AU Speaks: Football at AU?

By Madi Oglesby | Opinion editor

Living in the South, everyone knows that Saturdays in the fall are holidays. No, we can’t go to lunch. The Dawgs are playing. 

Pretty much every person you meet bleeds red, black and white. And they make sure you know it. If they bleed orange and purple, gold, white and navy, or garnet and black … Well, we won’t get into that.

Football is culture down South—particularly college football. Even smaller schools like Georgia Southern have loyal fans and students who fill the stands of Paulson Stadium every Sunday.

Football may be something that Augusta University is missing. AU has loyal fans of their basketball, track and golf teams-which opens up the question of whether a football team would bring even more spirit to the CSRA.

There are lists of pros and cons that could be laid out on this topic, but it’s hard not to wonder if a Jaguar D2 football team would still be an exciting new addition.

A poll was posted to the Augusta University shared Instagram story, and the results came out with a 75% landslide victory for the football team. Only 31 of 125 students believed that we should not have a team.

In a conversation with two AU students, some very good points for and against a football team were brought up.

“I believe we should have a football team because we already have pretty good school spirit for basketball, but I feel like football—especially college football—is even more spirited,” says Wesley Petsch, a junior business administration major from Locust Grove. “I feel like a football team would definitely improve the spirit and the attitudes of the students in general.”

I completely agree with this stance. Being an avid Georgia Bulldogs fan, sitting in the stands at Sanford Stadium and feeling the energy of that venue is such an exciting experience. Having a football team at AU would be such a fun experience that I believe would bring the students together. Obviously, the other sports do so as well but, for me, football is a community sport. Things like tailgating and afterparties are things that bring the community and families together. 

As I said earlier, football is culture in the south. I believe having a football team would be the perfect way to put AU on the map and bring other fans into our stands.

Even still, there are potential pitfalls to this new team. Things such as housing, money and the personal feel of Augusta University would put a damper on the excitement for the team. 

“I think if AU had a football team, it would be really cool, and we would probably even get more students,” shared Aaliyah Brooks, a junior kinesiology major from Houston, Texas, in response to Wesley. “But I do think we would lose money in the healthcare aspect of AU. We are known for our medical programs so I think, if they still want to be known for their medical stuff, we shouldn’t have a football team. Not to mention, the amount of money it would cost to start one.”

This opens up the arguments of other programs being overshadowed by a football team. With the Medical College and DCG, many of the other programs are not as publicized already. Adding a football team to the mix would hide not only the achievements of the non-science majors, but also the achievements of the science majors.

Not only that, but it could also take away from the funding of these important programs such as the Cancer Research Center or the Maxwell’s shows. If the funds and attention begin to look towards a football program, the other amazing programs that AU has to offer could be overshadowed. “Aaliyah says that it will take away from the finances, but I believe that it would bring in more money,” Wesley shared. “We’re in the South, where no one cares about anything more than college football. They would absolutely support it here, which would fund whatever needs to be funded. If Georgia Southern has die-hard football fans, I don’t see why we can’t have die-hard Augusta University football fans.”

While I absolutely agree with Wesley’s point, there’s one that was not brought up by students. Starting a football team requires funding that could be put towards other things. One of those things being the major problem of housing on campus right now.

Scrolling through social media or just talking to other students around campus, you hear about the long waitlist that many students are sitting in right now just to be able to live on campus next year. The university is already growing without a football team with no housing to support it. If a team were brought to campus, there’s no way any of the new students would have housing secured. 

Though, the football team could replace some of this money and maybe even bring in even more. It really is a hard question because the pros and cons neutralize themselves.

“I can see both sides of the coin. On one hand, we get a huge sport that instantly becomes our cash cow on campus. Students will come out and support the team, fill the stadium and have fun,” says Rodrigo Burgos-Avila, a senior sports management major from Puerto Rico, also one of the hosts of the Sports Squad podcast. “On the other hand, it would be a huge inversion for the university, and I believe that this money could go towards improving our programs that are already established and successful.”

“The state of Georgia does not need more football. It is already one of the biggest high school football states in the nation and we would never be able to compete with schools like UGA,” Rodrigo continues. “Other than the potential extra money that the university could make, I see no point. We should build on top of what is already here.”

Coming in with this question, I thought I had my mind made up. I believed AU would benefit exponentially from having a football team. However, after talking to the students, I’m really not sure anymore if the costs outweigh the benefits.

While I don’t think getting a football team right now is the best decision, especially with the housing crisis we’re seeing on campus right now, I still can’t help but think that it would be fun to tailgate with my friends, drinking a 7 Brew energy drink, and eating pizza from The Pizza Joint. Maybe one day, the Jags won’t just be an NFL team from Florida, and Augusta will actually be on the college football map.

Contact Madi Oglesby at auoglesby@augusta.edu.