As I watched the Ohio State student section in Saturday night’s Elite Eight game against the Shockers, I saw strapping, young college students with face paint, wigs and excited faces who were happy to spend their weekend in L.A. cheering on their school.

As for the Wichita State fans? I saw gray hair, wrinkles and little old ladies with wide eyes.

Now, don’t get me wrong; I adore the elderly. I think it’s great they are cheering for the Shockers and can travel to Los Angeles.

But what I don’t understand is why there isn’t a huge presence of college students at the game.

Of course, the cost of traveling may make it impossible on a student’s budget. But in one NCAA game, I overheard the announcers mention that some college had raised money back home in order to get its students to the games. Why can’t we do that?

Experiencing the Elite Eight, and now Final Four, with our men’s basketball team is an unforgettable journey for WSU. We should be in the middle of it, not back at home watching the action on TV or checking Twitter for game updates.

I’m aware that only a certain number of tickets are sold at each game, and only a certain number of fans are allowed, but why can’t the majority of those fans be current students? We love our alumni and Wichita-based fans—the older ones, even—but let the students experience this.

We have until this Saturday to empty our piggy banks, pockets and bank accounts. Or better yet, start a fundraiser on campus or in the Wichita community so our students can be Atlanta-bound come this weekend.

It may be too late, but there’s always next year. Otherwise, the country will assume WSU is just a bunch of silver-haired geezers.