B1G

[ConnHuskBask]

Okay.

I'll ask you the question I've asked the other Rutgers' fans that have wandered in thumpin' their lil chests.

Tell me, what's the big moment in Rutgers' sports history? That game or games that you all talk about when you get together. What's the big win?

I've never gotten an answer.

Whoa. Whoa. Whoa.

Rutgers OVER Louisville 2006 which lead to a wait for....3rd place Big East finish!

The shining moment in Rutgers Athletic History, was people being shocked Rutgers won a game because they sucked for 100 years. Awesome.

 

[Durks07]

Okay.

I'll ask you the question I've asked the other Rutgers' fans that have wandered in thumpin' their lil chests.

Tell me, what's the big moment in Rutgers' sports history? That game or games that you all talk about when you get together. What's the big win?

I've never gotten an answer.

You asked him this exact same question before:

buggsy said: ↑

Hey Durks,

Do you even know your own school's football history? Arte you not aware that UCONN football historically is much more embarrassing than Rutgers' history?​

There's nothing more embarrassing than Rutgers' athletics, sweetpea.

What's the big on-field moment Rutgers' fans talk about when they get together? What's the big win?

So hard to figure out what it is - there's just nothing in the trophy case.

Maybe it was a regular season basketball win? Didja beat Syracuse or something on your way to an NIT bid? Maybe it's that Texas Bowl thing? It's not an NCAA game (you don't play those) and it's not a BCS bowl (you don't play those either)....boy, must make for some tortured bar room chatter.

Maybe you could have a trophy made up? Maybe have a replica of the state of Maryland mounted to a trophy with the words "Plus 1!" engraved on it? Might be your finest, fleeting moment.

Such an empty history - it's heart-wrenching that your sole source of pride is that it's a long empty history.

<-- You.

And no, you didn't get an answer then either.

 

[whaler11]

I haven't seen it but the Chris Carlin open letter to Chris Christie sounds like gold. Two guys separated at birth too.

 

[upstater]

I did not compare Uconn's BB fanbase to that of Pitt or Rutgers. In fact I stated that Pitt has a very weak BB fanbase and sighted lack of history as a factor. I used an example of the football success Pitt had in the 70s and 80s to show that I believe fanbase is passed on from generation to generation as it was in my house.

I understand that Uconn has a long history of BB success and was not disputing it. I was explaining how I think the recent success over the past 15 years has planted new fanbase seeds to expand the fanbase now and that in another 10 years that fanbase will begin passing Uconn onto another generation both national and locally. I find the past 15 years most important because Uconn reached milestones that drastically impact fanbase growth. Winning a mens BB NC in my mind was most important in reaching new fans. Adding D1 football was an important milestone or we wouldn't be having this conversation. Womens BB reached new demographics and developed a reputation similar to UCLA. During this time Uconn also improved.

This is just my opinion of how I think recent success at Uconn has been beneficial to developing new roots for expanding the Uconn fanbase that will have an even greater impact in the years to come.

This is what I responded to:

Rutgers is most similar with respect to pro markets, but aside from markets, Uconn and Rutgers are not very similar. Frank gave a good example of universities in the midwest that are surrounded by cities but still command a solid fanbase. But most of those universities differ from Uconn because they come from larger states and have a much longer history of football/basketball tradition. This history has created the larger fanbases you see from midwest schools. From an outsiders perspective, Uconn has had a much shorter history of football/basketball tradition. Uconn has had great success in the past 15 years, with the past 8 being very solid.

You began talking about developing fanbases and then you cited tradition or history as key to that development.

 

[huskymedic]

And how sad is it for you that Rutgers has more fans in NYC , even thought it's a punchline...than UCONN?

Do people in NYC even know UCONN has a football team? Your ratings say no. I wonder if Delany knows you guys field a team?

Whether he knows if UConn has a football team or not (he does) - He's quickly figuring out that he has a problem on his hands...

Matt Sugam (@MattSugam)
6/6/13, 7:32 PM
Morale is down at #Rutgers as Jim Delany doesn't see the enthusiasm he expected for their move to the Big Ten: http://snyrutgers.com/rutgers/footb...ect-from-rutgers-for-the-move-to-the-big-ten/

Not quite the NY PR he was looking for - eh?

 

[upstater]

Whether he knows if UConn has a football team or not (he does) - He's quickly figuring out that he has a problem on his hands...

Matt Sugam (@MattSugam)
6/6/13, 7:32 PM
Morale is down at #Rutgers as Jim Delany doesn't see the enthusiasm he expected for their move to the Big Ten: http://snyrutgers.com/rutgers/footb...ect-from-rutgers-for-the-move-to-the-big-ten/

Not quite the NY PR is was looking for - eh?

It's still more than crazy that the bball coach lied on his resume. I can't get past that one. Much more shocking than anything the AD did.

 

[whaler11]

I'd love to see a Big 10 season where all 14 teams were bowl eligible. Breaking 7 way ties for the division should be interesting.

 

[PRHusky]

Buggsy, you talk about UConn's football history as if UConn had been competing at the highest level all throughout when the truth is that, unlike Rutgers, which has always attempted to play football at the highest level, UConn has only played football at the highest level since 2002. To count anything UConn did before that is ridiculous. Heck, we played in basically a high school stadium until that year. Rutgers football has been as good as UConn football since that time.

UPitt, UConn had much better attendance for both men's and women's basketball in 1999 than now, so I am not sure your argument re 1999 being the year that the UConn fanbase began to grow makes sense.

 

[itgoeslike]

I agree that Connecticut proper is a tough market because it's situated between NYC and Boston, but take a step back and look at the whole. The Milwaukee/Chicago/Detroit/Cleveland corridor is actually slightly shorter than the Boston/NYC/Philly/Baltimore/DC corridor. Milwaukee has 3 pro teams (the Packers are more of a Milwaukee team than 99% of the teams that are actually situated in their cities), Chicago has 5, Detroit has 4 and Cleveland has 3 in the city proper with a de facto 4th with the Blue Jackets in Columbus. That corridor might not have the same sheer number of teams as the East Coast corridor because of the 9 NYC market franchises, but that Midwest corridor has the highest number of pro teams on a per capita basis of any area in the country, support their pro teams in incredibly loyal numbers and STILL watch both college football and college basketball in a huge way. That's not even counting the Midwest markets outside of that corridor (Minneapolis with a full complement of 4 pro teams, Indianapolis and Cincinnati both having 2 teams each, Downstate Illinois that's really a St. Louis market particularly with respect to the Cardinals that are essentially the Packers fan base equivalent to baseball). The point is that that the Big Ten schools fully coexist with pro sports teams (most of whom have many generations of fans, so the loyalties run deep).

This is in contrast to the SEC core, where outside of Florida and newly added Texas A&M and Missouri, that whole swath of 11 SEC fan bases share a grand total of 7 pro sports teams among them, 3 of which weren't even in their respective markets until the 1990s. That's a big-time difference between what the Big Ten has had in pro sports competition versus the SEC, yet it has still succeeded in being right alongside those pro teams in terms of drawing power. So, that's why I'm always wary of "it's a pro market" reason/excuse. It has been done in plenty of huge markets with marquee pro franchises (i.e. Chicago, Dallas, LA, San Francisco), so being in a pro market in and of itself shouldn't be a singular reason why college sports aren't gaining traction in a particular area.

While the Midwest has pro teams, the high-valued sports properties are located in the Northeast. You mentioned Green Bay and Chicago (let's throw in the Cubs) which are valuable franchises. Yet, while they are on the list, they are not at the top of the list. You can't compare the Bucks or Cavs to the Knicks, Celtics, Sixers, Nets, etc. The Patriots, Giants, Jets, Redskins, Eagles, etc. The Yankees, Red Sox, Mets, etc. Also, having the most sports properties per capita is not necessarily a good thing. With the slowing or contraction of population growth in the Midwest region, this trend is sure to continue. The Big Ten recognizes this and wants to tap the Eastern markets.

The "fan loyalty" of the large Big Ten schools benefit greatly from large alumni bases, which is in part a byproduct of having a lot less competition from high quality schools, especially when compared to the Northeast. The Midwest universities have benefited from this dynamic financially and academically. In contrast, if you look at Northwestern, which has a smaller enrollment and the diversions of a metropolitan area, their football attendance pale in comparison to other members. Also, when you look at ratio of enrollment vs. average home football attendance, you'll see some schools in the Big Ten underwhelm. In fact, Minnesota has a higher enrollment than average attendance. UCONN delivers a higher ratio than a few of the Big Ten schools, and has done so in a relatively short time. One could assume that our attendance numbers will increase as we fulfill our stated goals in growing enrollment at UCONN.

In terms of UCONN, I don't see how the "it's a pro market" reason/excuse applies. I think it's an advantage to not to have a pro team in the same state, especially when it comes to capturing ratings and growing your fan base. It provides a semi-singular focus that many of the Big Ten schools enjoy. Yes, the state's population gravitates towards teams in Boston and New York, but you don't need to look too hard to see how UCONN is the media darling of the state, and I think it's only going to increase.

 

[woomba]

That's a bit of a chicken - egg question in my opinion. College football was very strong in the Midwest for decades long before the development of the NFL and I think that in turn led to a slower (and smaller) embracing of pro teams compared to the NE which had no college football tradition.

 

[Durks07]

Whether he knows if UConn has a football team or not (he does) - He's quickly figuring out that he has a problem on his hands...

Matt Sugam (@MattSugam)
6/6/13, 7:32 PM
Morale is down at #Rutgers as Jim Delany doesn't see the enthusiasm he expected for their move to the Big Ten: http://snyrutgers.com/rutgers/footb...ect-from-rutgers-for-the-move-to-the-big-ten/

Not quite the NY PR he was looking for - eh?

Please...he's happy that the New York papers are aware there is Rutgers University

 

[NickyNewark]

"woomba, post: 615891, member: 3605"]That's a bit of a chicken - egg question in my opinion. College football was very strong in the Midwest for decades long before the development of the NFL and I think that in turn led to a slower (and smaller) embracing of pro teams compared to the NE which had no college football tradition.[/quote]
@No,really?I was under the impression that the Mara's made concession's to keep pro football alive by carrying the Midwest until it became popular enough to stand up on it's own back in the 20's!!In those day's little college's like Manhatten, Fordham and Army were the National power's of the day..but I digress..do tell me more.NYC of then was even more the center of sport's than it is even today!!And just across the river in Hudson Cty, Jersey City once held a outdoor HWT fight that a 1M people showed up for! Only recently(post WW2) has the midwest not been perceived as small time!Yes, Michigan and ND were popular only for the east coast's large Irish catholic,Italian and Slavic population's!!The chicken should never be asking question's to it's egg's!!

 

[NickyNewark]

Please...he's happy that the New York papers are aware there is Rutgers University

@Why wouldn't they be?RU is part of there beat!!Are you part of anyone's beat?How many beat writer's do you have? Maybe DEZ? How much interest is there for ANY new's out of UConn? Any new's is good new's! Maybe a verbal commit from a recruit would be big new's at this point!Never throw stone's at... oh well you know the name of that tune!When every move UConn make's is scrutinized you'll know your finally in a proper conference!!Interesting what CR has sown in your fanbase!!Geez, poor Mr Lagow had to put up with this craziness?

 

[NickyNewark]

Please...he's happy that the New York papers are aware there is Rutgers University

Check out the video, Sugam took the word's out of context!!As everyone seem's to do and you would be screaming bloody murder if that was done to UConn!!

 

[NickyNewark]

Whether he knows if UConn has a football team or not (he does) - He's quickly figuring out that he has a problem on his hands...

Matt Sugam (@MattSugam)
6/6/13, 7:32 PM
Morale is down at #Rutgers as Jim Delany doesn't see the enthusiasm he expected for their move to the Big Ten: http://snyrutgers.com/rutgers/footb...ect-from-rutgers-for-the-move-to-the-big-ten/

Not quite the NY PR he was looking for - eh?

Sure it is !! He grew up there in Essex Cty and went to St Benedict's in Newark,NJ and is proud of it!!He knows the deal!!Are there still 9M people in NJ?Why does everyone act like its Sandusky redux?Silliness,does anyone know the meaning of "scandal"?With all that goes on in some SEC schools why the faux outrage?

 

[NickyNewark]

Nah.

You're a punchline. Given that Rutgers has never won anything in anything, and has an unfortunate tendency to slam its own d--- in the door, it really can't be any other way.

It's cool, though - I wouldn't admit it either if I were you.

Keep giving us your fishtale's Fishy there humorous!I didn't realize the depth's of UConn's inadequasie's until CR didn't work in your favor fast enough for some of you!Don't worry though,I'll keep it a secret if you will!

 

[NickyNewark]

No one in New York City gives a flying f--- about Rutgers' athletics.

If RU was a horse, it'd been shot decades ago.

@Fishtale's ,And if you were relevant you'd be in a proper conference!

 

[NickyNewark]

We're also not giving tickets away.

Who'd want em?You may be the most boring team on record!

 

[NickyNewark]

Plus, he claimed to know the guy's children!! ("How do I know your younger than me?") Pretty scary, if you ask me.

Correct his not mine you heathen fan of a hidden fanbase

 

[NickyNewark]

Right now, Rutges has jumped well ahead. So, the answer: no, we are not talking about right now. First off, I was referencing the results on the field as well as the fanbase. Secondly, we were talking about the development of a fanbase over time. The 100 year head start for Rutgers and also a long history for Pitt haven't given these schools an in-built advantage over UConn. Over the last decade (until your expansion) the schools were even. UConn sold out in a rainstorm against Murray State! So we had our Norwich St. too. The fact you've jumped now does not speak to a historical development of a fanbase. You had 43,000 fans in 2011. You've jumped from there. Presumably, your 100 year head start should have given you a bigger lead over a school with an 8 year history. Instead, it was a 5k lead.


Here's a link to the prior period:

http://realanalytics.wordpress.com/2009/11/16/rutgers-football-attendance-stats-y-o-y/

Interesting comment:
….What’s the point of providing statistics if the data is false? If you went to the games you would have seen that Rutgers embellished their attendance numbers nearly every week after their first game. For a number of factors Rutgers hasn’t been able to sell out all year long (weak opponents, Friday night games, unmet expectations…) but it’s in the best interest of Rutgers’ football program to inflate the ticket receipt numbers to justify their recent stadium expansion.
If you didn’t go to the games and didn’t know about the invisible fans that’s another thing, but then why do a study on it? RU’s attendance numbers are skewed on purpose and are not factual and that isn’t to say your statistics are incorrect… but I will say that the stats you provided don’t show the actual picture of RU 2008 to 2009 football attendance-
I would love to know what the true attendance bump was from 2008-2009, but Rutgers released those numbers solely to justify their stadium project. I know that has nothing to do with you, but why even use those numbers if they’re obviously wrong.

Then there's this guy:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...ight-will-always-struggle-to-maintain-fanbase
Rutgers Football: Scarlet Knights Will Always Struggle To Maintain Fanbase


I'm not saying UConn is better. UConn has gone from selling out 40k to struggling. Thanks Pasqualoni!

There's also the unmentioned big factor. Football revenue. How much do you charge for tix?

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/12/despite_success_on_the_field_b.html




Despite $30m in direct institutional support from the academic side, your AD was still even with UConn in revenue. UConn does the same thing, but only to the tune of $10m a year. There used to be a $20m funding difference between the schools, and it favored UConn. Presumably, that's a measure of fan interest. I can't see any other way to account for it. Now that you're in the Big10, it will be impossible to do such comparisons in the future (since the TV take between RU and UConn will be entirely different) but I imagine you guys are going to do much much better.

@ No their student ticket's are paid for with built in charges in tuition!No need to give anything away when 49G cram into a 52G stadium so thousand's empty?Yeah maybe 2 or 3G out of a 52G stadium but the Yankee's should do so well!Don't worry its not your fault UConn can't fill 75% of a 39G stadium or under represent's at away games!When CR work's for you your base will hopefully catch fire and put 35G in the stand's!Man is it that hard for Yankee's to be civil?I thought BC was your problem but I'm not sure whose the problem now?No wonder your still waiting in line!!

 

[NickyNewark]

You forgot Dabney.

Yeah and Hollis Copeland and my hometown friend Abdel Anderson!!

 

[NickyNewark]

If Uconn's bball is only recent, that means Rutgers hoop history is non-existent.

@Isn't it? Tell that to 9M N.Jersey fans in NJ and 80M B1G fan's!!No ones gonna give a what you accomplice in the AAC!!Take your trophy's to bed with you...I hope they keep you warm!!

 

[NickyNewark]

And even the 80s is a not filled with only losing. Most would be surprised to learn that Uconn did not have a losing season in its first 4 years in the Big East. And the decade ended with a couple winning seasons. There was a bad 5 year stretch.

@Surprised is an understatement?Where was this info ...in the fine print?I guess you were in the Yankee conference and VERY few cared or knew!But I'll say this JC lifted you by your bootstraps and made you relevant but was it UConn or JC?!!Time will tell!

 

[TimTCT]

Welcome to my Ignore List...

Nicky meet Butch...Butch this is Nicky

 

[itgoeslike]

@Surprised is an understatement?Where was this info ...in the fine print?I guess you were in the Yankee conference and VERY few cared or knew!But I'll say this JC lifted you by your bootstraps and made you relevant but was it UConn or JC?!!Time will tell!

JC played a huge role. However, UCONN has won 15 Division 1 National Championships since 1980. 12 were in sports other than Mens Basketball.

 

[upstater]

@Why wouldn't they be?RU is part of there beat!!Are you part of anyone's beat?How many beat writer's do you have? Maybe DEZ? How much interest is there for ANY new's out of UConn? Any new's is good new's! Maybe a verbal commit from a recruit would be big new's at this point!Never throw stone's at... oh well you know the name of that tune!When every move UConn make's is scrutinized you'll know your finally in a proper conference!!Interesting what CR has sown in your fanbase!!Geez, poor Mr Lagow had to put up with this craziness?

Look up the Horde:http://articles.courant.com/1991-10-18/sports/0000210679_1_big-east-jim-calhoun-media

UConn has had intense media interest for a long time. That article goes back more than 20 years.

If you really want to know about the level of media interest in the market, check out this link: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/spor...ollege-athletics-finances-database/54955804/1

Look at the TV rights and licensing box.

UConn's tier 3 rights, licensing and sponsorships (ads for coaches shows on SNY are included there), are $24.9m. Meanwhile, Rutgers does a $8.7m. That should tell you something about the intensity of the interest in both schools. Granted, UConn has football AND basketball creating that interest, but it shows you how many media dollars the schools can generate outside the conference TV package.

Just to give you an example of interest in UConn sports, the UConn women's bball team has bumped Syracuse men's bball BE games off the air on SNY.

 

[upstater]

@Isn't it? Tell that to 9M N.Jersey fans in NJ and 80M B1G fan's!!No ones gonna give a what you accomplice in the AAC!!Take your trophy's to bed with you...I hope they keep you warm!!

Hard to believe you've been giving grammar lessons to others on this board. You got on someone for "semantics."

Personally, I like winning and trophies and national championships. I'd rather have that than be a perpetual cellar dweller.

Your post basically shows where the Rutgers mentality is. You guys are so used to losing, you make fun of the concept of winning national championships.

It's bizarre, pathetic!!!!

 

[upstater]

@Surprised is an understatement?Where was this info ...in the fine print?I guess you were in the Yankee conference and VERY few cared or knew!But I'll say this JC lifted you by your bootstraps and made you relevant but was it UConn or JC?!!Time will tell!

So, you don't even realize the Big East started in the early 1980s? That's when UConn had winning records. Look up it's first years in the BE. The first 4. The F8 and Sweet 16s were in the previous couple decades. Yeah, UConn wasn't a national team then. Neither was Rutgers. The point is, UConn had a fanbase back then, and that's what we're talking about. Nice attempt trying to twist things. You guys still don't have a fanbase--as the B1G is about to find out.

In fact, the biggest thing that will harm UConn with the B1G is how bad Rutgers is about to suck in that conference.

 

[upstater]

For our B1G friends, this is the mentality of the Rutgers fans you've saddled up with:

@Isn't it? Tell that to 9M N.Jersey fans in NJ and 80M B1G fan's!!No ones gonna give a what you accomplice in the AAC!!Take your trophy's to bed with you...I hope they keep you warm!!

 

[RMoore1999]

Keep giving us your fishtale's Fishy there humorous!I didn't realize the depth's of UConn's inadequasie's until CR didn't work in your favor fast enough for some of you!Don't worry though,I'll keep it a secret if you will!

Son, You're going to have to somehow prove to us you are NOT Husky Fan Dan's identical twin lost long ago somewhere along the Jersey Shore....(my apologies, HFD).