Bus tour reveals UConn's hidden secrets

"The Secrets of UConn" bus tour, part of Senior Week festivities, visited places usually off-limits to the majority of the student body on Tuesday evening.

Amanda Campbell, an 8th-semster allied health sciences major, said she wanted to attend the trip because she wanted to see inside the football complex.

"I heard how awesome it was last year, I wanted to go this year," said Brian Carabello, an 8th-semester mathematics major.

Two busloads of students went to the Alumni Association, the UConn police station, the planetarium, President Hogan's office, the central utility plant and the Burton football complex.

The first stop took the assembled seniors to the Alumni Association. Manager of Alumni Relations Fany Hannon led the bus-riders into the basement of the building.

After descending the stairs, students looked through the UConn sports museum - full of team pictures, trophies and other memorabilia.

Among the collection was a game-used glove and ball from 1950 American League rookie of the year and UConn football and baseball standout Walt Dropo.

Students also got to enter the "husky den," a plush, rarely-used room for receptions with athletics recruits and interview pieces with UConn coaches. The room has thick carpets, deep leather chairs and wooden cabinets with athletic trophies.

The police station was the next stop, where Sgt. Chris Casta led the crowd through the garage into the holding cells.

Three separate cells are in the bottom floor room, each with a metal grating, mesh door and a padded bench on the inside.

One of the students asked Casta if there were any "frequent fliers" in the cells. He said that they have some "return visitors." Casta told the crowd that those housed in the cells are fed Subway sandwiches, because Subway is usually open at all times.

The seniors got back on the bus and went to the planetarium, usually open only to astronomy students. A short presentation was given on the location of notable constellations and the properties of the solar system.

President Hogan's office was next on the list, as students walked up the staircase of Gully Hall into the reception area.

Steve Rhodes, Hogan's executive assistant, gave a short and humorous tour of the president's office and meeting room.

"Is it as big as you thought it would be?" Rhodes asked, before answering his own question with a resounding "No."

The office, while not extremely large, featured a private bathroom, comfortable furniture and wall-to-wall carpeting.

The buses then went to the central utility plant, where UConn's power is generated.

Giant pieces of machinery - including turbines and hot water and steam pipes - flanked students as they walked through the facility.

The final stop was the Burton football complex and Shenkman training center.

A tour of the facility was highlighted by the presence of wall-to-wall murals featuring UConn's football achievements, along with short visits to the dining hall, lounge, training rooms, gym, practice field and positional meeting rooms.

The meeting rooms include multiple computers, complete with attached remotes, on which players view game film.

At the end, Campbell had two words to describe the tour: "freakin' sweet!"