Let’s face it, most of the talk this football season has been “back-pedaling” by ISU administration over their faux pas last summer — excluding student representation and involvement in the relocation of student fans (that’s right, student “fans”).

A Sept. 21 Des Moines Register article tells how the ISU Police (DPS) are noticing more trash and vulgar language this year in the student section and that cleaning up is taking longer. Do you suppose that may be the result of exiling and corralling them in the “southeast 40” for their tailgating activities and assigning most of the available DPS officers to oversee them? Are these students really doing anything different than they have in the past or are they being chaperoned this year?

As a season ticket holder with parking next to the stadium, I’ve witnessed first-hand that the excess trash is not exclusive to the student tailgating section. The occasional 40-gallon barrels placed throughout the “donor lots” are not sufficient to handle the trash, wine and beer bottles and cans — same as in the student so-called “party zone.”

Have ISU officials planned sufficiently for increasing gameday attendance at Cyclone football games? A recent article noted that the average attendance is in the mid-40,000s compared with the mid-30,000s in the last decade. Most of the trash barrels around the stadium are overflowing onto the parking lots hours before kickoff. For us, this disgusting sight is much more prevalent than misbehaving students have been in the three home games this season. Traffic-directing resources also seem to be in short supply and lacking expertise. The Iowa-Iowa State gameday traffic was extraordinary, but the directing and traffic flow has not been as smooth at other early season games.

News flash for ISU administration — more fans equals more garbage and more traffic. Assigning students to a place across the main thoroughfare to the stadium has caused increased traffic congestion, a consequence of your student placement decision. It’s time for ISU officials to “get it together” by taking more responsibility and taking advantage of the larger football fan population. We have the kind of tailgating facilities that other big-time football venues would love to have. Let’s take advantage of it and do it right.

How about separate trash receptacles for trash, bottles, cans and used charcoal? Make it easier for the numerous can and bottler collectors to harvest them, so they don’t have to rummage through the garbage cans and further displace garbage around the grounds.

Let the students tailgate without excessive scrutiny. Reassign those personnel to keeping the traffic flowing and the grounds cleaner around the stadium.

Finally, if there’s doubt about the students as fans and supporters, I hope ISU officials and donor fans noticed the multitude of students who entered the stadium two hours before kickoff against Iowa, obliging the request made by Coach McCarney to show their support for the team and school! Let’s give them a break from the scrutiny, recognize them as the fans they are and pay attention to other things that matter to all tailgating fans.

Curt and Patty Lack

Alumni