MacEwan’s student body proudly displays the Griffin’s name across their chests, but where is the support on game day?

That Griffins tackle sweatshirt everyone on campus wears is $55. Do you know how many Griffins games you could go to for that money? All of them. Because they’re free for students! We see you in the halls looking like a MacEwan bookstore mannequin, but we don’t see you in the stands. You bought the merch, so USE IT and WEAR IT. Where’s the school spirit, people? Where’s that Griffin pride?

Every Friday and Saturday, your Griffins teams take to the ice and court to represent  our school while you’re standing out in the cold for an hour to be overcharged for bar cover and drinks on Whyte Ave. Stop complaining about how you’re bored or all you do is go to class before returning home. Get involved! Don’t let this era pass you by. Make your university experience with the Griffins one to look back on. There’s nothing more collegiate — or Canadian — than screaming at a hockey game.

Honestly, MacEwan, we’re disgusted. You’re leaving the Griffins teams out there playing away games on our own ice! You guys are letting the University of Alberta and University of Calgary fans outnumber and outcheer us in our own barn, and that’s just pathetic. Don’t tell us you’re intimidated by those pretentious-ass U of A students and their fancy “multiple buildings” and “vast outdoor space.” It’s anti-Edmonton to not show up and chirp a Calgary team. Hell, we’re being outdone by U11 teams watching the game while they wait to use the ice after us. We know what you’re thinking: “But I need food!” Well, guess what? We’ve got concessions now, and they’re cheap. 

The most expensive thing on the menu is a hotdog for $5. That’s one third of the price you’re spending at an Oilers game for a drink. Need something more substantial? Our own Towers pub offers a game-day deal: A burger, fries, and a sleeve of Griffin’s beer for only $17.95. For those who don’t want to do the math, we’ll just give you the important part: that’s basically a free beer. 

We asked Towers’s bar manager Jill Brekke how the school spirit has changed over her time at MacEwan.

“When I was a student, Towers used to be packed with people grabbing a beer and burger then heading to the game after,” she says. “The stands were almost never empty, win or lose…it’s  more about being a part of that Macewan community we are currently lacking that makes the University experience.”

So, let’s bring back that community. Meet up at Towers with your buddies and parade your way down to the Downtown Community Arena (attached to the back of Rogers, train station adjacent) or the David Atkinson Gymnasium (you should all know this one).

Team identities are forged by the fans. MacEwan’s hockey teams play a hard, gritty game, and MacEwan students, in turn, are hard-working and passionate people. So let’s show that passion off. Scream your throat raw. Pound on and shake the glass. Bring air horns, cowbells — whatever —  but, for the love of God just  drown out those damn Calgary fans.