Chancellor John D. Wiley has called to reinstate “Jump Around” between the third and fourth quarters of home football games, saying in a statement that it is “important to our fans” to resume song play.

In the statement released Wednesday, Wiley and UW Athletic Director Pat Richter decided the stadium was strong enough to withstand the impact of 70,000 jumping fans.

Richter had decided to pull the song at the “last-minute,” according to the release.

A spokesman for the Chancellor’s office, Casey Nagey, said Richter suspended “Jump Around” because patrons on the west side of the stadium and the upper deck had voiced uneasiness about the cheer, saying they did not feel safe when Camp Randall swayed. In light of the recent construction and the absence of new tests to verify the stadium’s stability, Richter decided that play would be suspended.

Spokesman for the athletic department Steve Malchow told The Badger Herald Monday that Camp Randall was a “sound facility,” and that complaints about “Jump Around” have persisted for years. He said this season would be an opportune time to suspend the song’s play, in order to ease fans’ concerns about the stadium’s stability during Camp Randall’s renovation.

Wiley said Richter’s initial decision “had merit in light of the facility’s construction phase.” He went on to say, “It was reasonable and prudent to be concerned about the effects of the jumping on new construction and changes that have taken place under the student sections.” Wiley said he was and is confident in Richter’s decision and decision-making ability, and Nagey agreed.

“We aren’t going to second-guess him,” Nagey said.

Wiley said UW consulted with engineers and architects, reaffirming earlier assessments before construction started that the stadium could handle the strain of the students’ jumping on the building.

Associated Students of Madison student council chair Austin Evans said he is pleased with the outcome of today’s ruling.

“I am very happy to see it back,” Evans said. “I’m sure a lot of students will be happy to see it back.”

Although Evans said he is pleased with the decision, he said the song suspension was unnecessary.

“It’s a student victory that shouldn’t have even been a student victory in the first place,” Evans said.

A proposed resolution that addressed the absence of “Jump” was on the agenda for ASM’s Thursday meeting, and Evans said the proposal is likely to be scrapped. He said other business regarding the arrival of the decision and the fact that it was made without student notification or involvement might come up, however.

As for fans sitting in the sections that sway, there will be flyers handed out at the game alerting people of the wobble.

“Because of the many concerns raised [due to the sway],” Wiley said, “I’m asking upper-deck fans to refrain from jumping out of consideration for their neighbors and to take the opportunity instead to cheer on the student section.”

A game-management meeting did not occur as previously scheduled Wednesday morning.

Students planning to attend the meeting at the stadium were alerted that the meeting was canceled, and a loudspeaker at the stadium told students a decision concerning “Jump Around’s” fate would come from the Chancellor’s office in the afternoon.