Student Turnout

[AlbanyObserver]

Here is a picture of Northeastern's students at a recent home game. If we could get a student turnout like this over the remaining stretch, it could be fun for us. Give them shirts or something. Just make them show up!!!

 

http://www.midmajority.com/snaps/?album=Ga...at_Northeastern

[DanesFan95]

There used to be a student group that would all sit together and wear the Purple and Gold, (The Private Pound). I am assuming they have all graduated. This is something the Athletics Department and University should encourage!!

[McFan]

I would hope that the winning record and uptempo basketball will bring some additional students to the games. Is it too much to ask for 500+ students for home games? That will put 2200+ in the arena.

 

I'm not sure if Yoggi said it but I've heard this somewhere "the more people that show up the more people show up".

[DaneFan2k3]

One word: alcohol.

 

It is the primary reason for the lack of a better student turnout.

 

Students would rather go drink at the WT than be at the RACC, especially on the weekends.

[Dane96]

Yeah...and they don't drink at bars at the other 320+ DI schools?!

[McFan]

Games are over by 9:15 that leaves plenty of time to get to the bars. And weekend games are during the day. I doubt many students start that early on a Saturday or Sunday. Maybe too hungover for the 1:00 start but not in the bars already, I hope?

[Dane Pound]

Maybe candy will work. One of the alumni I've seen at just about every Danes event was throwing candy into the student section at last nights women's game. Not little bite size ones either.

I thought that was pretty cool.

[DaneFan2k3]

Ask around, ask students. I've talked to a whole bunch who flat-out said, I'm pre-gaming to go out to the bars.

 

(Now of course there is a totally different segment of the student population, as it is anywhere, who just doesn't care much about sports and would rather study or work on a hobby, etc.)

 

I think a big factor is also that with the relative lack of parking on campus, a lot of students who live off campus choose not to come back on campus after they leave for the day. The "student ghetto" isn't as convenient to UAlbany's campus as other student housing tracts are to other schools that I've been to. Combine that with parking headaches and you have to make an effort ... something students aren't that great at doing.

 

It will take time to build up a student population. Even winning doesn't always do it. I was watching ESPN the other night and they said that Skip Prosser flew in a marketing person from another school (that's gotta sting if you're Wake Forest's marketing person), and that flown-in guy helped them set up the Screamin' Deamons student fan section. Before that, Wake Forest (which had Tim Duncan of course) didn't get students to come to the games. And that's a school of what, 5,000?

[Dane96]

I think a big factor is also that with the relative lack of parking on campus, a lot of students who live off campus choose not to come back on campus after they leave for the day. The "student ghetto" isn't as convenient to UAlbany's campus as other student housing tracts are to other schools that I've been to. Combine that with parking headaches and you have to make an effort ... something students aren't that great at doing.

Now that, my friend, is the issue! You hit it on the head. The school should buck up....have student groups have a pre-meeting place (ie. work with the groups/frats) to set up an event either downtown and/or uptown and then bus the kids up to the game. 10 home games, busses are basically dirt cheap (we own them) and what, maybe like a 1000 bucks a game to throw some "mixer". That's 10k. Yes, that's some bucks, however, those kids will be hungry. Those kids will by shirts, etc. They will feel like they go to a real school...they will bring friends. The incidental revenue would be tremendous, of course over time.

 

Further, the local community will say "Holy #*$R, there are 2500-3000 fans a game, interesting team....let's go). 10 bucks a ticket, 2000 paying customers....you make the costs of home games back in half of the games. Then, you can start tossing that $$$ back to the program, enticing better players with better gear, facilities, etc.

 

That, is what you do. Maybe McElroy should develop an alumni/studetn focus group...I think most on this board know what needs to be done. Our thoughts can only help.

[reeder]

Student turnout would be great to have but I don't think the administration should spend a lot of cycles trying to solve that problem. Over the years, there have been buses, meetings with fraternities, advisory councils (i was on an advisory council 20 years ago) and a lot of other efforts - not sure that there has been any consistent improvement based on that. I think the biggest improvement has been that athletes from the different sports attend the games to show support

 

I think you focus on the community and get them excited. Then you focus on the freshmen - you have a section in the recruiting brochures, it's discussed at orientation. Maybe there is a tie in with intramurals.

 

I don't know the numbers today as I graduated many years ago, but there were about 2k students in each quad uptown. I think there are 5 quads, that's 10k students within walking distance to the RACC. Even if you only count Indian and Dutch (I think those are the two closest to the gym) that is 4k students. That is still a decent size population to get 500 students to a game. UA has never been successful in gettting those students.

 

Get the community first, then get the freshmen and create a culture that supports athletics.

[AlbanyObserver]

With the students and other athletic teams back on campus, they should have no problem filling the entire north endzone for all remaining home games. That would suffice for now and anything more than that would be a bonus.

 

If the students can just start the defense cheers, harass some of the opposing players and refs, we would be all set.

[DaneFan2k3]

Maybe our friend 84 can organize some sort of impromtu student fan group like the Private Pound, which was moderately successful in getting students out to the games.

 

At some point, I think, everyone has to stop looking to the administration and just start saying our students suck. I hope that is not the case.

[alum73]

I'm going to have to buy the candy at Sam's or BJ's. At a $1 / bar, it's too cost prohibitive to do it very often.

[GODANESGO]

There actually already is a type of "student fan" group...although it hasn't really shown up too much at the basketball games so far. It's called the Spirit Brigade and it had a tent at every home game for our football team. They are the ones that organized face painting, temp. tattoos, made noisemakers, etc. It is a new group and hasn't quite reached its potential. We wear either purple t-shirts with "Spirit Brigade" on the back or a purple jersey with a white number on the back.

 

A lot of people have signed up so far, both in person and through the online registration, but the turn out hasn't been the greatest. I think the main problem has been that it is mainly made up of people who just really like UAlbany but aren't necessarily the biggest sports fans. So if there isn't a specific organized Spirit Brigade event for the game, the turn out tends to be pretty low.

 

But alas, we have our first meeting for this spring semester on Sunday the 30th, so hopefully something will develop. If you guys have any suggestions that you might want me to bring to the meeting, please let me know!

[Oldtimer]

My wife tells me I live in the past but maybe they were the good old days. If students didn't get there early they couldn't get in Page Hall(and I can remember when they couldn't get in University gym). Students walked several blocks to get to the Washington Ave. armory and 25-50% of the students attended the games. Of course we only had 2000 students so we didn't fill the place. But let's face it---we walked because we didn't have cars, no TV's in dorm rooms, refrigerators were not allowed, nor toasters! One phone on each floor--stand in line, please---and no computers. Frosh girls in by 10 and upperclassmen by 11. It is a different world but everyone loves a winner. Put a winner of the foor and THEY WILL COME!!!