Desultory bonfire follows Elite Eight victory

Small clusters of students gathered around a dwindling bonfire Sunday night and looked resentfully at nearby Campus Police officers who were taking students' names and checking DukeCards.

Although the Duke-Temple game ended just before 5 p.m., the first flames did not rise for several hours, as students waited for night-and the University of Kentucky-to fall. Using donated wood from Home Depot and the remnants of one bench, a group of students built a small bonfire.

But students did not realize that waiting those few hours would effectively smother the flames.

Because the fire trucks and fire marshals on campus Sunday afternoon had long since departed, police officers said the blaze was unsanctioned; therefore, they compiled a list of all students who participated in the burning. Police said they did not expect the students to be prosecuted.

They also told students not to add anything to the fire other than the few bags of firewood they had already gathered.

"One of the requirements of the permit is that fire marshals and a fire truck be present on campus," said Capt. James Schwab of the Duke University Police Department. "Since they are not at this time, then there is not a permit to cover this."

But the spectators said they had no idea that they had to burn directly after a game and were angered by the police intervention.

"The bonfire is great, but it's absurd that the cops stopped it," said Trinity senior Greg Dooley. "This just displays the administration's utter determination to prevent Duke from being Duke."

At the fire's peak, about 50 people gathered around the blaze. "It's quieter than in past years, but a respectable fire," said Daniel Machemer, Trinity '98, who flew in from San Diego to be on campus for the next week. "I expected a bigger fire, more people, more police."

His sentiments mirrored those of another recent graduate earlier in the day. Minutes after the game ended, Quin Mallette, Trinity '96 and a third-year Duke graduate student in business and medicine, surveyed the deserted, muddy expanse of West Campus and gestured disgustedly with his beer can.

"I'm an old-time Dukie," he said. "I expected more than this." Mallette said when Duke reached the national finals in 1994, the feat prompted massive celebrations after the Elite Eight and Final Four games.

This year, though, the handful of loitering students was easily outnumbered by the throngs of police, emergency fire personnel and administrators in their matching A-team jackets. They dispersed after students appeared uninterested in a fire.

"We don't need the A-team, we don't need the fire engines," said Executive Vice President Tallman Trask. "Just let the rain put it out."

Although the quad was empty, Perkins Library was bustling with students.

Trinity senior Sonia Shjegstad said she was a more enthusiastic fan during Friday's game against Southwest Missouri State.

"I was definitely excited, screaming and cheering during the game, at home," she said. "Now it's time to hit the library after spring break."

This year, students may simply be accustomed to winning, said Trinity sophomore Andy Fischel, who was working on homework in the Bryan Center and periodically checked the score during the game.

"For now, we're just waiting for the point when we get to the finals," he said.

Jaime Levy contributed to this story.

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