I read with great interest Paul Trembacki's Feb. 6 column, "Boilermaker Fans Lack Enthusiasm." Mr. Trembacki expresses his concern over the lack of enthusiasm and intensity that Purdue students display during home basketball games at Mackey Arena. While I couldn't agree more with his analysis, I think I can offer several solutions for the mood during games.

As an avid Purdue basketball fan growing up in the West Lafayette area, I remember attending games during the "Golden Years" of Purdue basketball, mainly the teams which Troy Lewis, Everette Stephens, Stephen Scheffler and Glenn Robinson played on, when my uncle held season tickets. Those teams were exciting to watch. Not only were they good players, but they played with excitement and intensity themselves. Watching current Purdue teams is like watching a group of young men who are forced to come out and play every day. To expect Purdue fans to become excited about watching a team play when the players themselves aren't intense and motivated is virtually impossible.

And secondly, a point which Mr. Trembacki hit upon, I certainly am not willing to pay a large chunk of money for seats that have the only backrest in the entire arena — the top row. Michigan State, Duke...all these schools put their students on the bottom, by the court, and this makes a huge difference in getting the students excited. Maybe Purdue should open its eyes and realize that if they want to create atmosphere in Mackey, this would be a great place to start. When I am forced to choose between basketball tickets and football tickets, I would now choose football tickets any season. Good luck to the men and women's basketball team. Regardless of the seating situation and lack of intensity, I will still choose to cheer you on. Go Boilers!