Better sportsmanship encouraged for BYU fans

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    By Jonathan Hawkins

    With a 65,000-seat football stadium, a 22,700-seat basketball arena, and an intramural program rivaling any school, the athletics program plays a big part in the social experience at BYU.

    The Student Honor Association has been running a sportsmanship campaign in hopes of promoting proper sportsmanship to spectators.

    “BYU is fueled by the Honor Code,” said Analee Christensen of SHA. “We realized (the Honor Code) should reflect in our sports and our sportsmanship as well.”

    When BYU played and beat Notre Dame in football at Notre Dame”s field in 1994, the Fighting Irish band played BYU”s fight song as the crowd applauded BYU for winning the contest, Christensen said.

    “Their sportsmanship was amazing,” Christensen said.

    SHA hopes to promote sportsmanship in the fans using the motto, “Sportsmanship: let”s take it to the stands.”

    A big part of the SHA campaign is the blue M&M Y-Guy. SHA staffers take turns dressing up in a blue M&M outfit and present themselves at sporting events to promote good sportsmanship.

    Y-Guy will be outside the Wilkinson Student Center Thursday, Nov. 1, with the SHA staff giving away Honor Dogs at 11:00 a.m. Y-Guy will join Cosmo on the football field that night.

    At the game, SHA staffers will be handing out flyers at the gates of LaVell Edwards Stadium promoting its campaign. The purpose is to get fans thinking more courteously as they arrive at the game.

    “We should always show that courtesy BYU possesses,” Christensen said. “We”re promoting the honor that we have.”

    Jon Barlow, a senior from Carlsbad, Calif., majoring in accounting, agrees with the campaign.

    “We are supposed to be an example to the world in other aspects and I think sportsmanship is no exception,” Barlow said. “Now is the time to develop good sportsmanship habits while we”re young and in college.”

    “Sporting events should be fun; they shouldn”t be violent,” said Christensen. “We should all be uplifting each other.”

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