The Cougar and Aggie baseball teams clashed with fans in maroon out in nearly equal numbers, which should not be happening when students can get in for free and the game is on one of the busier days of campus.
While it is uncommon for UH fans to be outnumbered at home, the make up of the crowd was not very different from normal, as mostly alumni and family filled the park.
Family and friends of the players usually fill the crowds of the spring sports, while other students are left in the dark about some of the great teams on campus due to the word not being spread.
Before Tuesday’s game, there was one piece of constantly present advertising in Student Center South, which serves thousands of students a day.
The standing board read “Baseball vs Texas A&M @ 6:30” with the date above it, which was handwritten and really only legible if you were right next to it.
There was no notice that A&M was ranked No. 7 and no notice that students get in for free.
This is not a problem exclusive to the spring sports either. During basketball season, that same sign as well as a couple cardboard ones along a few walkways were all that advertised the team near one of the highest traffic areas on campus.
UH had nine sellout crowds during the historic 33-4 basketball season. That kind of success advertises itself, but the basketball team will not do that every year.
Another missed area is the Student Center Satellite. The dining area is adorned with televisions, but none of them are set to play UH highlights, advertise upcoming games or rebroadcast recent or classic wins.
Both the softball and baseball teams are near the top 40 in RPI out of 297 and 299 teams, respectively, and are bound for the NCAA Tournament.
The Track and Field team is one of the best in the nation. Meets go for hours so students can drop by for a bit, take in a couple events and no matter which event is going on, there is a good chance that they will see a Cougar win or good finish.
There are championship caliber teams competing almost every week on campus and there is not enough advertising the squads around campus.
Students should support the teams, but first they have to know about the games and that starts with UH athletics putting more into advertising the teams on campus.