The bold and brash decision by Robert Morris University yesterday has left a lot of people in shock and raises a lot of questions. How could the university take away two of the most successful programs on campus? Also, why drop this news now on a Wednesday in the middle of the summer? What are they trying to hide?

Not only was this decision crazy, but it also came out of nowhere, blindsiding everyone in the community including the athletes themselves.

In the hours following the “update” from Robert Morris’ Twitter page, thousands of people took to social media to disagree with the decision. Former Colonial Sports Network contributor Adam Melluso took things even further, starting a Change.org petition to revert the damages that RMU had created.

Since the petition was started just hours after RMU’s Tweet posted at 2:00 pm on Wednesday, over 12,000 people have signed as of Thursday evening. The Save RMU Hockey movement has garnered attention from some big names. USA Hockey legend Mike Eruzione, Barstool Sports’ Dan “Big Cat” Katz, and several sports journalists from across the country have been showing their support.

Robert Morris University: SAVE Robert Morris Hockey https://t.co/RpvSZasSne via @Change

— MIKE ERUZIONE (@MERUZIONE) May 27, 2021

“We are not going away, this movement is strong. College hockey fans and RMU fans are having their voices heard. Let’s hope RMU does the right thing” said Melluso via Twitter.

Big Cat on Twitter: “#SaveRobertMorrisHockey” / Twitter

Alumni, fans, coaches, players, arena staff, students, and simply anyone with a heart is stepping forward to do their part in the movement to stop RMU from maliciously taking away over 50 student-athletes dreams. These human beings have been stripped from not just a game, but a lifestyle, and a career.

People have lost their jobs, and there is a good chance that several students will not have a place to play next season as many NCAA teams have their team’s already figured out.

The thing about Robert Morris cancelling its hockey programs now, it’s really late for players to transfer for the upcoming season. Players in the portal are already struggling to find homes. Rosters are made. This is so unfair to the athletes.

— marisa ingemi ✨ (@Marisa_Ingemi) May 26, 2021

Last night in an interview with Colonial Sports Network both Michaela Boyle and Arielle DeSmet confirmed that they have already entered the transfer portal and former captain Lexi Templeman also revealed that she was planning on coming back for a fifth season.

“Spots are full right now, and as a goalie, there are not many spots to come by in the first place, only three on a team, and to find somewhere that has your major on top of that, it narrows down your options,” said junior goaltender Arielle DeSmet.

Progress is being made for RMU to revert this terrible decision. Please, from all of us here at Colonial Sports Network, sign the petition and show your support. Robert Morris has made a terrible mistake but they still have the opportunity to fix it.

More updates on this story can be found here on Colonial Sports Network.