With an impending fee increase staring the students in the face, I think students should tell the athletic department to lump it, and go to Division III where they just might be able to compete. But it doesn’t look like our representatives will take the initiative, namely SA President Paul Middleton.

This year’s senate and executives have a big problem communicating, with Middleton fighting to give the SA the elusive label of “legitimacy”. In no-win situations between himself and the administration he doesn’t tell anyone what he’s fighting for, in fear that if people found out the SA didn’t get its way it would look like the SA lost or had less legitimacy.

Well, a real issue just fell into the lap of the SA. Athletics Director Gerald O’Dell needs us students to help fund his pack of Illini rejects, the NIU football team. We should all know the team well. When they aren’t in the paper for losing football games, they’re making headlines for vandalizing fraternity houses. And Coach Sadler slaps token punishments on them while continuing to pay their tuition, room and board, and food!

For the 90-91 budget, NIU students paid more for sports than any other Division I-A school in the nation, and I have no reason to believe that has changed much. Despite the currently over-funded status of the football team, why shouldn’t athletics ask for more money when it’s quite obvious student leaders won’t organize the student body against administrative wallet-suckers like O’Dell and Vice President of Finance and Planning Eddie Williams?

What has Middleton done on this issue? He found out about the proposal in January. Before he would talk to Williams or O’Dell, he insisted on knowing more about it. A misunderstanding came about when it was said he knew about it earlier, but he couldn’t have known about it because he wasn’t at the economic subcommittee meeting when it was proposed. Now at the next meeting he’s going to do the responsible thing and have the senate make the decision for him. Instead of voicing his personal view and having the administration act on that, Middleton chose to face the administration as part of the SA senate.

In my opinion, if Paul wants his power, the responsible thing for him to do is to use it. And use it well by making a strong stand against the fee increase. Otherwise we will just continue to throw money down Coach Sadler’s rat hole of a team.

To a great extent our athletic department is a waste of money! While it provides opportunities for many athletes to excel, most of the money goes to the football team. This results in little or no recognition to this university except when it makes USA Today for spending more than any other school on athletics. Our football team consistently sucks! God bless our football team for flushing our money down a toilet, and then plunging up a 5-6 record just to rub it in.

The SA did come up with a halfway decent idea recently. It asked us to write to our senators and representatives to let them know we want more money for education. It’s funny how the SA asks us to write our senators for money, but doesn’t mind us footing the bill for sports.

But in the spirit of contacting public employees, why don’t you give O’Dell a call at 753-0888 and tell him you don’t care to pay for his losing team. You can also call Coach Sadler at 753-1825 and tell him to go to Division III. While you have the phone in your hands call Eddie Williams at 753-6009 and ask him why he cares more about football than scholastics. And while you’re at it, call SA President Paul Middleton at 753-1617 and let him know that you give a damn!

Don’t be afraid to call. With the obvious exception of Middleton, all of the others are professional administrators, who are used to listening to other’s complaints. Everybody should call—undergraduate students, grad students, law students. If you are sitting in the library just pick up the phone downstairs, call on the Holmes Student Center’s phone. If you are in a dorm, just call. It’s free!!!

Why not come to the SA Senate meeting this Sunday at 5:30 in the Holmes Student Center’s Sky Room. Both sides of the issue are supposed to be addressed. One side by O’Dell and Williams and the other by … um … uhh … OOPS, the SA hasn’t booked anybody to speak against the fee increase. How about you? I know I’ll be there!