Following Boston Red Sox victories against the New York Yankees in games four through seven of the ALCS, over 5,000 students at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst rioted across campus. The Daily Collegian reported that the UMass Police Department has arrested more than 70 students since Oct. 17, the night of game four.

However, after the Red Soc victories against the St. Louis Cardinals in the first two games of the World Series, students at UMass remained relatively calm, although some town residents reported excessive noise.

Julie O'Donnell '05, an assistant news editor of The Daily Collegian, believes that the disturbances that occurred after the Red Sox beat the Yankees were more intense than the reaction will be if the Red Sox win the World Series. "I think that if the Red Sox win there might be a slight disturbance, but beating the Yankees was a much bigger deal," she said.

Campus officials were not available for comment after the riots. However, in her article following the Red Sox ALCS game 7 victory, Daily Collegian staff writer Erica Lovely described the hectic scene in the Southwest quadrangle.

"According to campus officials approximately 5,000 students filled Southwest Residential Area," she wrote. "[They were] cheering, waving Red Sox flags and throwing rolls of flaming toilet paper after the pennant game ended around midnight. Fireworks were set off next to the John Quincy Adams Tower, where residents dumped trash out of the windows onto the crowd below. Several women exposed themselves to the crowd."

UMass Police surrounded surrounded the Southwest Area to prevent rioting. Officers on horseback stood in a T-formation and kept rioters out of the area. Many students moved to the Pond on campus, but officers followed them there to prevent any additional rioting or property damage.

O'Donnell is most concerned about the fate of the 70 people arrested, most of whom were first-years and sophomores. "The concern now is policy. Usually when someone is arrested they are expelled for a semester or a year. So are we going to expel 70 people?" she asked.

O'Donnell understands the actions of the police but suggests that the UMass administration provide some outlet of celebration like a parade or bonfire. "The authorities are just trying to do their jobs and they have to try to keep the crowd under control," she said.

According to Chief of Campus Police at the College John Carter no riot-like activities have occurred at the College after any of the recent Red Sox victories. "As far as I can recall we've never had a sports-related incident of that nature on campus," he said.