Vern9r

Nearing the end of the first day of voting, approximately 4200 ballots have been cast. This equals close to 20% of the UNC Charlotte student body. To put that in comparison, approximately 2.75% of the student body voted in the last student elections. This does not indicate which way the students are voting, but it does show that the interest is there one way or another. The vote goes on for two more weeks, but the signs indicate this vote will be the voice of the entire student body. The first week of voting is the most important as the Board of Trustees will be voting this weekend to determine whether to move forward with the feasability study. Most of us think that this is almost certain to happen, unless the vote is a huge failure. I don't think this is against the rules (I'm not attempting to sell anything or advertise), but the following page lists all of the recent articles that were available to post: http://www.charlotte49erfootball.com/media.shtml.

For anyone who lives in the area, we are going to be hanging out at the University Picasso's on Saturday, September 30th from 11:30 on. We're going to have t-shirts and a limited number of car decals for those who wish to help. If you need any info, visit Deleted- Read the rules If you can't make it, let others know where we'll be. Thanks.

The fact that UNC Charlotte grads "move on..." as you say puts us in a sad tier of higher education. I work with graduates for many schools - Wake Forest, FSU, UNC Chapel Hill, Boston College, and every one of them has a huge amount of pride in their school, especially when football season comes around. Our boss and co-workers makes small bets with each other when their two teams play each other. What I'm saying is that I don't think most people find anything wrong with waving your school colors after you're done with college. I wish that UNCC grads could do the same.

The reason that UNC Charlotte grads (many, not all) do not supports the University is the same reason that many of the students don't - school pride, and no sense of connection. Athletics are what most universities in this nation are known for. I personally don't know what degrees Notre Dame, Syracuse, Cincinnati, etc, etc, specialize in, but I do know what sports they excel in. That's what gives people pride and encourages them to give back to their school. Sure, we can wait another 200 years to get a larger endowment and raise 1000 dollars a year until we have a football team in the year 2250, but there is no reason why UNC Charlotte alumni need to wait and play it safe. Every other football school in this state could surely use more money for education, but they are not shutting down their athletics programs to improve their degrees. As alumni build pride and establish a connection to the University, guess what...they are likely to give back to the University in general. At least then they would actually go back to the university after graduation and realize what is going on on campus. How many college football fans do you think there are on the UNCC campus? I'll throw out a random number - 8,000. When football season comes around, these 8,000 people pick another team, buy their merchandise, watch them on TV. It really does break the tie to your school when you are pulling for a completely different school for several months out of the year. Starting a college football program is of course expensive, but Charlotte is a wealthy city and the area has over 75,000 UNC Charlotte alumni, in addition to the 22,000 current students. Add in the million-plus people in the area, and there's no reason why a football program shouldn't be a success.

For those of you that do not get the Observer, there's an article today on the movement. Check it out and if you haven't made a pledge, please do. There article is online at Charlotte Observer The Initiative's site at Charlotte 49er Football has been updated and will be updated throughout the coming days and weeks. We expect to begin selling merchandise to increase the promotions and publicity very soon. Any way you can help is appreciated!

Luke, the site switched hosts (or servers, or something). The site should be back up for most. Thanks for the discussion - if any of you have feedback or ideas on how to spread the word please give us a shout - NinerNation.net, and again the site that we want people to visit - Charlotte49erFootball.com, . Go Niners!