A Northwestern tradition will be born this Saturday at Ryan Field. The entire freshman class will be able to run onto Ryan Field, 1501 Central St., prior to the Wildcats’ matchup with the Purdue Boilermakers, said Mike Polisky, senior associate athletics director for external affairs.
“We are really excited,” Polisky said of the newly-named Freshman Wildside 100. “We hope that it’s a great way of introducing the freshmen to (coach) Pat Fitzgerald and the football team, and hopefully they will become engaged in all of our athletic endeavors all four years.”
University President Morton Schapiro has been discussing this idea since Vanderbilt’s freshmen ran onto the football field prior to the school’s opener against NU on Sept. 4.
“My wife was in the stands with Leigh Bienen and Shirley Ryan,” Schapiro said. “The three of them were all saying, ‘This is great. We’ve got to do this at Northwestern.’ I wasn’t going to say no to the three of them.”
Leigh Bienen is the wife of former University President Henry Bienen, and Shirley Ryan is the wife of former Chairman of the Board of Trustees Patrick Ryan.
Schapiro announced his intentions to make this an NU tradition during Wildcat Welcome Week – once during a luncheon at Scott Hall on Sept. 14 and then during the Sept. 20 President’s Convocation.
The tradition did not start with NU’s first home game because not all of the students were on campus yet, said Ryan Chenault, associate director of marketing and sales at NU.
The freshman class will meet Saturday at Welsh-Ryan Arena, 2705 Ashland Ave., enter Ryan Field at Gate V and march out onto the field following the Northwestern University Marching Band, Chenault said.
“The band is going to make a tunnel that will go from approximately the five- or 10-yard line on the north end, down to about the 45-yard line on the far side,” he said. “Once they are set, (the band) will continue playing.”
The band will play spirit tunes, drumline cadences and fan favorites during the procession, Director of Athletic Bands Daniel Farris said.
The NU cheerleaders will introduce the class of 2014 and lead them onto the field, Chenault said. The students will run the 100 yards on the field toward the south end of the end zone, where the visiting team enters the locker room. The freshmen will then exit the stadium and re-enter through the student section’s gate as usual.
This will all start 25 minutes before kickoff, Chenault said. With 12 minutes left, freshmen will not be allowed to run onto the field. With 10 minutes to go, the students need to be off the field.
“We’re going to hopefully get everyone out there,” he said. “It really depends on the pace. We’re trying to keep it as quick as possible.”
Freshmen football players and marching band members will not partake in the new tradition.
Weinberg freshman Pedro Urgiles said he is intrigued by this opportunity.
“I went to the first football game of the season, and I think it was decent. But this definitely changes it,” he said.
However, Weinberg freshman Babatunde Williams isn’t as enthusiastic. He thinks this just prolongs the orientation process rather than making the freshmen feel like full-fledged members of the community.
Instead, Williams thinks the seniors should start the tradition because it would be a way to get the class together before graduation.
On the other hand, Urgiles said the Freshman Wildside 100 could bring the freshman class together.
“I think more people will show,” he said. “There were a couple of people who stayed on campus (during the game I went to). I’m pretty sure now they will be there. It’s encouraging to go support the team, but also it unites the whole class.”
This added tradition might not be the last to come with the new administration settling in.
“We’re constantly looking for new ways to engage the students and engage our fans,” Chenault said.
