PRO

Why not? The average college student at any university doesn’t exactly have a ton of spare cash to blow on whatever he or she pleases.

If a student has a friend or two coming in town to visit, why should we prevent them from enjoying a college football game together?

I’m not trying to put a UA student out of their seat, and I’m not advocating for non-UA students to sit in the student section for basketball games.

But then again, it’s hard to “”steal a seat”” from someone if they don’t show up until just before game time, like the majority of our student section does for football games. Roughly 8,000 Zona Zoo passes have been sold up to this point, and I’m willing to bet there won’t be close to that number in the stands for this weekend’s game against NAU or next week for the New Mexico game.

If the ticket is already sold, what’s wrong with the university at least doubling their money on the same seat? I’m not saying they should allow random college students in, but if a student’s friend wants to support our university, why not let them?

Think about it. If a student buys a blue pass, they pay $10 a game. Hypothetically, let’s say they can’t go to a game because of homework or a personal issue. Why not make at least an additional $35 that would go back into the athletics program and fill an otherwise empty seat instead of letting the stadium stay half-empty for a television audience to laugh at?

Stanford, UCLA, Oregon, Washington State and ASU all offer a student guest pass in some aspect.

ASU lets students buy up to three season ticket student guest passes. UCLA allows one guest pass per home game per student, except the Notre Dame game.

Stanford and Oregon use paper tickets for games, and if all tickets haven’t been picked up three days before the game, then they release them as general admission seats in the student section to the public and other students.

If we offered student guest passes, older siblings could take their brother or sister to a game to “”recruit”” a potential future Wildcat, but the current system doesn’t even allow that.

The benefits of offering a student guest pass far outweigh any concerns I might have over having a “”non-member”” in our midst.

-Brian Kimball, Sports Writer

CON

There are those who are members of Zona Zoo, and the rest who wish they were.

Allowing guests to fill your seats would taint the pride of the school’s prestigious student section.

As an Arizona student, you’re given the honor of studying, working and living in Tucson for nine months of the year, if not more. Diligent hard work in the classroom and around the community is a responsibility accepted by the students. For doing so, youÇðre rewarded with some of the best seats at an athletic NCAA Division-I powerhouse program.

The Zona Zoo is truly a privilege. The loud, rowdy and spirited cheers arise from the responsibility to create a hostile environment for opposing foes.

Collegiate sports are also the only programs that are acceptable to refer to a team as “”we.”” You are not Diamondbacks, Suns or Cardinals – merely fans of the franchise. You are Wildcats, and the right to have preferred student seating comes as an honor to fellow Wildcats.

Entering its sixth year of existence, the Zona Zoo has rapidly evolved as the Pacific 10 ConferenceÇðs largest student section – overtaking the historic USC Trojan Pride and California Rally Committee – no thanks to unwanted creepers posing as students. Sales have steadily increased since its debut in 2003. As of Aug. 28, there were 7,875 passes sold, still on pace to surpass last season’s approximate total of 12,000.

With nearly 40,000 students, how would filling your seats with guests make sense? Since most UA teams receive loads of national attention, student tickets should be easily accessible to students to ensure the toughest home-field advantage.

This is your school, your field and your team. It would be a complete embarrassment to allow non-students into your house.

If guests want to be part of this athletic program’s rich success and history, send in an application and transfer next semester. But for now, stay out.

-Bryan Roy, Sports Writer