Jedermann

I object. My snarky comment was a literary masterpiece!

You are correct, hohum, my comment was a play on Modadunn's own words. I find it humorous that she didn't get it.

Corbett - the official roster does not take into account:
1) Recruited athletes who don't make the team
2) Athletes who get hurt sometime during their 4 years and are no longer on the roster

I stand by my estimate of 10%.

Corbett

To get to 10%, there would have to be 50 guys in categories 1 and 2, in addition to the 70 on the roster. This number strikes me as implausibly high.

But even if it is correct -- why is it "embarrassing" ? It is well known that:

(a) football teams require a lot of male players, typically around 70 for a DIII squad, and
(b) liberal arts colleges have small enrollments, typically around 1000 men and 1000 women

Given points (a) and (b), any LAC football team will represent some 5-10 % of the male enrollment. If a LAC has a football program, this result is inevitable, not cause for embarrassment.

Furthermore, Midd actually has a lower "football team ratio" than most peer institutions. Schools like Williams, Amherst, Bowdoin, Bates, Colby, Trinity, and Hamilton all have football rosters comparable in size to Middlebury's. Yet they also have significantly smaller undergraduate enrollments (1600 to 2200, vs. 2400 at Midd). Mathematically, this means that football players represent an even higher percentage of the male enrollment at these other schools. So why should Midd be embarrassed?

I will admit that there are some other selective LACs in the New England / upstate NY area that do have a much lower "football team ratio" than Midd. Midd's ratio could be considered "embarrassing" -- if your standard of comparison is Wellesley, Smith, Mt. Holyoke, Vassar, Skidmore, or Connecticut College.

But I think comparison with Williams, Amherst, or Bowdoin is more realistic.

laxtaxi

Hey! We were dumping on Quidditch here! Focus, gang, focus!

LOL

Klink

Don't like Quidditch? Then focus on the aspects of Midd that you DO like.
It's just something fun, quirky and original that has gained a following. Any promotion of it is just to show that Middlebury is an interesting place where Harry Potter fanatics and football players can co-exist (gasp!). We have awesome sports teams and a Quidditch team too. On any given Sunday you can grab a bite to eat in Ross, mosey over to Battell Beach to revel in the craziness of the weekly Quidditch matches, then head over to the athletic complex to catch a football game.
Quidditch is just a fun game, a joke that caught on. The people who participate don't take themselves too seriously. And honestly, what's there to be embarrassed about? Crazier stuff has certainly come out of college campuses.
This deliberate provocation and antagonism is ridiculous and should stop. I'm proud to go to a school with great athletes (who cares exactly what percentage of the student body is made up of football players?) and people creative and funky enough to actually make Quidditch into a real game. Here's to hoping that Midd mops up in football and in Quidditch next year!

imsolidmatter

I wouldn't want to go to a school where students don't support each other for their interests, however quirky they are. Quidditch doesn't make Middlebury look bad, those opposing it do. Why make so big of a deal -- in fact, a bigger deal -- out of something so trivial? It's pathetic.

tan2007

Agreed and agreed. Most people are disappointed because Middlebury doesn't get more press for its more "interesting aspects" but, seriously, who cares? No one in Arizona knows what "Middlebury" is, more or less that it has a Quidditch team. If anyone here ever did hear that Quidditch was associated with Midd, I would just be glad they know that my school exists.

laxtaxi

I kinda like Klink's take best.

urbanslaughter

at the risk of being pedantic, Middlebury plays its football games on Saturday, not Sunday.

Modadunn

I wish Klink had posted a LOT earlier!!! I like it best as well.

Modadunn

Not to resurrect anything negative... here's a little article that truly made me smile!

Quidditch For Chemists | Newscript | Chemical & Engineering News

Modadunn

Controversial or not...

Midd hosted over 20 schools this saturday for the Quidditch World Cup. Middlebury won! Son reported that it was crazy and a lot of fun (albeit weird to see so many people eating lunch in capes). I watched for few minutes on the live feed from the Quidditch website. It looked to be quite the event, tons of people and a good town/gown activity if you ask me (since it looked like a lot of little kids were there as well). Plus... it also looked like a pretty physical game - think Rugby mixed with a little dodgeball with a game of tag/capture the flag (snitch) thrown in.

And.. although my son thought it slightly odd when he first decided to attend Midd, he and some friends have since participated in a pick up game on Sunday afternoons. Go figure.