Are you kidding me? I’ve been gone less than five months! How is it possible that the quality of the Daily Free Press sports columnists has fallen so sharply in such a short period of time?

First, I am concerned with Sopan Deb’s statement in his column this week (“Athletic Department needs to hype basketball,” Oct. 10, p. 12) that the men’s basketball team is as “mediocre as O.J.’s career in burglary.” Deb, you claim to have attended at least one basketball game last year, so either this is an exaggeration to attempt to win over your readers or you know absolutely nothing about college basketball. Have you heard of Butler, George Mason or Gonzaga? Before these teams attained their national fame, they had less history and less success than our men’s basketball program. Our current team has phenomenal sophomores and freshmen who were snatched from the clutches of major basketball programs in the Big East, Atlantic-10, Missouri Valley Conference and other equally impressive conferences across the country. These guys have the talent to play on almost any basketball team in the nation; if you think that’s as mediocre as O.J.’s burglary career, then you’re making O.J. out to be quite the felon. This team isn’t going to be good — they’re good right now. If students don’t show up to Midnight Madness or games this season, they aren’t doing a disservice to their school, athletic department or basketball team. They’re doing a disservice to themselves.

Second, I feel compelled to comment on Brian Fadem’s column from Tuesday this week (“Missing out on Madness,” Oct. 9, p. 12). He seems to have the mistaken impression that there is some doubt on the matter of which cheering squad is better — the cheerleaders or the dance team. Let me assure you, Brian, there is no doubt in my mind, nor is there any doubt in the minds of every sports fan to have attended BU over the course of the last four or five years, as to which squad is better. In fact, I didn’t even realize we had cheerleaders. Having a mud wrestling contest between them will accomplish nothing other than getting the cheerleaders to finally take a shower. If you really want to have some type of competition between the two squads, I would suggest a high-stakes You Got Served-style dance off. If the dance team wins, they get to do some back handsprings at the first home game, and if the cheerleaders win . . . oh, who am I kidding?

I’ll chalk up these mistakes to inexperience because I know both of you are better than this, but come on, guys! Even Tony Gaffney knows to never insult the basketball team by comparing them to O.J. Simpson or the dance team by mentioning them in the same sentence as the cheerleaders.

Chris Pasquale

Former sports columnist

and Angry White Boy

CAS ’07