Its not hard to find someone at Tufts who has never been to a football game. Given that this year marks the third consecutive winless season for the team, this shouldnt necessarily come as a surprise. The student body as a whole especially freshmen, sophomores and juniors who have never had a win to celebrate are incredibly unsupportive of the football team, which only sees full bleachers during hyped-up games like Homecoming and the Parents Weekend game.
What their record doesnt tell you is the important shift that has taken place behind the scenes. Despite the student bodys minimal support for the team, the administration has been receptive to the changes proposed by head coach Jay Civetti, including prioritizing recruitment and hiring a fourth full-time coach before the 2012 season.
Civetti and his players inherited a failing system and are working diligently to turn the team and its record around. It is imperative that the administration continues to offer financial support and additional resources to the team if forward progress is to continue. There can be sustained investment in the program as a whole without the administration compromising the universitys financial status or academic values.
Over the course of the last few years, the football program has worked to build a team of devoted players. With a low upperclassman retention rate, the team is primarily composed of younger players who have committed themselves to early meetings, increased workouts during the off-season and a more disciplined approach to the sport as a whole under Civettis direction despite a lack of tangible results on the field. The commitment of student-athletes and staff to the program must be matched by support from the administration.
On the other hand, the student body also needs to recognize that there is more to the football team than its record. Students, in jest or otherwise, have suggested cutting the program, disregarding the time and effort some of their peers have devoted to the team. Its true that Jumbos football has a lot of ground to make up, but the Tufts community must support the team on and off the field so that the improvements made behind the scenes are finally matched by the scoreboard at the end of a game.
