U. to increase security for homecoming

Guards to be added for game In wake of Friday night's chaotic scene at the Palestra and injuries following the University of Wisconsin football team's surprising victory Saturday, University officials plan to provide extra security at this weekend's homecoming game. Assistant to the President Nicholas Constan said yesterday that "word has gone out that we better have enough police and Spectraguards" at Saturday's contest against the Princeton Tigers. Indeed, with both teams undefeated, Saturday's game is a pivotal contest for the Ivy League title, and might, Constan said, lend itself to particularly rowdy student behavior. "It is probably the biggest game of the decade," he said. Saturday, after Wisconsin beat Big 10 rival Michigan, thousands of fans stormed the field from the student section. At least 69 people were injured in the stampede, seven critically. Constan doesn't want the crowd to get out of control, as it did Friday night as hundreds of fans waited in line to buy basketball season tickets in front of the Palestra. He added that Interim President Claire Fagin was "shocked" when she heard about Friday's events. Fagin is out of town on University business, he said. Athletic Director Paul Rubincam said next year "things will be done differently and better." "There will be changes made," he said. He said the Athletic Department never anticipated the rush for tickets – which sent one College senior to the hospital and left many others shaken up. "In the eight years that I've been the athletic director, I don't think we've had problems," Rubincam said. He added that "what happened Friday night was a mix of alcohol and the fact that it was late at night." Rubincam said that in previous years, the tickets were sold in the morning. "If it was done at the normal time of day, I don't think we would have had as many problems," he said. No one could have anticipated the "aggressive nature of the line," Rubincam said, adding he has received a number of phone calls about Friday night's chaos. Constan also said he was surprised by the mob that formed in front of the Palestra, adding the University could not have foreseen the breakdown of order. "It's never happened before," he said. "We've had a long tradition of very orderly waiting, a tradition of it almost being fun. It's a social event." Constan said Men's Basketball Coach Fran Dunphy is "embarrassed about the situation." He said Dunphy feels bad about the concussion College senior Judy Friedman suffered while waiting in line, and may want to "make some kind of gesture" like offering her a seat behind the bench or season tickets. But in the short term, Constan said, the University will focus its efforts on ensuring a safe Princeton game. "We want everyone to enjoy the game without a problem."

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