UCI Students Reject New Study on Starting Football Program

UC Irvine students have rejected a proposal to further study the funding of an intercollegiate football program at the school, it has been announced.

The measure, which began, “I believe there should be a football program at UCI,” was defeated, 1,557-1,216. The measure also asked university officials to come up with a cost estimate for starting a program and building a stadium to house it.

“Obviously I’m disappointed, but my concern is how much weight this vote actually carried,” said Jim Breslo, a senior at Irvine who was the main proponent of starting a team. “There was a lot of misinformation. The average student felt the safe vote was just to vote no.”

Breslo had worked for two years to bring the issue to a vote of the students, but confusion over how much students would be assessed to cover costs of the program led to a watered-down proposal during student elections last week.

Two estimates had been given for the cost: The office of financial planning said it would cost students $21 a quarter; the athletic department’s estimate was $12 a quarter.

The original proposal would have asked the students to approve the $12 figure, which would have purportedly covered the start-up of the program, including locker-room and weight-training facilities.

After the financial planning office disputed that figure, the measure was reduced essentially to an opinion poll.