Issue 1 Fall 2012 by The SpringHillian

The

Springhillian

Gender Wars

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam | September 7, 2012 | Volume 95 Issue 1

Demographics on SHC campus

see GENDER WARS on page 4

September 7, 2012

EVENTS WEEK OF

THE

9/8 - 9/9 There are spots available for the SHC Badger Dance Team. Where: Outlaw Rec Center. When: 3:00 p.m. Saturday (Mandatory Clinic), and 5:00 p.m. Sunday (Mandatory Tryouts) Contact: Kristen Hoskinson at khoskinson@shc.edu

Friday SEPTEMBER ISSUE ONE

Springhillian

IN THIS ISSUE

9/9 Tunnels to Towers 5k run When: 8 a.m. at the USS Alabama Battleship park. It’s $25 registration fee, must be pre-registered. $20 for the “fun run T to T supporters.” Pick up and late registration will take place at the Hampton Inn and Suites on September 8th from noon to 8:00 p.m. For more info, visit Facebook.com/mobilebayremembers

9/9 Women’s Soccer to host SCAD-Savannah The women’s soccer team will host the Bees of Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD-Savannah) on Saturday at 1 p.m. When: Saturday 1:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. Where: Library Field Contact: Jim Stennett at jstennett@shc.edu

Hillianstaff EDITOR(s) LindseyFRECHOU BrandyJONES MANAGING Editor MatthewLaBORDE ADVERTISING BrendanPECHON ADVISOR StuartBABINGTON

the

NEWS editor MariahHOLLIDAY LIFESTYLE editor AislinnSHEVLIN SPORTS editor CaleFINTA CARTOONIST EfrenFLORES AbbyROAM

cover

Paige Hymel, Nico de Cordoba, and Lexi McGruder represent the Spring Hill College demographics. Photo by BrandyJONES

Inside NEWS

Inside LIFE & STYLES

Inside SPORTS

In an interview with The SpringHillian, President of the SGA Gabriel Wagner discusses his plans for this year.

Hillian staffer Aislinn Shevlin takes you into the wild, erotic world of “Fifty Shades of Grey.”

The SpringHillian debuts NFL and College football. Also, Jim Hall tells us about some new programming.

PAGE ONE

PAGE NINE

PAGE TEN AND ELEVEN

PHOTO CAPTION CONTEST

For the first three weeks, we will provide a cartoon in need of a caption. You, the reader, will submit either a picture of the comic with the text bubbles filled in to our Twitter account, @thespringhillian, or tweet your best caption to the account directly. The winner will receive a free Mobile BayFest ticket.

Captions will be judged by the SpringHillian staff and advisor.

HillianCONTACT The Springhillian a: 4000 Dauphin Street c/o The SpringHillian Mobile, AL 36608 e: hillian@stumail.shc.edu p: 251.380.3850

September 7, 2012

SGA President talks business

By MattLaBORDE Managing Editor

Q: A:

What are some of your big goals for this year?

We have a few big plans. This year, we actually wanted to come up with solid ideas that we could see through. One of them is to finally get an SGA member in the conversation about decreasing the number of hours in order to graduate from 128 hours to 120 hours. It will be good to have somebody involved who represents the student government. Also, we are looking into the possibility of a January / winter academic term where it could be an opportunity for a student to take a summer mini-style class, to get extra credit hours in the middle of the year. We also want to give undergraduates a chance to receive an organizational leadership certificate. Right now, it’s only offered as a graduate program. It could be a chance for a student to obtain a minor concentration in that field.

These plans seem mostly academically focused. Are there other plans that involve other aspects of student life? Along the way, we’ve been tagging along some extra things, like providing more “Weeks of Welcoming” events. Also, we want to finally name the badger. So, this year we will be working with the new cheerleading coach come up with a name. It will be a fun way to get everybody involved as well.

What are your thoughts on Spring Hill getting more serious athletically and adding more programming with club sports? What about the potential move to the NCAA? The move to the NCAA won’t officially happen for another year. But, these other changes will make us more competitive, and it will also give us the chance to give athletic scholarships and will create more recruiting opportunities.

Big plans from CPB for Spring Hill College By LindseyFRECHOU Editor

opens their general board meetings to all students for ideas and feedback. The Campus Programming Board “Vice Chair of PR Katelynn (CPB) of Spring Hill College has a Jones and I try to walk in each calendar full of events for students other’s shoes and look for activities to enjoy this fall semester. CPB that appeal to the majority of our plans to bring back student favorcampus. ” said Donze. ites such as the Christmas Mixer, CPB has become an integral part but the group also has a few surof the Spring Hill community and prises up their sleeve. hopes to continue to be a CPB is important because part of helping the students “We are excited about all of our traditions but are expectof Spring Hill make wonit gives our Spring Hill ing an especially great Mardi derful memories. Gras ball this year and a sur- Community an opportunity “I think CPB is important prise new event that we can’t because it gives our Spring to make lifelong memories wait to try out,” said CPB Hill Community an optogether. Chairman Taylor Donze. portunity to make lifelong CPB is especially known for memories together. CPB their McKinney’s mixers where a part of the Executive Board, CPB events reach out to our whole comBadgers flock to get away from is looking to get the entire campus munity and I don’t believe badgers their books and stock up on some involved in the planning of events. would have as much camaraderie as free food. “This year we will be implement- we do without these shared experi“Campus Programming is a vital ing a new text message survey pro- ences,” said Donze. part of the community in that it gram that will allow students to To get more information on getprovides a break from day to day comment on the event in real-time ting involved or to find out about stresses especially when you can so that CPB can tailor the event upcoming CPB events, like the walk into an event and just enjoy to student tastes,” explained Jones. group on Facebook or email them being on campus with the rest of Along with this new survey, CPB at CPB@shc.edu. the community,” said Katelynn Jones, CPB Vice Chair of Public Relations. CPB is run by an executive board that will be revealed in early September. With the executive board made up of Chairman, Vice Chair of Public Relations, Vice Chair of Music & Entertainment and Vice Chair of Programming, Even if a student cannot be

Do the low numbers in admissions scare you?

That’s not really anything we can change. But, I’ve been working with admissions this summer and I learned this summer at the board of trustees meetings that even though these low numbers are the case, they are taking actions to make sure that low numbers will not be an option next year. They have also hired three new admissions councilors. They have redefined territory; and they have updated their travel periods. Some councilors will stay with the same places and some councilors will have new places such as San Antonio, which has a lot of catholic high schools. They have also upped the ante on their travel periods. Where as before they used to have an average of four travel weeks per year, now they have moved to ten travel weeks. That means a lot of big business for admissions. The goal is to have 400 students for next year, and I can see that happening.

| NEWS badgers

Abroad

By AndrewPRINCE Contributor

Touching down in the early morning on Aug. 29, I arrived in Madrid to begin my semester away from our beloved badger home. Our time in Madrid was mostly spent eating tápas, tápas, and more tápas. In between eating we toured the royal monastery which was the burial spot for some of the most famous kings and queens of Spain. On Sept. 1 we stopped in Toledo, a city with more then 3000 years of history, before arriving in Cadiz where we met our individual host families. My family is a married couple with three daughters, but only the youngest living at home. None of them speak English, which alone has been quite the adventure as I have struggled explaining everything from a swamp to the power of a hurricane. I’m excited to begin this new adventure and I can’t wait to share it with all of my favorite Badgers.

Hurricane Isaac takes on the Gulf Coast By BrandyJONES Editor

Isaac made landfall late Tuesday, August 28. Louisiana took the brunt of the storm while parts of Mississippi and Alabama received wind and rain from the storm’s feeder bands.

LOUISIANA Over half of Louisiana experienced power outages that lasted for days. An article on CBS.com said that the cost of damage from Hurricane Isaac could cost up to $2 billion. “More than 125,000 homes and businesses are still without power.” According to the CBS article, houses in St. John’s parish took up to five feet of water. Several Spring Hill College students are from Louisiana or have family members in the Louisiana area. Senior Gabrielle Edgerson also has family in the Louisiana area. “My father is on the rescue team that helps people trapped on their roofs, so I was worried about him being out in the city and in the face

of danger,” said Edgerson.

MISSISSIPPI Over 60,000 people were ordered to evacuate the area near the Mississippi-Louisiana border due to officials having to release water from a bursting dam. 150,000 people also lost power in the southern and central parts of the state. Jose Valdez, a senior at Spring Hill College, went home to Gulf Port for the storm. “We have a beach business in Long beach, and I had to assist in moving it because the tide was so bad. It was not too fun. It was nasty,” said Valdez.

MOBILE The Mobile area received little damage from the storm on Tuesday and businesses had resumed normal operations for parts of the town by 8 a.m. Wednesday. Overall, Spring Hill College was lucky during this hurricane. Hopefully, the luck continues to hold out for the duration of the hurricane season.

neWS |

September 7, 2012

Gender Wars: Demographics of Spring Hill College By BrendanPECHON

News Reporter Who run the world? Girls! That’s what enrollment at Spring Hill College has been reporting for the past decade. Since 2002, girls have outnumbered guys nearly two to one, with last year’s undergraduate class consisting of 37 percent males and 63 percent females. With this long trend in effect, we turned to students to find out what it means to be a majority, for girls, and a minority, for boys. Senior Matthew Zuppardo stated, “As a freshman, I liked knowing there were more girls than guys, but it was kind of intimidating because girls tend to group up. If you want to talk to one girl, you have to also talk to five of her friends.” Some freshman girls embrace this concept and find it beneficial. “It’s awesome because it creates more of a community with the girls and the guys that have the guts to approach you,” said freshman Paige Hymel. On the contrast, freshman Caroline McGraw expressed her opinion that “it stinks.” This ideology is shared by a few of the interviewees, including junior Kat Jakuback, who stated, “There are slim pickings.” Hymel agreed, “We have to compete with a lot of other

girls. But it’s awesome for the guys!” Overall, the majority of the people interviewed were not bothered by the offset ratio. Freshman Meredith Chase explained, “I came from an allgirls school, so it’s still weird to have guys in my classes. But

Number of Undergraduate Badgers

Lady Badgers Badger Boys overall, it doesn’t bother me.” Senior Billy Brown agreed with this statement. He explained that he was happy that Toolen and Walsh residence halls were made coed, so that the retention rate of freshman may be higher. According to Spring Hill College’s online fact book, the annual retention rate has dropped one percent from 2010 to

75.8 percent. Billy believes this is due to the atmosphere of the halls, and that this year the atmosphere seems to be geared more towards studious activities. This year also brings with it the strongest male to female ratio in the past 10 years, with males consisting of 39 percent of the school. “As a tour guide on campus, I’m used to giving tours to mostly girls, so it definitely came as a surprise, a good one at that, to see a higher number of guys attending Spring Hill this year,” said junior Ryan Cosse. While the percentage of males on campus has grown this year, the ladies still manage to outnumber them. With this, Jakuback extended her wealth of knowledge to those willing to hear: “It’s like I tell my ladies, if you got a good one, hold on to it.” Ms. Joan Siegwald, Spring Hill’s institutional researcher, has been hard at work for many years compiling a large amount of the information available to us. The compilation includes other facts and statistics such as students’ religious affiliations, majors, ethnicity and amount of credit hours earned each year by the student body. If you would like more information, visit Spring Hill’s online fact book for statistics like these and many other demographics at www.camellia.shc.edu/ir/factbook.htm.

SHC hopes to be completely wireless At the start of the fall semester, students learned that their residence halls had wireless Internet access. “We already have a number of wireless areas and hot spots on campus including the Marnie and John Burke Memorial Library, the Eisele Outdoor Learning Center, the student center and all of the residence halls,” said Dr. Margaret Massey, Spring Hill’s chief of info officer. “This is the next exciting step in making the entire college wireless as we work to improve our services for students, faculty and staff,” she added. Students were pleased to find out that the college was moving toward having a wireless campus. “I am happy for all the students who will benefit from the College’s decision,” said senior Gabriel Wagner. “Having wireless access in all the residence halls will certainly help students both

educationally and socially,” he added. Another student, senior Olivia Bourgeois, is extremely excited about the college’s decision to go wireless. “It’s incredibly convenient and fast paced. I enjoy the fact that I can walk around with no cords attached to my computer,” she said. “The wireless also helps me save data on my smartphone,” Bourgeois added. While many people are enjoying the luxury of having wireless Internet on campus, some Badgers find it an inconvenience. “The wireless connection in my room is really slow. I don’t like the fact that I have to continuously log back on to the network after I’ve closed my computer,” said senior Madison Holmes. “It is a pain because my text messages take forever to send when it is connected to the wireless network,” said junior Mackenzie Harms. However, Harms did admit that she enjoys using her laptop while sitting on bed,

though. According to The Campus Computing Survey conducted in 2011, many private colleges and universities have started taking strides to make their campuses wireless. Statistics show that among private universities, the number of campuses choosing to go wireless continues to rise. Kenneth C. Green, the founding director of The Campus Computing Survey Project explained, “Colleges are playing catch up to the consumer experience. Students come to campus expecting to have wireless access to navigate campus resources and use campus services,” he said. While the entire Spring Hill campus is not completely wireless, it is expected sometime during this semester that all areas of the campus will be able to access the wireless network. The school will continue to work toward ensuring that everyone on campus enjoys the luxury of a wireless Internet access.

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September 7, 2012

Eastwood’s makin’ my day

By LindseyFRECHOU Student Editor

At the sake of not sounding incredibly cliche, I refuse to say that Clint Eastwood made my day. However, at the sake of being completely honest, that is exactly what Mr. Eastwood did. His unique and humorous speech at the Republican National Convention has stirred many mixed feelings and a number of negative reviews. But ultimately Eastwood was able to fire up the Republican audience like no other speaker could. There is major concern that Eastwood has somehow stolen the spotlight from Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, but I think this was exactly what the GOP needed. America needs to see that our favorite Hollywood

actors and role models can, in fact, hold conservative beliefs. I’m not going to lie, it’s difficult to be young and conservative. It’s especially difficult when the media makes it seem like 70 year-old men ready to reenact a Civil War scene are the only others who share my views. While I’m always down for some good ol’ Civil War reenacting, it was refreshing to finally see someone with such a big name in Hollywood standing for conservative ideals. Did he get a little over the top at some parts? Absolutely. I’m sure President Obama would have never told Eastwood to shut up. Or for Romney to go...well, never mind. Eastwood delivered a speech to America that humorously brought to light many issues that voters are concerned with during this upcoming election. He recognized the high unemployment rate, the war in Afghanistan and the closing of Guantanamo Bay. And all the while, he was speaking to an empty chair which most believe represents the empty promises made by President Obama during his first term. Here comes the cliche, I can’t help it. Eastwood’s speech surely made my day, but let’s be real. I’d rather it make the election.

| Opinion

Cartoon by AbbyROAM

Texting law is a necessary evil?

By BrandyJONES Design Editor

The new Alabama law on texting and driving is a necessary evil. On August 1 of this year a new law signed by Ala Gov. Bentley was put into effect. The law is a texting and driving law that gives the police and sheriff departments the

power to pull over drivers who are texting while driving. It also gives them the power to pull someone over without having seen another traffic or law infraction. So, basically looking down at the phone or any other phone related distraction while behind the wheel and not in park can lead to both a ticket of $25 to $50 and to higher insurance fees. Unlike some laws that have been passed this year, this particular law is a tolerable infringement on our rights as U.S. citizens. As a distracted cell phone user, I believe that it is important to real-

ize that the small action of checking a text or typing in a phone number can have consequences, especially when a 4000 plus pounds vehicle going anywhere from 10 to 80 mph is involved.

at them? Cell phones are how we connect with our family, how we get help on the side of the road at 2 a.m. and also how we stay updated on dangerous driving situations. Sometimes a text may not mean life or death but I definitely think that a quick skim at a stop sign or a red light shouldn’t result in a citation. That being said, the law does help people take driving distractions seriously. That is a good thing for pedestrians, bicyclers and other drivers. It may be an infringement on an already dwindling list of rights, but it is beneficial to

It is important to realize that the small action of checking a text can have consequences, especially when a 4000 plus pounds vehicle is involved. However, the law does say that safe zones are parking spaces and complete stops, but not traffic lights or stop signs. Yet, technically aren’t we stopped

people, so it is necessary.

SUBMISSIONS

The Springhillian publishes submissions at the discretion of the student-editors and section editors. A submission should be no more than 300 words, and editors reserve the right to edit the submissions for length and content. Original articles should be mailed or delivered to: Student Editor Communication Arts Spring Hill College 4000 Dauphin Street Mobile, AL 36608

EDITORIAL POLICY The Springhillian is published weekly from September to May, except during examination periods and vacations. The views expressed within do not represent the views of Spring Hill College and are not the views of the faculty, administration, staff or students, but are the views of the individual columnists.

TheBadgerZone

LifeStyles |

Top Photo by: BrandyJONES

September 7, 2012

Top:

Senior Chelsea Smith stays energized with coffee in Java City on campus while studying for her English class.

Left:

Margaret Denton, Kate Frederic and Matthew Zuppardo soap up a tarp for a slip-n-slide on Tuesday during Hurricane Isaac.

Bottom Photo by: MollySt.ROMAIN

Top: Spring Hill

students gather at the Badger Expo to join different groups, win prizes and listen to local companies sales pitch.

Right:Freshman Natalie Welch takes time to enjoy the weather after Hurricane Isaac.

All Photos by: BrandyJONES

| LifeStyles

TheBadgerZone

September 7, 2012

Life&Style |

September 7, 2012

Hello Kappa Alpha Psi CaleFINTA Reporter Spring Hill is in the process of welcoming the fraternity Kappa Alpha Psi to the campus. They will be first National Pan-Hellenic Council fraternity at Spring Hill, complementing the two NPHC sororities already on campus. Kappa Alpha Psi celebrated its 100th anniversary last year, becoming only the second predominately AfricanAmerican fraternity to do so. The fraternity was founded in 1911 at Indiana University in response to the cultural and political forces that ardently discouraged black students from attending college. According to the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity website, “The founders sought a formula that would immediately raise the sights of black collegians and stimulate them to accomplishments higher than they might have imagined. Fashioning achievement as its purpose, Kappa Alpha Psi began uniting college

men of culture, patriotism and honor in a bond of fraternity.” The fraternity embraces achievement, maturity, and dedication as its core values, with the motto “Achievement in every field of human endeavor.” Since its founding, the fraternity has grown to 150,000 members, and has over 700 chapters, including international chapters in over a dozen countries. The Spring Hill chapter will be the second Kappa Alpha Psi chapter in Mobile. In 1974, the University of South Alabama established a chapter to encompass the surrounding areas, welcoming members from Spring Hill College, Mobile College, Faulkner University and University of West Florida. There has also been an Alumni chapter of the fraternity in Mobile since 1950, with the purpose of involvement in the Mobile community and culture. Kappa Alpha Psi has many notable alumni, including NBA Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain, Robert L. Johnson, founder and CEO of BET,

Bernard Harris, the first African-American astronaut to walk in space and Cedric “The Entertainer” Kyles. The fraternity has several national programs, including Guide Right and the Kappa Alpha Psi Foundation. Guide Right is a program for educational and occupational mentoring of high school and college students. It was formed as a helping hand for the local youth of African-American communities. The Kappa Alpha Psi Foundation was established in 1981 as the philanthropic arm of the fraternity. Its mission is to support the fraternity in providing resources and services to community efforts. The Foundation has a particular emphasis on providing assistance to African-American communities. The Foundation provides funds to undergraduate and alumni chapters to maintain scholarships and afterschool programs, and assists with national programs such as Habitat for Humanity.

Junior Caitlyn LaChute shows off her Pinterest-inspired crafts.

Very Pinteresting ByThomasWILL Reporter In an age of social media, there does not seem to be anything that is not made simpler by the internet. Spring Hill students turn to Pinterest to discover creative ways to decorate their rooms, find appetizing recipes, cure boredom or just find inspiration to try new things. “It has replaced Facebook as my go to website for when I decide to procrastinate,” said sophomore Sarah Sherrington. According to the Pinterest.com, the site “is a virtual pinboard that allows you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web.” Pinterest has many of the typical features of most social media in that users can create a profile. They can also have friends and like different posts just as on Facebook, and users can also follow others similar to Twitter. As for what people post? Anything someone finds interesting. Some Pinterest users find creative design ideas for their room. One group of seniors used the site to find ideas to decorate their apartment; spanning from ornate picture frames to a certain table that college students play games on. Senior Molly St. Romain admitted that she found out how to antique a picture frame on Pinterest. She continued, “This summer I worked at a camp, and I had never been to a camp before. I was able to find out how to start a fire on Pinterest.” There are all kinds of things that can be found on Pinterest. Senior Kate Frederic said, “My mom makes dinner off Pinterest all the time now. She’ll find something she likes and then she has to make it.” The site is a source of food and drink recipes as well as just about every how-to-it-yourself one can think of. “Pinterest is absolutely the best resource for anything having to do with college! I’ve found pins about everything from how to relieve stress during finals to how to design your dorm,” said sophomore Emma Thompson.

September 7, 2012

| Life&Style

Top 5

Ways to “Hunker Down” On The Hill

This past week, Hurricane Isaac forced the college to close as it ravaged the Gulf States. While some Badgers took to the highways and headed home to be with their families during the hurricane, many of them chose to hunker down on the Hill and enjoy the down time since classes were canceled.

Sleep

With the fall semester just starting, many students have been getting little to no rest due to the excitement and hustle and bustle to make sure everything is in order so that the semester can go smoothly. Silencing their alarms, students slept in and caught up on some much desired rest.

Movie Night

Piling into a friend’s dorm room, there were some students that decided to pull an all-nighter and watch movies. “Since there was nothing else to do, my friends and I gathered in my dorm room, ordered pizza and watched movies until we dozed off,” said senior Ronlesa Mack.

Golf

In the midst of the bad weather, there were some students that decided that a game of golf in the rain would be fun. Unbothered by the steady rainfall, the students enjoyed a few games of golf.

Some students took the opportunity to catch up on homework and assignments. “I used my free time to work ahead on some assignments,” said senior Jenita Gamble. She added, “Since this is my senior year, there is a lot that has to be done in a short period of time. I like to take advantage of every opportunity of free time that I have.”

Homework

Arts & Crafts

In order to pass time, some people put their creative juices to use. “I’m always making something,” said senior Jessica Boyd. “I made a few best friend bracelets and some collages just because I was bored,” she added while laughing.

I know what you read last summer By AislinnSHEVLIN

Reporter

Spring Hill College, Amanda Collins 1996. Collins, whose own romance novel, “How to Dance with a Duke”, was also released this year, said, “What’s frustrating to me, as a romance novelist, about the popularity of ‘Fifty Shades’ is not how it portrays women, but the fact that the world is shocked to learn that novels like this exist. Erotic romance has been around for years and

One change from high school to college is that students are no longer required to devote time to a summer reading list. This might incite joy or disappointment from students, but one of the benefits is that you can read whatever you choose, rather than picking from a list of twenty classics. It forced me to think Not surprisingly, about a concept I many students took the opportunity this wouldn’t normally past summer to read one of the most poputhink about. lar and talked about books of not only the year, so has the trope of the meekbut of all time, “Fifty Shades seeming heroine who is able of Grey” and its two sequels. to bring the big, bad alpha The erotic romance novel was hero to his knees with a bat written by E.L. James, a Britof an eyelash.” ish housewife who originally At first “Fifty Shades of wrote the story as “Twilight” Grey” was popularized by fan fiction. middle-aged women who The book, which has gained spread it word-of-mouth. notoriety because of its exIt was even referred to as plicit sexual content and was “mommy-porn.” But it has even banned in a few libraries attracted the attention of across the country, has been young girls, too. The main subject to hilarious parodies character, Anastasia Steele, is a on the Internet and Saturday young adult, a recent graduate Night Live. Junior Tyler Leiva, of college, and her innocence who hasn’t read any of the and uncertainty after being books, was only mildly aware exposed to the extravagant life of the subject matter, prompt- of Christian Grey, continues ing him to ask, “It’s about sex to resonate with women of all right?” ages. The sexual content of the Junior Jenna Berthelsen was book, some of which involves recommended the book by bondage and masochism, has a friend and got through the shocked readers and critics first two books this summer alike. This is disconcerting to after seeing them everywhere. assistant professor librarian at Like many, she is unsure how

to feel about the dominantsubmissive relationship detailed in the trilogy. “In some ways, it made girls out to be spineless and stupid,” she said. “However, it forced me to think about a concept I wouldn’t normally think about.” The anonymity of digital downloads has increased the staying power of the trilogy, still atop every best-seller list with more than 30 million copies sold so far. People are able to take out their Kindles and e-readers and open to “Fifty Shades of Grey” without the threat of being discovered. One female student who asked to remain anonymous, because she was embarrassed to be associated with the book’s sexual nature ascertained that it filled a void in her bookshelf. She said, “I’ve never read any book like this one and it’s something fresh.” The book has certainly struck a chord with people. Even if women are embarrassed to admit that they have read it, or worse, liked it, there is something positive about millions of people picking up books and reading, even if it’s not Shakespeare. Amanda Collins ’96 explained, “There’s something incredibly uplifting about reading a story where a) you know that the characters you love will survive and b) you know that they’ll survive together.”

Sports |

September 7, 2012

Athletic department sees big improvements

by MatthewLaBORDE Managing Editor

An SHC soccer coach sets up the field.

Photo by Brandy JONES

The Spring Hill College athletic department is making changes that seek to enhance the quality of life for students looking to be involved in club or varsity sports. SHC has added on a varsity bowling team, a track and Field program, and competitive cheer and dance teams. In addition, the athletic department has formalized the club sports of volleyball, rugby, and soccer. According to athletic director, Jim Hall, “We saw a real opportunity coming out of last year’s strategic assessment of athletics to enhance campus life by increasing student participation in varsity and club sports.” Coaches have been hired for

UPCOMING EVENTS IN BADGER SPORTS FRIDAY - 9/7 Volleyball Spring Hill vs Freed-Hardeman Time: 3 p.m. Spring Hill vs. Lindsey Wilson Time: 7 p.m. Saturday - 9/8 Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Spring Hill at Loyola Wolfpack Invitational Time: 8:30 a.m. Women’s Soccer SCAD Savannah at Spring Hill Time: 1 p.m.

both the cheer and dance teams, in hopes of eventually competing at the national level. Junior Jordan Truxillo believes the addition of a coach is a step in the right direction: “I’m really looking forward to it, I feel like in the past cheerleading has been definitely overlooked and less recognized than it should be.” Rugby, volleyball, and soccer are also hiring formal coaches in attempts to improve the structure of the programs. With these new changes, the athletic department hopes to attract new students that may have a desire to play on a formal club sports team.

In the end, Hall hopes to “enhance campus life by providing additional sporting activities for students to participate in and attend.” Junior Chris Montgomery hopes to be able to lead more effectively without the daunting task of leading an entire club: “Once you take the pressure of maintaining a full time administrative position off the shoulders of the leadership of clubs, you provide the teams an avenue to be more successful.” Similarly, senior J.R Valdez, a member of the men’s volleyball team hopes that a new coach will keep his team more accountable:

“It will help with getting people to practices because in the past it was more or less the team holding each other accountable.” Valdez added, “I think having a coach will benefit the team and help us to be more successful in tournaments at bigger schools.” Hall hopes to gain more school spirit and hopes to promote a more competitive nature within our sporting programs. “I believe that thriving spirit programs will greatly enhance our game environments and foster an even greater sense of school spirit.”

College football is back again By ThomasWILL Staff reporter

This past weekend marked the beginning of another season of college football. And it looks like the SEC is going to have as thrilling of a season as last year. This season, two new schools join the action after both Missouri and Texas A&M officially joined the nations most competitive conference in July. But how much more competitive is the SEC over the rest of the nation? The last 6 national champions have all been SEC schools, and even after some offseason controversies at LSU and Arkansas that shuffled the preseason standings, the most current AP poll still has 5 SEC Schools in the top 10. The chances for the SEC to claim a 7th straight title seem great with LSU and Alabama both in the top three again. But with so many potential contenders in one

conference, is it possible that the SEC beats itself out of a title? After all, USC finished serving its two year suspension from bowl contention at the end of last season, and after LSU dropped last year’s SEC Defensive Player of the Year, Tyrann Mathieu, the Trojans are the top ranked team overall in the AP Poll. USC quarterback, Matt Barkley, is also the early frontrunner for this year’s Heisman trophy after he forgone the NFL draft and returned for his senior year. The offseason has been a blur to many, considering the amount of attention given to the Penn State issue, but it seems as though the focus is back on the contenders. Yet, the only way to know who will win is to play the game, and anything can happen after kickoff. Only time will tell who will be raising the crystal football at the end of the season.

September 7, 2012

| Sports

5 Things to watch this NFL season By CaleFINTA | Sports Editor

The longest seven months of the year are finally behind us, and, according to beer commercials, diverse groups of well-dressed, metropolitan friends are gathering in living rooms across America to cheer their favorite NFL teams to victory. But while these last seven months have been painfully slow, there has been a flurry of offseason activity that has drastically changed the landscape of the league. Here are the top five things to watch for this NFL season.

1. Young Guns

There will be five rookie quarterbacks starting this Sunday, the most to kick off a season since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger. Additionally, there are five second-year quarterbacks that have won starting roles for Week 1. This means there are 10 quarterbacks that will be playing on Sundays who, just two years ago, were suiting up on Saturdays for their college team. These young stars are already generating excitement, fostering playoff hopes and increasing jersey sales for teams on the rise. As the NFL becomes more of a passing league every year, it will be interesting to see how young stars like Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III and Cam Newton will match up against future Hall of Famers like Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Peyton Manning.

2. Yellow Flags

Contract negotiations between

the NFL and the NFL Referee Association have faltered, which means that replacement officials will be making the calls for Week 1. The two sides have been negotiating for a month but have ultimately failed to reach a new collective bargaining agreement. The main point of contention has been the referees’ retirement packages, and the two sides have yet to close the gap. With this lockout of NFL referees, replacement officials were in place for the entire preseason. It is traditionally said that the preseason is not indicative of success in the regular season, and football fans hope this is also true for the quality of officiating. The performance of the referees in the preseason was characterized by blown calls, gratuitous reviews and unintelligible explanations.

Comebacks The 2012 season is not only

the year of rising stars, it is also the year of comebacks. Some of the biggest names in professional football missed a major portion of the 2011 season, and are poised to make a return this Sunday. Peyton Manning, who missed the entire last season after his neck surgery, will be suiting up for the first time in his 15 year career for a team other than the Indianapolis Colts when he makes his debut Sunday night for the Denver Broncos. Mario Williams, another former number one draft pick, was averaging one sack per game when he suffered a season ending injury after five games last season. He was released by the Houston Texans and will be making his return to football with the Buffalo Bills. Several teams were plagued with widespread injuries last year and are attempting to return to perfect form.

4. The Tebow Saga, Pt. II

The New York Jets have had a flair of the dramatic since Joe Namath guaranteed a Super Bowl victory in 1969. The tradition has continued in recent years, with two more Super Bowl guarantees from ostentatious head coach Rex Ryan, internal criticism of the locker room atmosphere and, most recently, trading for NFL boy wonder, Tim Tebow. The move was characteristic of the New York franchise that loves publicity, especially since Tim Tebow has been the most talked about player for the last two years. The highlight of the Jets’ preseason was supposed to be the position battle between Mark Sanchez and Tim Tebow, but the quarterback duo failed to score a touchdown in the entire preseason. In fact, the Jets scored their only touchdown of the preseason through the

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arm of third string quarterback, Greg McElroy. So while Tebow will likely not get any starts this season, expect to see him in wildcat and goal line roles as the Jets scramble for regular season touchdowns.

5. Leaderless Saints

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell suspended head coach Sean Payton and defensive captain Jonathan Vilma for the entire 2012 season. He also issued an eight game suspension for GM Mickey Loomis and a six game suspension for assistant head coach Joe Vitt. This means that for the first six weeks of the regular season, head coaching responsibilities will rest on the shoulders of offensive line coach Aaron Kromer. The Saints are still poised to make a playoff run, however, following the leadership of newly resigned quarterback Drew Brees and new defensive coordinator

Information courtesy of SHCBadgers.com

Volleyball- 9/1 The 12th-ranked Spring Hill College volleyball team closed out the St. Thomas Labor Day Tournament with a pair of 3-0 wins over Trinity International University and Calumet College of St. Joseph on Saturday. Men’s Soccer- 9/1 The Spring Hill College men’s soccer team defeated the University of St. Thomas (Texas) 5-2 in a non-conference home match at Library Field on Saturday afternoon. Women’s Golf- 9/4 On Monday, the Spring Hill College women’s golf team finished in second place out of six teams at the Alabama State University Fall Golf Classic at RTJCapitol Hill Golf Course. Men’s Golf 9/4 The Spring Hill College men’s golf team opened the 2012-13 season with a third place finish out of nine teams at the Alabama State University Fall Golf Classic at the RTJ Golf Trail at Capitol Hill on Monday.

Photo courtesy of Jim Stennett

Volleyball-9/4 The Spring Hill College volleyball team defeated visiting Tougaloo College by a score of 3-0 (25-16, 25-13, 25-12) in a non-conference match on Tuesday Sophomore Tyler Hartlage night at the Arthur R. Outlaw Recreation Center.

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