SHOW YOUR SPIRIT Fraternities, sororities and student organizations competed
RUNNING BACK ATTACK Behind 129 yards rushing from red-shirt sophomore Shepard
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with dances and cheers for the “Yell Like Hell” pep rally.
Little, the Eastern football team won 55-33 against SEMO.
Dai ly Eastern News
THE
WWW.DAILYEASTERNNEWS.COM
Monday, Oct. 21, 2013
VOL. 98 | ISSUE 45
“TELL THE TRUTH AND DON’T BE AFRAID”
c ampus
re venue
Football attendance increases By Aldo Soto Assistant Sports Editor @DEN_Sports
PHotos by k atie smith | The Daily Eastern Ne ws
Children excitedly wait for candy to be thrown to them during the Homecoming Parade Saturday.
Members of Gowin Pare in Mattoon drive their car dressed as Mr. and Mrs. Claus during the Homecoming Parade Saturday.
The International Student Organization members hold their flags as they take their position in the Homecoming Parade on Saturday.
By Bob Galuski News Editor @BobGaluski
Saturday outside Old Main, hit a bit of a delay at the start. The top to the convertible Mustang which President Bill Perry and his wife rode in would not lower, delaying the parade by a few minutes. After members of the University Board figured out how to lower the top, the parade continued back up. Amid the noise of vehicles,
Parade brings out blue pride amid cold weather Bundled in his blue blanket, his blue and white crown tilted on his head, David Groves, the 2013 Homecoming King, prepared for the parade to begin. He said he had been getting ready since 7:30 a.m., and despite the early morning cold – 40
degrees at 9 a.m. – he had high hopes for the temperatures. “It’s supposed to warm up, so I’m not going to need the blanket (for the parade),” he said. And in a flourish it all began: moving cars, shuffling feet and booming music announced the start of the 2013 Homecoming Parade. However, the parade, which was scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m.
cheers and music, distinct chants by the EIU Cheer Team could be heard through the parade. Bob Galuski can be reached at 581-2812 or rggaluski@eiu.edu. For the in-depth version of this story, visit:
dailyeasternnews. com.
alumni
Class of ’63 reminisces about Eastern By Jarad Jarmon Student Governance Editor @JJarmonReporter Alumni of the graduating class of 1963 shared the differences between the Eastern they remember and the Eastern currently, as well as the memories of college life in the early ’60s at a din-
ner Friday. After having their picture taken, the alumni ate and reminisced about Eastern in the Dvork Concert Hall in the Doudna Fine Arts Center. Life for these alumni was different from those of this generation. Instead of worrying about the government shutdown, they
worried about the Cuban Missile Crisis. Brenda Mundell, an alum in elementary education, said many students back then were glued to the TV and news during the Cuban Missile Crisis on Oct. 28, 1962 when the United States and Russia almost were at nuclear war with each other.
Jarad Jarmon can be reached at 581-2812 or jsjarmon@eiu.edu. For the in-depth version of this story, visit:
The Eastern football team is off to a 6-1 overall record, winning its first three Ohio Valley Conference games by a combined score of 16047, and fans are flocking over to O’Brien Field as a result of it. After the Panthers’ first two home games, the revenue generated through ticket sales had already exceeded what the athletic department had projected for the season, Barbara Burke, the athletic director, said. “After two games, we have already met and exceeded our football ticket budget for this year, so anything that we generate in our last three home games will just be able to help out bottom line,” Burke said. She said each year the ticket budget is set at around $140,000, which is combined between football and men’s and women’s basketball. Prior to the Homecoming game Saturday, Eastern earned $118,000 through ticket sales. In the 2012 season, Dino Babers’ first year as Eastern’s coach, the program sold $84,400 worth of tickets, which was a decrease of $11,700 from 2011. Burke said football ticket sales are projected to earn about $90,000 each year, making this season a success. Ticket revenue is up, and so is the number of season-ticket holders. In 2011, 16 percent of the ticket money produced came from season-ticket holders. That number decreased to 15 percent in 2012. This season, 20 percent of ticket sales have come from season-ticket holders. “Our goal from a ticket standpoint is we want to create a demand, and to do that we want to grow our season-ticket base because that No.1 is the best ticket in town,” Burke said. Although Eastern set a Homecoming attendance record as 11,569 fans passed through the gates, it failed to reach 15,000, a goal the athletic program set prior to the game. With Eastern having a successful start to its season, following a 2012 OVC title, Burke said talks about extending Babers’ contract are beginning to initiate. Babers is currently in the second of his threedeal that pays him $170,000 per year. Burke said it is a norm in a football coach’s world to have conversations about possible contract extensions before a deal is up. At this point in time, Burke said she is waiting for the board of trustees to approve the chance to negotiate with Babers. “It’s in board approval process to be able to have the opportunity to offer (Babers) up to a five-year contract,” Burke said. Eastern still has five games remaining before the FCS playoffs start at the end of November, but Burke said she will continue to further the conversations about a possible extension. Aldo Soto can be reached at 581-2812 or asoto2@eiu.edu.
dailyeasternnews.
For the in-depth story on the attendance record for Saturday’s game, visit:
com.
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