Fall sports breakdown

What’s going on with Rattler sports? In five words: a whole lot of mess.

Football

It’s a well-known fact few people attend FAMU sporting events, with the exception of football. But at this point, people aren’t even going to the football games. Rattler fans had to wait over a month for the first home game and still a measly 11,098 showed up to watch the football team battle the surprisingly competitive Virginia Union Panthers. Is it because people have lost interest in FAMU football? Or is it because FAMU football has lost interest in itself (a number of players on the sideline were paying more attention to the section wars than what was happening on the field)?

Side note: Is it just me, or were the King and Queen of Orange and Green lacking in crunkness? No wonder the crowd was so dead. Please improve.

Volleyball

Forget the fact that most of the volleyball players aren’t from America, those women can play. FAMU has one of the best volleyball teams in the country, but you wouldn’t know it by the number of people who come to watch team play. But that’s old news. The newest news is that, according to a reporter who talked to head coach Tony Trifonov after the team’s match Saturday, Trifonov said his players didn’t deserve to be interviewed because of their poor performance. He told the reporter not to talk to his team. What? Is Trifonov their coach or their father? When a team plays poorly, players should at least be available to explain what happened to the media so that fans can better understand the situation. Imagine what type of outcry there would be if Coach Billy Joe said his players couldn’t talk to the media after a loss. It would not be accepted. Coach Trifonov: You are your players’ coach, not their father. Reprimand them in the locker room or at practice but please note issuing a gag order to your players shields them from having to explain their performance. In essence you’re rewarding them, not punishing them.

Side note: The volleyball team defeated Norfolk State Saturday; the team’s “poor” performance was actually during its seventh straight win.

Fall Sports

It’s hard to comment on any other sport because all of the official schedules are just getting put into place. With all the mayhem going on in the athletic department concerning the football team, money, organization and marketing, it’s almost understandable that it’s taken this long to release official schedules. Almost.

Sports Hall of Fame

Just a thought…With the quality of athletes FAMU is now producing, who is going to be inducted into the Hall of Fame 50 years from now? It just doesn’t seem like athletes have the same love for the game the old school Rattlers had. Maybe it’s the quality of overall athletic performance has improved over the years, making it hard to have just one outstanding athlete. Maybe, but why did we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the football team’s Division I-AA championship win last year? While FAMU is still the No.1 historically black institution of higher education, we must stop relying on past accomplishments to support our legacy.

Side note: No doubt, FAMU has some outstanding athletes, just no one who shines as a future inductee into the “illustrious” Sports Hall of Fame.

Cheerleading

Don’t worry. I’m not going to bash the squad this time. Actually, I think it deserves a commendation. The cheerleaders have elevated in talent over the past few years, keeping drops to a minimum and effectively entertaining the crowd. Don’t get me wrong, every time they do a stunt, I pray for the safe landing of the oh-so-brave flyer, but overall they’re doing a decent job.

Side note: Can someone please tell the venom dancers to go away?

Elizabeth Broadway is a senior newspaper journalism student from Atlanta. She is editor in chief of The Famuan and can be reached at thefamuaneditor@hotmail.com