University of Wisconsin officials have spent a considerable amount of time and energy this semester expressing their displeasure with student behavior at Camp Randall Stadium.

Among their concerns is the notorious "Eat shit, fuck you!" chant that pops up sporadically in the student section, which is often loud enough to be heard in every corner of the stadium. While it's unlikely to offend the sensibilities of many in the student section, more than a few Badger fans have complained that the tradition creates an uncomfortable atmosphere, especially for those attending games with young children.

According to Chancellor John Wiley, who frequently entertains big donors in his private box, the chant has also turned prospective philanthropists sour on the idea of contributing scholarship money to such a vulgar student body. In addition to the loss of an unknown number of scholarship dollars, Mr. Wiley told us last month he worries the chant could also get the university sanctioned by the Big Ten conference for unsportsmanlike conduct. A sanction, he said, would likely mean either paying fines or "losing things that matter in the competition," citing specifically the loss of athletic scholarships or points in the game.

While we suspect Mr. Wiley's concerns are a bit overstated, we also trust the chancellor enough to believe what he says has some validity. The question must be asked, then, if the benefits UW students accrue from continuing the chant — the joy of bellowing profanities in unison, the satisfaction of defying authority — outweigh both the wounded sensibilities of our fellow game day attendees and any actual losses of income to the university.

It seems clear to us the answer is no.

The more interesting question, we think, is how to go about stopping a student section of more than 10,000 people — many of whom are drunk — from chanting en masse. Unfortunately, we're not the only ones short on ideas.

"We've got to get a handle on this, but I don't have a clue how to do it," Mr. Wiley told us last month. When we asked the same question to Doug Griese, chair of the Wisconsin Alumni Association board, he jokingly suggested deploying a fire hose on the student section may be the only solution.

Problems with student conduct at football games go far beyond an unsavory chant, of course. More concerning than the masses shouting profanities at no one in particular is the harassing, abusive behavior some UW fans target at specific individuals donning the road team's colors. While good-natured antagonism and friendly rivalry is part of the fun of being a sports fan, it appears Madison residents are earning a reputation for crossing that line far too often.

"As we approached the stadium area, particularly on Randall Street, we were heckled, cursed at and called a wide variety of vulgar names," one Michigan State alumnus wrote in an e-mail to UW after a Badgers-Spartans football game this fall. "After the game on our way back to our cars we were confronted by large numbers of students on Lathrop Street chanting obscenities and directing us to 'get the F out of town.' On more than one occasion we literally had students screaming in our faces, cursing at my wife, at my friends and me. … [W]e have never run across the mean spirited nature of the students we saw on your campus."

That is but one example of the complaints UW officials regularly field regarding fan behavior. These do not appear to be isolated incidents, and it should be noted, too, that the author of that e-mail was evidently no rookie to watching the Spartans outside East Lansing — he said he has visited seven other Big Ten football stadiums.

More police presence, more competent security staff and the continuation of UW's "Rolling out the Red Carpet" initiative all can help to alleviate problems like the ones this fan encountered, but those types of initiatives will not come close to curtailing the environment perpetuated by students' profanity-laced chants.

The real impetus for change, on all counts, rests with UW students. It is encouraging that Mr. Wiley and the Athletic Department both said Saturday's home finale against Michigan went better than expected, and we hope that momentum can continue through the winter sports season, and especially next fall.

This is our university, our campus and our city. As students, we should strive to be good representatives and good hosts, and, out of a basic respect for people, we should do what we can to make football Saturdays enjoyable for all.