Though the University Park Undergraduate Association (UPUA) took a lot of flak this year for a disorganized budget and general lack of initiative, the fledgling student government should be commended for its work last week.

After thousands of students were shut out of football tickets, last spring forcing many to pay drastically inflated prices to watch PSU lose miserably to Ohio State, UPUA finally passed a resolution about the ticket allocation process. And it's got some of the first sensible suggestions we've heard -- but some of the worst, too.

It's calling for tickets to go paperless. Instead, students' ID+ cards would hold their season tickets for them, eliminating the chance of scalping.

We're all poor college kids; students don't need the added hassle of buying a ticket at an inflated price on top of feeding and clothing themselves. And if by chance you can't make it to a game, you can refund up to three tickets online, giving another student a chance to cheer on the team and watch the Nittany Lion do some one-handed pushups. Not to mention the fact you can get your money back in a fair way.

Unfortunately, the resolution also calls for upperclassmen priority in ticket sales. UPUA can't forget that we are all Penn State, despite our semester standing, and there's a chance potential freshmen would be turned off by this and won't apply. Remember, Penn State supposedly doesn't discriminate based on what year you were born in or what campus you attend -- "We are ... Penn State" shouldn't be interpreted to be "You're more ... Penn State ... if you're a senior."

While Greg Myford, associate athletic director for marketing and communications, has said this course of action won't be implemented for the 2008 season, this needs to be a priority. Spring practice for the team has already begun, and students will be logging onto Ticketmaster.com to purchase tickets before you can say -- er, sing -- Zombie Nation.

Too many students have had to watch games at home on television while their friends and roommates cheer and yell at Beaver Stadium. Not one more game should be played before this broken ticket system is fixed. There is no need for hundred-dollar tickets. There is no need to miss watching the Nittany Lion crowd-surf. There is no need for students to be shut out from a age-old Penn State tradition.

There is need for action, and that need is paramount. Thanks, UPUA, for realizing that.