Psychology and premedical sophomore Lauren Bowen walks Jan. 6, 2014, across the intersection of Beech and Division Street. East Lansing declared a weather emergency, asking residents to not travel public streets unless necessary. Julia Nagy/The State News
As most of us kept an eye on university weather calls the last few days, waited to find out when we would need to brave the cold and officially make our first treks across campus for spring classes, administration successfully juggled the interests of multiple parties affected by the closures — including keeping basketball fans happy.
MSU administrators cited safety as their primary concern when determining cancellations.
On Tuesday, university spokesperson Kent Cassella said Athletics Director Mark Hollis was among other senior university leaders who were involved in the decision to cancel class. The safety of students, including those traveling to campus for the basketball game, at first led officials to cancel classes until noon.
By Tuesday morning, when it became clear weather conditions would still be dangerous well into the afternoon, MSU made a second announcement delaying classes until 5 p.m. While they were enjoying another delay in the return to the reality of classes and homework, basketball fans also could let out a sigh of relief.
We are glad administrators came to their senses, even if it was a little late. Their decision still gave fans the chance to see the No. 5 Spartans face off against the No. 3 Buckeyes at 9 p.m., but prevented a majority of students and faculty from traveling in dangerous weather conditions, including wind chill values as low as 16 degrees below zero and wind speeds of about 18 miles per hour.
It wasn’t safe to be outside long enough to make the walk across campus in such icy conditions, and some students might not have gone to class regardless of the official cancellation.
But basketball fans in East Lansing and across the country would have been disappointed if a cold day meant they would miss the chance to see such a pivotal game.
MSU was able to keep a majority of us off campus during the dangerous weather conditions, but it did so in a way that also let fans see what could be one of the best conference games MSU will play at home all year. If classes had been delayed for the entire day, there’s a chance the rescheduled game time wouldn’t have come at a time when both Ohio State and MSU are ranked this high — the first time the teams have ever played each other while both seeded in the top five.
In the event either MSU or Ohio State were not ranked in the top five when the rescheduled game took place, the matchup between the Big Ten powerhouses would not have been as meaningful. It’s also worth noting the game had a primetime 9 p.m. slot on ESPN, something all three parties — the university, the network and the fans — surely valued, as do we.
Students at a school like MSU are right to question decisions that seem to put athletics before academics. But even non-sports enthusiasts should acknowledge that last night’s game was an important chance for our university to shine on the national stage.
MSU Athletics also did its part to prevent students from freezing by not letting fans line up outside Breslin Center before the game or camp out to win the lottery for lower bowl Izzone seats.
Although lower bowl admission wasn’t an option for students who had season tickets in the upper bowl, at least they got the chance to see the game and had one more day off from school.
Editor’s note: Staff representative Matt Sheehan did not contribute to this editorial because he reports on men’s basketball.
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