First let me say I sympathize with former members of BallState's men's track and field team which was eliminated this year.In that context I know the stadium's new lights are hard for someto stomach. But when you look at the circumstances surrounding thelights, that concern fades quickly.
First and foremost, everyone should know that neither studentsnor taxpayers put a single cent toward buying the lights. The totalcost of the project was about $370,000. Thanks largely to agenerous gift from Dar and Dorothy Wiekamp - who haven't sought anypublicity to my knowledge - every penny came from donatedfunds.
Some would counter, "Yeah but that donated money could've goneto something else!" Well no actually it couldn't. The money wasdonated for this specific purpose. No individual, school, team, orany other interest associated with Ball State has lost anythingbecause of the lights.
In my mind, that effectively settles the issue, but for the sakeof argument let's look at some of the benefits of having thelights. In case you haven't kept up on the news, a new NCAA rulesays Division I-A teams must average at least 15,000 fans per homegame or be knocked down to Division I-AA.
Ball State hasn't met that mark since 2001, and if we don't nowwe'll be in the same category as powerhouses like Eastern Kentucky,Gardner-Webb and Nicholls State. If the attendance mark isn't met,the Cardinals would also be forced to drop out of the Mid-AmericanConference, which would change the face of the entire athleticsdepartment from the men's basketball team to the women's fieldhockey team.
What do the lights have to do with this? Well the two largesthome crowds in Ball State's history were played under lights: thisyear's opener against Boston College drew 23,718 fans and the 2003game against Indiana State -- played under temporary lights -- drew23,594.
Finally, the lights are just the first step of a major long-termoverhaul planned for the stadium. Basketball goals and playgroundequipment are temporary features. In coming years, Ball StateStadium will become a much more formidable facility of whichstudents and faculty can be truly proud.
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