Declining attendance - Random thought...

[dawgstudent]

As ADs try to figure out how to keep attendance from declining, I think they are putting off the inevitable - selling cheap beer in the stadium. Its going to happen. May be 20 years but its going to happen.

My question is: Isn't it plausible that selling beer in the stadium will actually keep people more sober b/c then people won't be sneaking in a bunch of liquor that gets them drunk quicker?

 

[Dawgbite]

I agree it should be done but as long as the stadium is on campus, I don't see it happening. Heck , I still live in a dry county

Do you know the difference between a Methodist and a Babtist? A Methodist will speak to you when you meet in the liquor store!

 

[seshomoru]

I'm not sure it would increase initial game attendance.

It might help keep people there longer though. You need 4g that works stadium wide, a ton of food and beverage items that don't suck, video displays all over the place with scores and highlights from other games and multiple replay angles, and far fewer advertisements (or at least just static ones and not car commercials screaming at you on the jumbotron). You can walk away from the TV and quickly grab some food and a drink at home. You never have to pay attention to an ad. At a game you are in your seat and force fed whatever they are selling because it's either sit there and have it blasted at you or run to the concessions and miss part of the game.

 

[57stratdawg]

Most people, myself included, are usually pretty hammered when they walk in the stadium. I don't think selling beer will make people stick around longer. Guess I'm just drawing on my own personal feelings with that regards.

I would upgrade the seats throughout the stadium. I think that would help. I would offer more 'fan zone' areas too. I think alot of people leave because they have kids that can't sit there the whole time. If we had several areas inside the stadium where one parent could take a child for 30minutes, I think that would help as well.

 

[Philly Dawg]

What is your basis for suggesting that attendance will decline. Isn't the trend that attendance is increasing?

 

[WrapItDog]

I have been to many events at the Bancorp South Arena in Tupelo and beer is sold at most events. I encounter more intoxicated people at a SEC football game than a concert.

except the annual Gaither Homecoming Concert - Music, alcohol in generic cups, dark, dancing, it's like Baptist Heaven**

 

[aTotal360]

My idea is to sell nontransferable digital tickets after the game inside the stadium. Stay till the game is over. Get your card swiped. Get access to the next home game with that ID. Yes, there are ways to buck the system. You can swap cards, take multiple cards, yada yada yada. There is no perfect system. But I think it force more warm bodies in the seats.

 

[Seinfeld]

Not to answer for DS, but for me... it's all about the combination of the skyrocketing cost of attendance and increased access to watch at home. Between ticket costs, parking, and BC contribution increases, the cost of attending a game has gone up faster than health care over the last decade. If my company did not have a gift matching program, I would have been about done with this BS a long time ago.

Oh, and one other quick comment... While beer sales may indeed be inevitable, you can 110% rest assured that it will never, EEEEEEVER be "cheap". It'll just be another way for those bastards to make more money, and I wouldn't be surprised for there to be some sort of SEC tax on all beer sales when it does go live.

 

[seshomoru]

I would offer more 'fan zone' areas too. I think alot of people leave because they have kids that can't sit there the whole time. If we had several areas inside the stadium where one parent could take a child for 30minutes, I think that would help as well.

This. A toddler can enjoy a game for a little while, but they inevitably want somewhere with some space to move. Not a problem in the Croom years.

 

[patdog]

Attendance is declining nationwide, including in the rest of the SEC. MSU is the exception. That's due to us finally winning after years of losing. And even at MSU, there are signs that student attendance has probably peaked.

 

[Big Sheep81]

I might agree with you if those knuckleheads in the Junction didn't get so wasted on beer and leave such a mess after the game. Those are the same idiots who drop F bombs and get smartassed in the stands. All beer sales in the stadium would do is make them vomit sooner........

But I think your basic idea has some merit.

 

[thatsbaseball]

I think you would need to limit beer sales to designated areas/sections. That area may end up being 70% of the stadium but people with small kids are not going to want to sit with the beer drinkers. I think it would work like a charm.

 

[uptowndawg]

I really think we should track attendance of season ticket holders for all sports. Use their attendance percentage as a multiplier for priority on that particular sport (so separate priority for football, baseball, etc. based on your BDC points multiplied by your attendance rate for that sport). Re-seat based on your priority in each sport something like every 5 years. Create a ticket exchange program so ticket holders have every opportunity to make sure their tickets get scanned.

It may be hard to sell your tickets for a ****** game, but... don't schedule ****** home games like Kentucky on a Thursday when school is out. And I know we have to keep lower tier OOC teams on our schedule for bowl eligibility. But for the argument of attendance, this season ticket holder isn't driving 5 hours for a ****** OOC unless it's the first home game or homecoming.

Beer would be cool and I do see a push for that in the future. But not having beer in the stadium isn't keeping me form going.

 

[jakldawg]

This rule varies from conference to conference. Even games not on campus (like at Rupp Arena) are dry events. There are plenty of schools that allow it (Louisville, Cincinnati, Syracuse...can you still buy shots at Tulane games?) and some that recently started (West Virginia, Minnesota), so you'd think there would be plenty of AD's around they could ask about it.
And by "cheap beer" do you mean "PBR/Natty at an outrageous mark-up" or "Bud/Miller Light priced reasonably" because one of those ain't gonna happen.
I don't know. Someone who claims that being denied the privilege of paying 6.50 for 11 oz. of flat Budweiser is keeping them at home will probably find some other excuse to not go to the game when beer actually becomes an option.

 

[CookieMonster.sixpack]

It might help keep people there longer though. You need 4g that works stadium wide, a ton of food and beverage items that don't suck, video displays all over the place with scores and highlights from other games and multiple replay angles, and far fewer advertisements (or at least just static ones and not car commercials screaming at you on the jumbotron). You can walk away from the TV and quickly grab some food and a drink at home. You never have to pay attention to an ad. At a game you are in your seat and force fed whatever they are selling because it's either sit there and have it blasted at you or run to the concessions and miss part of the game.

This is what NFL teams are doing. I talked to a front office NFL guy I know recently and we just happened to discuss attendance. He said they run zero ads on their Jumbotron now. Zero. I couldn't believe him. He said that every commercial break (and there are a ton for NFL) is some kind of on-field entertainment (i.e. punt, pass, kick) or fan involvement (i.e. kiss-cam) and they are constantly updating with other games (i.e. highlights and especially fantasy stats). That's where live sports is headed. If we wanted to really get ahead of the curve, that's how we'd do it.

 

[msudawg12]

Arkansas announced they will sell beer. granted its only in club/boxes but it is a step in the right direction

http://www.saturdaydownsouth.com/2014/arkansas-sell-beer-razorback-stadium/

 

[xxxWalkTheDawg]

I don't think the ADs can do much about what the main reason is

Which is the economy. Attendance is down everywhere, professional sports, Nascar, college sports, everywhere. Case in point is the trouble they had selling out the Super Bowl.

The economy still sucks. It has constantly sucked since the latter part of the last decade. And it wasn't exactly flourishing for a while prior to that. People are having to make choices and football tickets aren't making the cut.

Beer might initially improve attendance due to novelty, but the underlying problem will make attendance suffer until that is fixed. With the income information coming across my desk still lookling bad for a lot of people, especially in construction, it is an ongoing problem if not trending down again.

 

[drt7891]

The massive expense people are now having to pay to attend games is astronomical. Think back to the croom years... $99 would get you season seat in the upper deck. You could park for free and hotels were manageable, if you needed one. Granted, demand wasn't near as high then, but for that same seat, it's $135 + $100 donation... Now you can't park anywhere on campus without paying.

I understand it's capitalism at work, but it's about to reach a point of negative returns. People are paying thousands of dollars to attend games throughout the season.

 

[dawgstudent]

As long as they keep selling out the stadium - even without me buying tickets - I am fine with that. As it stands now, I am going to keep on buying season tickets though but it's getting close to pricing me out.

I know a few people that aren't getting season tickets this year and are just going to go to specific games and try to find individual tickets. They are still going to come up to Starkville though for every game.

 

[Optimus Prime 4]

Cheap beer in a stadium is almost an oxymoron. Except for maybe minor league baseball on a Tuesday.

The NFL is doing what I think fans want, some teams are talking about showing the Red Zone on the jumbotron. More highlights and updates from other games.

 

[patdog]

It's a lot more than just the economy. Most schools are having real problems with empty student sections. That's not because they can't afford to come to games. It's the whole culture and the fact that all the games are on TV now. And I don't think increased institutional music is going to change anything. To me we (and most others) are already past the tipping point where that goes from enhancing the game experience to making it worse.

 

[dawgstudent]

I think that's a huge key. I loved when they did in game live feeds this season during timeouts.

 

[dawgstudent]

To me, you have to keep bringing what makes watching from home so great. They are doing that with the luxury seating but also somehow bring it to the guy sitting in the stands.

 

[patdog]

Agree. You need to get away from so many audio commercials and show updates of other games in progress on the board. Also, multiple small monitors near concessions areas showing our game with breaks to updates of other games in progress during time outs.

 

[rabiddawg]

The thrill of getting past the gate is half the fun.

 

[horshack.sixpack]

Some that I've seen would pour liquor in their beer

 

[RocketDawg]

I think the answer to your question is "Yes". And as long as they keep looking the other way on bringing liquor in, and even encouraging bringing it by having stocking days in Club and Suites, then people will keep getting drunker. Might as well sell beer and make a profit from it.

Funny that you can't sneak a candy bar in, but you sure can sneak booze in. That means they're not looking when they "check".

 

[RocketDawg]

Most people, myself included, are usually pretty hammered when they walk in the stadium. I don't think selling beer will make people stick around longer. Guess I'm just drawing on my own personal feelings with that regards.

I would upgrade the seats throughout the stadium. I think that would help. I would offer more 'fan zone' areas too. I think alot of people leave because they have kids that can't sit there the whole time. If we had several areas inside the stadium where one parent could take a child for 30minutes, I think that would help as well.

That's not even remotely true.

 

[treeddeep]

Selling beer in the stadium = the blue hairs 9/11

 

[RocketDawg]

Not to answer for DS, but for me... it's all about the combination of the skyrocketing cost of attendance and increased access to watch at home. Between ticket costs, parking, and BC contribution increases, the cost of attending a game has gone up faster than health care over the last decade. If my company did not have a gift matching program, I would have been about done with this BS a long time ago.

Oh, and one other quick comment... While beer sales may indeed be inevitable, you can 110% rest assured that it will never, EEEEEEVER be "cheap". It'll just be another way for those bastards to make more money, and I wouldn't be surprised for there to be some sort of SEC tax on all beer sales when it does go live.

You are absolutely right. I sit in club level, and my seats for the past 10 years have been really good. I don't know where I'll be with re-seating, but if they're terrible (such as on the goal line), then I won't buy again next year. I'm not going to drive 400 miles 7 times a year, pay exorbitant hotel rates, and donate $5K a year to the BDC to sit in bad seats. I'll keep the money and watch from home.

 

[uptowndawg]

I think you would need to limit beer sales to designated areas/sections. That area may end up being 70% of the stadium but people with small kids are not going to want to sit with the beer drinkers. I think it would work like a charm.

Kids next to beer drinkers aren't an issue in the NFL, MLB or NBA. Tulane sells beer at their on-campus baseball games to show that the 2 can even mix at the collegiate level. I guess we are in Mississippi though and people would be more sensitive about alcohol since it could lead to dancing.

 

[DerHntr]

Texas announced this week they are selling beer at basketball, baseball, and softball and that this is a test for football later if it goes well.

 

[Digging dog]

I think they need to park a few Budweiser trucks at the Hump First*****

 

[fishwater99]

I thought we couldn't sell alcohol because we are a Land Grant University.
It's also illegal to have beer on campus, but not liquor. County vs City laws.

I am all for selling alcohol om campus. I enjoyed the Tulane and Univ of Colorado games I went to where you could by alcohol.

 

[notoriousD_O_G]

Once they start selling beer it will be damn near impossible to get in the stadium with alcohol.

 

[Wicked Pissah]

It would increase attendance but not make a difference to me.

I bring enough whiskey into DWS to float a battleship around.

 

[Bullycon]

The only rule I want to see is this: From 20 minutes prior to kick-off until 10 minutes after the end of the game, the only thing allowed the come over the PA system is the PA announcer and the referee.

Do that, and I will want to go to games again.

 

[57stratdawg]

You don't think the people who would be buying beer, as indicates in DS' original post, haven't already been drinking before they entered the stadium..?

 

[HammerOfTheDogs]

Don't forget the economy. There's not as much disposable income to go around like it used to be. If you're gonna spend any money on entertainment, it'll more than likely be invested in a new TV where you can watch the game in HD in the comfort of your own easy chair.

 

[RocketDawg]

Didn't say that. Having a beer or two and "hammered" are two entirely different things. I don't think hardly anybody is hammered when they enter the stadium. In fact, I don't think remember ever seen anybody falling-over drunk going into the stadium. Of course, I don't go in the same gate the students do, but from afar most of them look OK too.

Actually, I've seen very few drunks at the game at any time. The worst I've ever seen was at the Florida game a couple years ago and was right next to their student section.