CU students speak about Barnett

BOULDER – For many students at the University of Colorado,

classes, parties and time spent with friends is at the forefront of

their world.

However, with rape allegations being brought against some CU

football players, the issue of sexual misconduct and its place in

college football recruiting is becoming more apparent and many

students are following the allegations.

One day after CU President Elizabeth Hoffman placed head

football coach Gary Barnett on paid administrative leave, and amid

allegations the football team used sex and alcohol to woo recruits,

students at CU-Boulder continued their studies and classes.

“I don’t really follow the football team all that much,” said

Mark Bauman, a student at CU. “But, with all of the allegations

surrounding the football team and the ranking of being the number

one party school in the nation earlier, there is a chance all of

this could devalue our degrees.”

Bauman, a sophomore communications major, said he hopes the

allegations are not true but that the university needs to take the

allegations seriously nonetheless.

“If these allegations are true and these things did happen, then

I think serious actions should be taken,” Bauman said.

Although he is unsure how others around the nation are viewing

the students at CU, he believes the negative media attention

surrounding the university is not good.

“It seems like the only attention CU ever gets from the media is

negative. I am not sure how that plays out in the minds of other

people,” Bauman said.

Other students were glad to see Hoffman take action against

Barnett for his comments concerning former kicker Katie Hnida’s

performance on the field, after she recently claimed she was raped

by a player on the team.

“The comments (Barnett) made about the female kicker were

totally inappropriate,” said Matt Binstock, a sophomore economics

major CU. “(The press) were asking him questions about the overall

situation and he just went off on a tangent about what a terrible

and horrible player she was.”

Binstock said that Barnett’s paid administrative leave is a good

step after his comments about Hnida.

Jaime Loeb, a graduate student studying civil engineering, said

she believes these allegations are going to bring the football team

down.

“I think CU’s football team is going to hell,” Loeb said.

Putting Gary Barnett on paid leave is not going to solve the

bigger issues facing CU right now, Loeb said.

“I think the administration needs to do more,” she said. “The

football team has been in a negative light all year and the team

needs to be acting to change that. So whether or not Gary Barnett

is gone doesn’t really matter in the larger picture.”

Loeb said she is waiting to see what happens.

“I don’t think that putting (Barnett) on leave will solve the

problem, but it’s a good step in the right direction.”