Non-recruiting topic - Gameday related article

[dawgstudent]

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefoo...-financial-change-has-college-football-peaked

This is nothing earth shattering but I think this makes what the job of the whole Ath Dept so critical b/c its becoming easier and easier to just say "to hell with it, Im going to sit at home and watch on HDTV". I know people that love tailgating more than anyone in the world, but even they see the temptation in just sitting at home.

That's why I think the next big wave in our gameday enhancement has to be in making things as easy as possible for tailgaters---more unloading zones, possibly creating access to power, maybe even satellites that folks can all hook up to in different areas---Im just thinking outloud.

I know some of that sounds outrageous, but stuff like that is critical, especially with a 61K stadium coming soon. In fact, we experienced the very student apathy referenced in the article.

Discuss.

 

[RocketDawg]

I read that article, or a similar one, a couple of weeks ago.

The only time I remember student apathy, other than leaving early and people do that everywhere, was the Arkansas game when we were on a losing streak and people were disappointed. And the students were too lazy to get up for an 11 a.m. game. That said, I hope our season ticket sales hit new highs next year. If they don't we may have something to be concerned about, along with most other schools. Even Bama had vacant seats at every game this year.

 

[DerHntr]

couldn't agree more on the tailgating side of things

It is pretty important that the universities make the entire experience what they are selling rather than just the game, because for a lot of people watching the game in front of a massive HD TV in a man-cave is more enjoyable. You don't have to fight the crowds, sit in the weather, and can see better. Plus it is way less expensive in the long run.

What sucks for the ADs around the country is the timing of games on TV dictating start times. A damn 11:00am game kills the atmosphere no matter what you do. You end up with the better teams getting the better time slots and it makes it easier for them to compound their winning season's effect on attendance with a great, all day tailgating experience. See LSU and their night games for example. I hope that Stricklin, if given the option, always picks the later time slot.

I also agree with them on the bowls and have believed we have too many bowls for a while now. It is great for the team to go to a bowl considering the extra practice time but the oversaturation of the market is definitely a problem. I watched maybe 5 bowl games from start to finish this year. For the rest of them, I flipped around the TV watching bits and pieces or I didn't watch them at all.

 

[SkullCandy.sixpack]

This trend of Thursday games is disturbing. Good for TV because of the lack of competition, but an away game on a Thursday that involved a significant road trip could mean missing 2 days of work, which would be impossible for most people.