An enticing rumor has been circulating the George Mason University campus.
According to sources, the Redskins have offered to build Mason a football stadium and, in return, they would use it for practice.
The idea would save the university millions of dollars.
For those readers that fell for the Connect2Mason April Fools’ Day article about Mason finally establishing an official football team, the joke may have been more disheartening than it was comical.
The possibility of a Mason football team has been a sensitive subject for students for several decades. Petitions, Facebook groups with thousands of students supporting the idea, proposals reviewed by the university’s governing board and countless other attempts have come and gone. But no move has been made.
The possibility of a Mason football team is about to become a hot topic once again with the announcement that President Alan Merten will be retiring in the summer of 2012.
According to those that hope for a football team, Merten has been the backbone of constant denial of a Division I football team at Mason.
While it may not seem like a tough decision for students and Mason fans to have a football team, it may actually be a more drawn out process than expected.
Mason press secretary Dan Walsch put it into terms that may help the Mason community better understand.
“A football team would cost the university millions and millions of dollars,” he said. “And result in drastic financial cutbacks. It is not prudent at this time.”
These are serious issues involved in bringing a football team to Mason.
Walsch added that, “There are no plans for a football team at this time.”
This may seem like the final nail in the coffin, but not all hope is lost.
When questioned on the matter, Walsch shed some light on this idea. “There are currently conversations between the Redskins and Mason, but nothing has been decided at this time.”
This is an exciting prospect for the Mason community, but for now Mason club football will have to do.
There is hope that Mason will one day have a legitimate college football team. This issue will continue to be debated among future Mason generations.
Whether the new Mason president decides the costs will be able to fit it into the university’s budget, or the Redskins help Mason out, there is always a possibility that one day, college level football will be a part of the Mason community.
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