. If football players
sang, football would become cooler
than it is.
I have a final reason for believing
that rugby is much cooler than foot
ball: Rugby still has a soul.
Football is so glorified in this
town and the players are so revered
that I think people have lost sight of
what makes sports so great in the
first place: They’re fun.
I’m not saying that rugby players
don’t take the game seriously; I’m
sure they do. I’m sure they give their
all when they play, like all great ath
letes.
I’m just saying that their motives
for playing seem purer than those of
some college football players.
Rugby players don’t get the glory,
adoration and juicy NFL contracts
that sometimes come with college
football. They aren’t heroes to every
10-year-old kid in the country. '
But they don’t care. They don’t
play for all of that crap, they play for
themselves. They play because they
love the game.
'; They play for fun. And, after all,
isn’t that what sports are all about?
-
S>1
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