COACH HEP: On the field, Off the field

Ten days after IU students "Met Coach Hep," new football coach Terry Hoeppner made further appeals to the student body, speaking to representatives of IU greek houses Thursday at the Hoosier room in Memorial Stadium.\nHoeppner continued his attempts at mobilizing the student body in support of the football team.\n"We're going to do this together," Hoeppner said. "We're going to get it done on the field and we need you guys to spread the word and be there in the stadium."\nThe representatives, most of which are presidents at their respective houses, engaged in a dialogue with Hoeppner over dinner at IU's athletic training tables and got the chance to meet various IU coaches and players.\nAmong the topics discussed were some of the ideas proposed by Hoeppner at his March 28 forum like the creation of a fan song similar to Ohio State's "Hang on Sloopy," and "The Walk," a pre-game player jaunt through tailgating areas designed to energize fans. \nOther ideas included members of fraternity and sorority houses sitting together in the stands, rewards for football game attendance and the creation of an official football fan T-shirt. \n"You guys don't go to a good school; you go to a great one," Hoeppner said. "You have a lot to be proud of here. You have a great student body. That's going to help us change this (the football program) and the changes can be pretty dramatic, but we need you."\nAlpha Tau Omega president Adam Baumgarten was impressed with Hoeppner's enthusiasm and willingness to reach out to students. \n"I think Coach Hep's doing a great job getting the word out to students," Baumgarten said. "It's great that he's getting the greek system involved. There's reason to be pumped about what's going on."\nFellow Alpha Tau Omega brother Paul Kloet likened the goal of the program to others in the Big Ten.\n"I know at other schools, the tailgate is a huge deal, especially within the greek community," he said. "It's not really that way here right now, but it'd be great to have that kind of atmosphere to build brotherhood."\nHoeppner closed with by reassuring the students progress was going to be made. \n"We're going to get this stuff done," he said. "The bandwagon is going to start up, so get on early. You'll get a better seat."\n-- Contact Staff Writer Eamonn Brennan at eabrenna@indiana.edu.