West Virginia University students — those attending last Saturday’s basketball game between the Mountaineers and Louisville — were asked to do something that might have been considered unusual for them.
They were asked to clean up their act. And clean it up, we believe they did. At least for the most part.
Despite the win over Ohio State one week earlier, vice president for student affairs Ken Gray said he had received a number of complaints about the foul language chants that got out on television by the WVU students.
“I felt embarrassed by the chanting of those obscenities from the student section,” Gray said. “I think we’re better than that and should show more sportsmanship. Regardless of whether we’re winning or losing the game, we should do so with class.”
Well, some of the students obliged with that “class” act, wearing T-shirts that displayed the words “Keeping it classy since 1863.” That’s doing it with class.
Oh, yes. There was one “cheer” the students had great fun in chanting that many of the more than 12,000 fans probably did not understand at all. It was a woman’s name. But that was a personal cheer for Rick Pitino’s ears only. The Louisville coach knew what it meant, and the WVU students certainly did as well.
That chant probably showed a lack of class. But there was nothing obscene about it. Nothing vulgar. And many students had probably been waiting for months — just to show they remembered her name if nothing else. That cheer can be written off as a “students-will-be-students” cheer.
Everyone should have freedom of speech, but there are some things that the great majority of us do not wish to hear. Students should consider that.
Now Pitt comes in tonight. The Pitt Panthers. And everyone is aware there are some acceptable cheers that have been linked to the Pittsburgh school for many, many years. But there are some three-worded cheers that don’t really need to be used — words about what the Panther athletes should choose to eat. It’s a cheer better placed in mothballs, most would agree.
Cheering should reflect positively on one’s school. And we believe most students firmly believe this. For many years the cheers were ridiculously tame. Now some of the students have gone 180 degrees in the other direction.
We hope the WVU students keep the cheering at a happy medium as the Pitt Panthers come into the Coliseum tonight. We believe more attention should be paid to the Mountaineers winning and their exciting games than all of this side stuff about raunchy cheers that shouldn’t be necessary in the first place.
