For two years, it has been unknown to students why there was not a student section present at UCM sporting events, but this year, that changed and students were allowed to form a student section to cheer on their team. On Sept. 2, 2021, the Mules football team faced off against Pittsburg State University in their first game of the season. Not only was this the home opener, but it also marked the day that the student section came back. The players were seemingly happy to have their peers there in the stands cheering them on.

  It is definitely up to the student where they want to sit. If they want to sit in the student section they can, but they do not have to. Most of the time the student section is where students want to go and be because this is where students most feel comfortable, especially when they are surrounded by their peers or maybe even just people like them.

  “I chose to sit in the student section because I was going with a group of friends, and we wanted to sit up in the bleachers with the other students,” freshman nursing major Emily Singer said. “Plus, I didn’t really know if there was anywhere else to sit because I’m a freshman and don’t know much,” 

  UCM is going on five years now that there has not been a student section for any of the sports, but this year students are expecting that, among other things, to change. Aside from the restrictions brought on by COVID-19, there is nothing more that the students in the student section have to do. Though the students are outside, being in the student section might make it harder to social distance, but aside from that there are still a lot of students and many opportunities for those students to branch out and get out of their comfort zone. 

  “I expect a lot more students to come out,” senior kinesiology major Jahana Hamilton said. “I’ve noticed there are a lot more freshmen on campus this year, so I am hoping their spirit from high school will continue onto college and it will motivate the players.” 

  Sometimes students will use the student section as a way to meet new people and sometimes they will be there simply because they are a student at UCM and want to fit in with the crowd.

  “The vibe was definitely different in different parts of the student section,” freshman psychology major Rilynn Small said. “In the part I was in, the vibe was fun, even anxious at one point.”

  A student section is there to motivate the team that is playing, no matter the sport. Even though the game did not have the best outcome, students still got the chance to get out and meet new people in the student section.