Northern Kentucky University. We're just a commuter school, right? Just a school for people who don't quite want to move away, or a place where you can finish your Gen Ed classes before you go to a "real college."

I can't begin to describe how often I hear this. I hear it on campus, I hear it off campus and typically, the ones I hear it from are the very students who attend NKU. The students who are forever sporting their Kentucky blue hoodies, their Bearcat paraphernalia. The ones who refuse to see the black and gold of their very own school as something they would ever wear, except maybe to workout in at the Rec.

Now, don’t get me wrong — I love myself some Kentucky basketball. I mean, being raised in eastern Kentucky, we were basically bred to believe nothing short of the undeniable fact that the Kentucky Wildcats were gods among men. But there is a time and there is a place. With what could be some of the most important periods of evolution on our humble campus happening right this minute, that time and that place are not on our beloved concrete home.

For some of you, the ones probably shooting daggers at me through the Internet, I don’t mean to say that you should burn all pieces of clothing supporting anyone other than the Norse — quite the contrary. All I ask is that you evaluate what exactly is going on when you sport your NCAA Tournament Champions shirt. Crazy as it may seem to think about and who knows, we may not see it happen during our stint here but our own basketball team could end up in the running to bring a trophy home. In fact, we hold several regional titles and three national championships from our days in Division II. Who did they bring those titles home to?

From my experience, I can’t tell you whom they brought those titles home to but I can tell you who was along for the ride: a handful in the student section and some non-student attendees throughout the rest of the stadium. As of 2011, NKU had an enrollment of nearly 16,000 students. The now BB&T Arena has room to fit 9,400 people for basketball events. In 2013, the average attendance was at 3,551 in the stands, which adds up to be roughly 22 percent of the enrolled students.

But the University of Kentucky? They have a lottery to even get the chance to go to a game, let alone sit in the student section. They are bursting with pride and support for their classmates, their friends and their team. Where is that for our Norse?

As important as it is, watching sports has so little to do with this entire ordeal. It is so much more about creating a future for the school that is better than the present that we see. If we foster such a community, a place where the soccer stands are packed nearly every game, where the baseball and volleyball teams see a constant flow of fanatic black and gold-painted supporters and we root for our Norse on TV, we put them in our ultimately miserable bracket predictions, what could this school become?

On top of the already huge moves in charity and community service provided by students and organizations, what could we achieve? I moved away from home and found a new one here. I fell head over heels before the Division I move, the new Rec center, joining Greek Life and meeting my best friends. I fell for the truly incredible opportunities NKU housed, the interactions with professors that UK students would only dream of. I fell for the campus where someone you know is never too far away, a damn good education is hard not to get and is thousands of dollars cheaper to boot.

So say what you will about our cracked concrete, our murky Loch Norse, our less-than-edible Papa John's pizza and the uncanny ability for our campus to channel wind in frigid weather but show some pride. Because whether you’re here for a year or for six (hopefully voluntarily), NKU offers the potential to have a community like no other. We just need to be the ones to give that community a chance and take pride in what we have. Root for your classmates on and off the court or field. Meet the people around you and see what opportunities they can bring because, I promise, it’s an experience you won’t regret.