Author Thomas F. Leahy

As a not-so-recent Fairfield graduate (1973), I find it very disappointing to see the lack of school spirit and student participation at Stag games on campus and at Harbor Yard. I understand that today's college student has many more distractions and entertainment choices than we did, such as cable television, computers, the Internet, DVDs and video gaming, but the pride, excitement and just plain fun of cheering for your school and your fellow students is part of the college experience that too many of today's Fairfield students seem to be missing out on.

We are red! We are white! We are dynamite! But are we really "dynamite" when it comes to school spirit at basketball games? The only real way to explore it to see how the Red Sea stacks up against other groups of loud and intoxicated students. Probably the best model for school spirit in the MAAC came last March as the conference championship rolled into Harbor Yard.

Fairfield and Sacred Heart both understand that it will take more than just one game to build a rivalry. But the two universities will try to start the process as the men's and women's teams both play each other for the first time as Division I opponents this season.

New Head Coach Joe Frager is nationally known as a good recruiter. After last season's D-II National Championship at Southern Connecticut State, Frager was not only named D-II Coach of the Year, but was also voted by his fellow coaches as the top recruiter in the country.