2008 Woodie Awards
UMKC Basketball GuardUMKC Basketball Guard
Kylie bove & Susan fry
Issue date: 1/17/06 Section: Sports
- Page 1 of 1
|
"When we started it up, it was just a group of guys and girls, we got together and we made our own shirts," said Roo Crew leader Bochen Uang.
Now they can be found running around Municipal Auditorium with signs to promote Roo spirit. They wear their bright yellow and blue ROO CREW shirts and sit in a roped off area of the student section right behind the basket.
Because UMKC home games are not on campus, it can prove difficult for students to make it.
"When I first came here there was practically no spirit, nobody went to the games," said Uang.
A $10 membership fee gets you a T-shirt as well as a seat in the roped off section. It also helped send the Roo Crew to Columbia for the UMKC vs. MU game.
Uang said Student Government Association President Marcus Leach has done a lot for the Roo Crew. "He was able to get SGA to cover the extra costs of going to the MU game," said Uang.
SGA co-sponsored the bus that took students to Columbia.
The Roo Crew's goal is to increase student involvement at athletic events and "try to get UMKC feeling like a real school campus."
"Everyone is saying [UMKC is] not like a real school, but it is," Uang said. "If you come out to these games it really is. And ultimately we would like to see a lot of guys and girls out here participating in school events."
Right now they mainly attended basketball games, since this is their trial year. However, the group is making plans to attend other sporting events next year, when they hopefully will have more members.
The Roo Crew has over 100 members, but the number seen at the games is far less.
"The only away game we went to was the MU game, and we had 35 to 40 people at that game," said Uang.
The Crew also plans to attend the Mid-Continent Conference tournament in Tulsa, Okla. However, as it takes place over spring break, Uang does not think they will see the same turnout as the MU game.
Leach discussed SGA's role in the tournament.
"SGA hasn't really talked about it, but definitely a bus," Leach said. "Lodging is a really big thing, so we have to see exactly what we can do. We will help anyway we can."
Uang added, "The Roo Crew is still growing and it needs as much support as possible. We are looking for those people who don't think there is enough school spirit on this campus to get involved."
sfry@unews.com
