In an effort to bolster the brewing rivalry between UCSD and University of California at Davis, the Triton Tide recently worked with UCSD’s athletics department to have a beer garden at the upcoming basketball game against the Aggies.

The proper paperwork was being processed smoothly until the event was reportedly nixed by Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Joseph Watson. The Guardian feels that this was an unwise move that will only hurt the potential rivalry between the two schools.

With virtually no athletic games between the Tritons and the Aggies prior to UCSD’s jump to Division II two years ago, there really isn’t a rivalry. A rivalry is not something that can be established overnight. It is something that develops over time and needs to be fostered by the people it involves.

Take a look at the great collegiate rivalries of today: Army and Navy; Duke and North Carolina; UC Berkeley and Stanford. The one thing that all of these rivalries have in common is history. These teams have met hundreds of times over several different sports. Their rivalry wasn’t something that an administrator decided on in an instant.

While our “”rivalry””with UC Davis is slowly developing, the fostering of the notion was dealt a severe blow by Watson’s proverbial ax. Apparently, the reason behind the dismissal of the event was that UCSD needs to re-evaluate its alcohol policy. In reality, it was probably more like Watson’s continued mistrust of the UCSD student body to have a good time and be responsible.

The proposed beer garden would have been on RIMAC Arena’s gym floor and would have had responsible supervision. Only people of legal age would have been allowed to drink the frosty beverages. This would have allowed people to be a lot looser for the game against the Aggies, which is what a rivalry is all about.

It is hard enough for the UCSD Athletics Department to get anyone to come to games, which makes it hard to start a rivalry. While the beer garden would not have been the ultimate solution, it would have been a great start.

It would have put butts in the seats and put people in a good mood, something that UCSD home games have been lacking in recent memory.

When you look at it, the beer garden was a great idea to promote this rivalry and the Triton Tide should be applauded for its efforts. This idea shows that the group is really trying to create a rivalry.

To Watson and anyone else who thought that this was a bad idea: Shame on you for not trusting the students to have a good time and act responsibly at the same time. You only put a bigger wedge between the concept of a rivalry with UC Davis and the reality of it.