As an alumnus who proudly advocates for Northeastern, I am dismayed at the course of our athletic program. The recent hockey season was nothing short of a disaster. The Beanpot was an embarrassment, and failure to make the playoffs inexcusable. The successful midwest away games, where we beat Notre Dame, Minnesota and Michigan only underscores the problem: The team is very talented but poorly coached.

As implied in the July 27, 2011 issue of College Hockey news, what was Athletic Director Peter Roby thinking, hiring Jim Madigan as a Division 1 coach. A very nice man, but he should have earned his stripes at the likes of a Utica or Middlebury, before going to the big time. It is a shame that Roby let men’s hockey coach Greg Cronin go, as well as coach O’Connell (to Harvard no less) both had rebuilt the program to a stellar level.

I know Roby has the best intentions, but it may be time to look at his performance and philosophy. We don’t have a football team, and after a huge investment in Mathews Arena, the hockey team has had a huge setback… Perhaps Peter should revive the Sports in Society program and become head of the philosophy dept, and allow a director who can keep us competitive and keep alumni interest and contributions at a level of a national university.

– Joseph J. Seymour graduated in 1970 with a degree in business administration.