Tents lined the concrete in front of Gate E on Friday morning at the Carrier Dome, also known as ‘Boeheimburg.’ Students are camping out to get front row seats for Wednesday’s men’s basketball game against Georgetown University.

The students who regularly camp out at the Dome have not yet faced temperatures below 20 degrees, but most said they would be there even if the weather was bad.

‘They usually do a good job of letting us inside if it gets into single digits,’ said Gerard Hugel, a senior information management and technology major and the treasurer of Otto’s Army.

The rules of camping out, voted on by the Otto’s Army Executive Board every academic year, say one person must be present for every four people staying in a tent. This allows dedicated fans to attend class and still get choice seats at the game, he said.

Hugel said student fans usually camp out for every home football and basketball game, but so far, the Georgetown game’s turnout is one of the largest this academic year.

Those currently camping out will rotate sleeping on the concrete until Wednesday. Hugel said he expects more groups to set up tents Monday and Tuesday. With limited space at the underground entrance to the gate, they will be forced up the stairs and outside into the elements.

‘It’s all about the tradition,’ said Trevor Hass, a freshman newspaper and online journalism major who is sharing a tent with 12 friends.

Campers spend their downtime in the Dome playing cards, doing homework, playing music and watching college basketball on the Internet. During the St. John’s basketball game Saturday, cheers simultaneously emanated from every tent when Syracuse scored, said Brooke Gordon, a freshman in the College of Visual and Performing Arts.

Said Hugel: ‘It’s definitely a good way to unify everybody together and show that people are really into our basketball team.’

sfanelli@syr.edu

 

Published on February 5, 2012 at 12:00 pm