A deeper insight into students’ attitudes towards McMaster sports

C/O Travis Nguyen

Digging deeper into the thoughts and feelings of McMaster students on varsity sports

Over the past month, the Silhouette has covered the treatment of varsity sports and the public opinion on the way that sports are handled at McMaster University. Many intriguing perspectives were discussed in our coverage, including the fact that many students simply do not care about who goes on in the varsity community. 

This time, perspectives were gathered from a wider pool of McMaster students. By creating an online questionnaire, the Silhouette compiled answers from students to various questions. Feedback was obtained from many students regarding what McMaster sports and recreation should do in order to help individual athletes advance, provide them with the most opportunity and put them in the spotlight. 

The first question asked was related to the individual's general sports interest, including pro sports, asking if they considered themselves to be sports fans in any capacity.

It’s clear that about 80% of Mac students follow sports to varying degrees, with a minority of students not following sports at all. 

The second question asked was about general interest related to McMaster varsity sports. 

The results indicate that over 90% of students follow varsity sports mildly or not at all. Out of the 29 students interviewed, none labelled themselves as intense fans. Answers to a follow-up question in which students identified the reason behind their level of interest for the most part identified low interest as being due to lack of adequate publicity on the part of the university. This is not the first time this issue has been raised — many smaller varsity teams’ players lack adequate direct support from Mac. 

Such lower levels of support and publicity have resulted in a loss of attachment felt by students to their school’s teams. This is in stark contrast to American schools, where a majority of students feel an attachment to their school sports. Canadian schools, especially McMaster, have failed to replicate that sense of attachment, loyalty and interest. 

The fourth important question in the survey tested the general knowledge of the students about varsity sports and one of McMaster’s most respected teams: the football team. The Marauders won the Yates cup in 2019, beating the Western Mustangs 29-15 and ending the Mustangs three year championship streak. The students were asked if they were aware of this massive success that occurred recently. 

In the United States, when a school wins a state championship, not only is the entire student body aware and celebrating, but nearly the entire schools’ surrounding region knows of the news. A state championship is huge news. However, at McMaster, the students aren’t even aware of the football team’s success. 

The results have shown once again that there is no general interest in varsity sports among students. However, given the football team’s huge success, one may wonder why McMaster Athletics did not capitalize more on promoting the success of their football team.

McMaster athletes have grown frustrated with the school and the lack of attention they get. With students sharing their perspectives, it is becoming evident just how little recognition McMaster varsity teams receive. Students aren’t aware of the school’s biggest successes and struggle to follow along because they don’t even know how to. The general consensus is that McMaster needs to do more.

In the final question of the survey, students were explicitly asked if they think McMaster sports get enough publicity. Nearly 76% of students said no. This data suggests there is a real problem regarding the promotion and recognition of our varsity teams and it’s time McMaster does more to support their players.