from the desk of craig littlepage

So like a lot of irritated fans, and like any good blogger should when there is an Issue to resolve, I emailed our intrepid AD, Craig Littlepage. The subject: the onerous sign ban, and why I don't like it, and would you please get rid of it?

Here is the reply.

It is good to hear from you and thank you for taking the time to contact me regarding your reaction to the ban on signs. Your concerns are appreciated.

The ban on signs was implemented out of concern for sportsmanship at all of our athletics contests and the concerns expressed by fans who didn't like having their view of the competition obstructed.

In addition it is not possible to have the event staff make consistent decisions about what crosses the line and what is in good taste when you consider the number of events that we host in a given year.

There are numerous ways our fans can demonstrate their support and sentiments. My hope is that those actions will help our efforts to promote the program so that everyone that attends these events can enjoy them.

Thank you for your sharing these thoughts.

CL

Not surprisingly, nothing about this even remotely indicates a possibility of a return of signs to sporting events. In fact, I've half a mind to think it's a form response, though I won't go so far as to make that accusation since I've got no way at all of knowing. Still, it's the same rationale as when they announced the ban. So-called sportsmanship, and fans can't see. Really now. I'm not privy to the inbox of Craig Littlepage, but I would stake A LOT of cash on betting that the number of complaints about not being able to see around someone's sign is not greater than the number of complaints about this dumb policy.

Whatever though. I could rant a long, long time about this. You can read the email yourself and probably come to the same conclusions I did. You don't need me to tell you that nobody with a sign wants to hold it up the whole game and block someone's view, especially on 3rd and 2 inside the 15; or that it's perfectly possible for civilized adults to come to an agreement if someone can't see. (Even though I just did tell you, in that clever way writers do.)

You can check out the Week 1 Blogpoll here. Biggest movers are Alabama, which went from lurking toward the bottom all the way up to #12, and Clemson, which crashed out of the poll entirely and is now "ranked" 26th. I have to wonder why Alabama moves up so high if Clemson is really that bad, but whatever.

A quick soccer break: if you were hoping that our nontraditional sports could make up for the football failure, think again. The Virginia Soccer Classic was this past weekend, and like gracious hosts, we lost both games. So, 0-2 to start the season, and just one goal, scored by reserve forward Chris Agorsor. This is an extraordinarily young squad, and will struggle.