Our football team is in the biggest NCAA conference; the Major Independent Conference which has 25 teams. As I reviewed the conference standings (as of Nov. 30), it was no surprise to find Notre Dame and Miami were in first and second place respectively. But, guess who was in third place behind these two powerhouse teams? Our NIU football team!

Not only did our football team own the third best record in the conference, but they place ahead of Florida State, West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, and Penn State—more powerhouse teams.

Despite NIU completing a better record than these five teams, all of them received bowl bids. How can first, second, and fourth through eighth place finishers receive bids and not the third place team? The obvious and only explanation is poor fan attendance. Evidently, the football team is deserving of a bowl bid, but the school is not.

Every year there are editorial complaints about NIU’s poor athletic programs and how NIU never gets national attention. Whose fault is that? The blame is not the athletic program’s, but the student body.

Such a great football performance deserves congratulations and definitely prescribes a post-season opportunity. It is unfortunate that the football team represents NIU, otherwise, the team would have been headed for a bowl game and maybe some future incentive.

Michael Composto

Junior

Finance