Purple Out

Student Duke Club looks to increase support of athletics

File Photo JMU students toss purple and gold streamers in the stands prior to the Dukes' game against Lock Haven University Sept. 4. Student Duke Club President Ashley Sumner hopes the streamers will become a pregame ritual at Bridgeforth Stadium.

The nucleus of support for JMU’s athletic programs, the Student Duke Club Club, is more than a zealous fan base.

Created in 2000, the SDC, with a membership of over 600 students, increases involvement in JMU athletics, Duke Club director and SDC founder Nick Langridge said.

SDC is an entity of the Duke Club, which raises money for athletic facilities and scholarships, Langridge said.
"It’s philanthropic," Langridge said. "[SDC] exists to support athletics. I graduated [from JMU] in 2000 and took a job with the Duke Club, and I went and built an infrastructure for the Student Duke Club."

Student Duke Club president Ashley Sumner said, "The purpose was to increase enthusiasm about sports and to provide a better relationship between athletes and students."

Students pay dues to become members of SDC. However, instead of adding to the organization’s budget, the money benefits JMU athletics.

"All dues are completely donated to an endowment for athletic scholarships," Langridge said. "It’s unique because students are essentially helping their fellow students."

Because dues go directly to the athletic endowment, SDC is a self-sufficient organization driven by the work of its executive board.

"The executive team has worked very hard," Langridge said. "They do their own fund raising and earn money through sponsorships."

Sumner, a senior, also credits much of SDC’s success to help from the JMU administration.

"Athletics marketing and [athletic director] Jeff Bourne have made huge impacts on our success," Sumner said. "Without athletics marketing, we couldn’t do this."

SDC has had a large boost in membership since its founding year.

"The first year, we had 123 members," Langridge said. "Now we’re over 600. It’s been phenomenal and exciting to see the growth."

Club members agree that growth only will benefit the Dukes.

"I think when people see this growth it becomes contagious," senior Chris Nahlik said. "There is no reason why this school shouldn’t have half of the student body out there wearing purple."

An event that may become a contagious pregame ritual is the throwing of purple and gold streamers at football games as the Dukes take the field.

"The streamers idea was founded on dukesdomain.com by alumnus Phil Cockrell," Nahlik said. "He thought it would be a good idea to bring back tradition by throwing the streamers."

That tradition stems from the days of the "Electric Zoo," a nickname given to the Convocation Center during basketball seasons in the ‘80s. Nahlik hopes the administration will fund the "Zoo’s" rebirth by purchasing the streamers.

Sumner agreed, adding that there were other ways to fund the cause.

"Another option is encouraging the kids to bring a roll of streamers to the game," she said. "It would hopefully catch on. Getting the word out there is a big deal."

As SDC continues to grow, Langridge speaks highly of what it can accomplish.

"The challenge for any organization is to have a consistent presence on campus," Langridge said. "An increase in attendance and increasing the support of JMU athletics are definite goals of the Student Duke Club."

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