Football Attendance - UCONN hired Bob Diaco at the right time

[jackl]

The good thing about O Line is that it is possible to see drastic improvement from the young players due to another offseason changing body composition and gaining strength. We have one of the best O Line coaches in the business, so that certainly gives me some hope. But there are question marks at every single position. We usually have at least one player coming back that I feel very confident in.

I think Vann and Ashiru will continue to get better. Vann seemed played better as the season wore on, and Ashiru has shown flashes of being a solid 3 down backer. Donohue showed no speed off the edge, and seemed a step slow in pursuit. Graham Stewart was dominated by opposing teams. He absolutely should not be handed a starting spot.

Lets leave it to the coaches, they will do the right thing and put the best players on the field. After all this may be the first time in three years where the head coach knows what the #k he's doing. No need to put guys down who may have been injured.

 

[Kevin Caliendo]

The right time to hire him was three years ago. Attendance will almost certainly be down again in 2014 as season ticket sales will be down. I think if they are flattish this year that's a win. Remember Michigan skewed numbers higher, the conf is a disaster and casual fans don't care about BYU or Boise (or anyone else on the schedule ). If u take away the 42k from Michigan last year, the average dips almost 2k. And Michigan isn't on the schedule. If diaco rights the ship, maybe next year attendance will be back to 30k on average. Season tickets will likely be well below 20k in 2014.

 

[huskysupporter]

Lets leave it to the coaches, they will do the right thing and put the best players on the field. After all this may be the first time in three years where the head coach knows what the #k he's doing. No need to put guys down who may have been injured.

Just posting my observations. If that is considered putting a player down, my apologies. My favorite thing to discuss on this board is personnel.

 

[UConnDan97]

We can see improvement, but not sure if the casual fan will. We can be below .500 next year, yet still see a ton of improvement and things to build on.

It is very simple for me. The season will be a success if I see passionate players play disciplined football. I have never seen a more sloppy team in all the years I have watched UCONN. I can accept teams beating us because they have superior physical talent, but I cannot accept teams beating us because we blow assignments on offense and don't play within the system on defense.

I will be doing cartwheels if some of the players Coach P recruited have a significant positive impact on the team next season.

I may just have my national flag blue glasses on, but I believe we are going bowling this year. And no, it's not my normal "13-0" hyperbole. The main reason I believe that's the case is due to the fact that I think the American is going to have a down-year. Every strong team from a year ago has lost major pieces (I outlined the losses more thoroughly in the prediction thread, but here's a summary):

UCF - lost Bortles and Storm Johnson
Cincy - lost both QB's (Kay and Legaux) and a bunch of skill position players
SMU - lost Garrett Gilbert and some key OLine
Louisville - gone
Rutgers - gone

With the exception of Houston who brings back 90% of their team, the only teams with continuity in the league won no more than 1 conference game last year (I'm excluding USF who won 2 games because they don't have a QB either and lost key defensive players). So if we can keep our passing game going with quality at QB and WR, and if we can get our running game back to at least competent levels (which I have complete faith that Foley will do), we are going bowling. Take this for what it's worth...

 

[SubbaBub]

Should have bowled last year and the year before that. Should bowl this year against this schedule with a slightly less talented team that executes much better.

What I've read and heard from BD about the Oline is troubling. At least he is facing the issue head on. As everyone on the BY knew, the team was physically unprepared last year and didn't execute. It's nice BD sees it too.

Being big and strong can fix a great deal. We may not see a return to strong running this year, but our passing game can be good if the protection is there.

 

[RioDog]

Good thing there aren't lots of fractions here. People aren't so good at math.

Yeah really. Imagine if there were a lot of fractals...

 

[Srqhusky]

Ask anyone on auburn if they thought they would be playing in the national championship. We can do well this year

 

[jdb50]

Well I ordered my season tx (4) last week and I'm willing to bet that attendence is not below last years averages. I've always felt that good skill guys with an average line is better than a good line with average skill guys. We have the best wideouts we've ever had. The RB's were OK with the handicap of GDL running the line and it took a while to get that turned around. With returning experience plus newcomers we should be good here. Then we have QB and we are much better off than when PP took over. CC stuck with it last year and put it all together in the last 10 quarters of the season. We have plenty of experience with our top 3 QB's and the new Coach P is going to help this group. The team also benefited from having Coach Weist in charge and ending the season on a winning note. BYU is going to be a tough start but hey, it's Big Boy football and it's time to start showing people that UConn football is back.

 

[Woof 101]

As everyone knows, UCONN football was in a steady decline. Attendance dropped 11% last year. Had the coaching change not taken place UCONN football was headed for a Black hole. Hopefully the new Sheriff in town will turn things around! Let's all do our part to help Ward and Bob sell tickets and fill the Rent! Look

College Football Attendance 2009-2013

School 2013 2012 2012 2011 2010 2009
Connecticut 30,932 -11% 34,672 36,668 38,248 38,229

The home schedule is tough:

BYU, Boise State, Stony Brook, UCF, Cincinnati, SMU, Temple

At best for now it looks like 2-5. Lets hope that Diaco and staff along with Matt Balis (strength & conditioning coach) can work some miracles and turn it into a winning home record. Right now
I will take 4-3 if it was given to me!

Just what is someone who calls themself Confident Carl confident in? It sure as hell is not UCONN football....We have not even played the spring game and you have us going 2&5 at best. You will take 4-3? You come across here as a Curmudgeon Carl, unconfident a Energy Vampire.
Not bashing here but get out of the Randy exit stage left and the Paul and George devistation mode. It has ended! We are in a new era with a staff that has the team working out, eating proper and inspired like never before. Maybe I am over confident but after meeting all the coaches yesterday I have never felt so good about a staff so all in and on the same page.
Get your confidence back Carl or change your name. No offense intended just say'n...

 

[Dooley]

I think UCONN will report an increase in attendance next year. Here's my conspiracy theory kitty at work:

Step 1 - Warde knew last year's season was tanked the minute we lost to Towson. So, all things negative get dumped on the old regime including steep attendance decline. UCONN decides to change their reporting practice and report actual tickets scanned at the gate rather than tickets sold. If you changed policies at every stadium in the country, you would see an attendance drop. Example - RU's last home game against USF was announced as 30-something thousand but, in reality, they had no more than 17K in the seats. By the time the 2013 season ended, UCONN football had zero buzz anywhere in the country...including Storrs.

Step 2 - Hire the up-and-coming young energetic coordinator that we have all clamored for years over. Not only is he a great football mind, but he also has a great marketing mind. The excitement is contagious. All of a sudden, the new hire for a program that went 3-9 last season and, up until the hire, showed little effort in attempting to win (Hathaway mostly to blame but Warde deserves a bit of criticism for not canning the PP regime after 2012), is being interviewed all over the country AND convincing people that UCONN can win. At football. Program goes from no buzz to incredible buzz in a matter of days/weeks.

Step 3 - Bump up the Assistant coaches salary pool. Not only does it refute's Narduzzi's ridiculous claim that his decision to back out was over assistant's salary, but it is the right thing to do. Diaco's staff is filled with recruiting coordinators and guys with energy and good ideas.

Step 4 - Get to work. The PP/GDL regime is over and it's time to reinforce that everywhere. Changing the interior to the Burton Complex. Gaining players trust. Uniting the team in a family style. Hard work rewarded with a great turnout at the Spring Game (thank God somebody finally listened and started this at 3PM). The line to meet Coach Diaco will probably be miles long. New season ticket holders will be made.

Step 5 - Summer season ticket drive. This time, we're not selling our opponents. We're selling UCONN. We're selling the rocking Rent that Diaco heard when he was at Virignia. We're selling hard work. We're selling more exciting play. We're selling new game day traditions. We're selling a new era and bowl games.

Step 6 - change the attendance reporting policy back from tickets scanned to tickets sold.

Step 7 - Win. Bowl game. Solid UCONN turnout at Yankee Stadium. Excitement. 13-0? Maybe not. 12-1? Definitely.

Attendance increase.

 

[Confident Carl]

Just what is someone who calls themself Confident Carl confident in? It sure as hell is not UCONN football....We have not even played the spring game and you have us going 2&5 at best. You will take 4-3? You come across here as a Curmudgeon Carl, unconfident a Energy Vampire.
Not bashing here but get out of the Randy exit stage left and the Paul and George devistation mode. It has ended! We are in a new era with a staff that has the team working out, eating proper and inspired like never before. Maybe I am over confident but after meeting all the coaches yesterday I have never felt so good about a staff so all in and on the same page.
Get your confidence back Carl or change your name. No offense intended just say'n...

Just what is someone who calls themself Confident Carl confident in? It sure as hell is not UCONN football....We have not even played the spring game and you have us going 2&5 at best. You will take 4-3? You come across here as a Curmudgeon Carl, unconfident a Energy Vampire.
Not bashing here but get out of the Randy exit stage left and the Paul and George devistation mode. It has ended! We are in a new era with a staff that has the team working out, eating proper and inspired like never before. Maybe I am over confident but after meeting all the coaches yesterday I have never felt so good about a staff so all in and on the same page.
Get your confidence back Carl or change your name. No offense intended just say'n...

Great to hear you are feeling so confident. I have a great deal of confidence in the staff but unfortunately they don't play the games. After three straight losing seasons and a total rebuild on both O & D lines, I will take a 4-3 home stand right now. The two best chances for a win are Stony brook and Temple. The next possibility is SMU, who beat us 38-21 in Dallas. UCF, 10 in country beat us 62-17 and Cincy killed us 41-16. I would definitely take a split with either of them. Then there are BYU and BSU coming into town. Both teams finished 8-5 last year. No one would love to take those Western powers more than me but it is illogical to think that will happen. I don' t think there is a sports book in the country that would predict 5-2 or 4-3 for UCONN. I want them to go undefeated! There is a difference between being confident and delusional. I sincerely hope I am wrong and you get the joy of telling me that I was full of it but with the tough home slate I will take 4-3 and 5-2 will be a huge bonus. All things considered, I would say that's being pretty confident.

 

[Stray_Dog]

We can see improvement, but not sure if the casual fan will. We can be below .500 next year, yet still see a ton of improvement and things to build on.

It is very simple for me. The season will be a success if I see passionate players play disciplined football. I have never seen a more sloppy team in all the years I have watched UCONN. I can accept teams beating us because they have superior physical talent, but I cannot accept teams beating us because we blow assignments on offense and don't play within the system on defense.

I will be doing cartwheels if some of the players Coach P recruited have a significant positive impact on the team next season.

This is true but you did leave one major factor out...The BYU game is being nationally televised. What does this mean? It means if we get blown out - we will hear how UConn is terrible in football - translation, we don't belong in a P-5! They will claim our performance against OU in the BCS show-cased how much we had to do then and since then we have only gone in the wrong direction. These will be the opinions being reported. We at least need to be in games, we need games to be close to keep the average fan who will be hungry for anything in college football to stay tuned in! I wonder if this game being nationally televised is a way for ESPN to laugh at us??? The only way around that joke, don't allow them to deliver the punch line!!!

 

[HuskyHawk]

Great to hear you are feeling so confident. I have a great deal of confidence in the staff but unfortunately they don't play the games. After three straight losing seasons and a total rebuild on both O & D lines, I will take a 4-3 home stand right now. The two best chances for a win are Stony brook and Temple. The next possibility is SMU, who beat us 38-21 in Dallas. UCF, 10 in country beat us 62-17 and Cincy killed us 41-16. I would definitely take a split with either of them. Then there are BYU and BSU coming into town. Both teams finished 8-5 last year. No one would love to take those Western powers more than me but it is illogical to think that will happen. I don' t think there is a sports book in the country that would predict 5-2 or 4-3 for UCONN. I want them to go undefeated! There is a difference between being confident and delusional. I sincerely hope I am wrong and you get the joy of telling me that I was full of it but with the tough home slate I will take 4-3 and 5-2 will be a huge bonus. All things considered, I would say that's being pretty confident.

Even if we lose to BYU and Boise, I expect to win vs. Stony Brook and Army. Then it's just a matter of grabbing 5 conference wins. As Dan pointed out, you can't tell what these teams will be. We play the stronger teams home and weaker teams on the road. That's either a prescription for a great season or a terrible one. If the improvement is there, UConn could take out Memphis, Tulane and USF on the road (I'll give them a loss to ECU). Temple at home better be a win, then they just need to win a home game or two against UCF, Cinci and SMU. That is certainly achievable. None of those teams will be great, and even the PP lead team knocked off UL and Bridgewater on the road two years ago and gave Michigan a scare last year. I think UConn can come up big in big games...what I expect from Diaco is that we no longer fall flat against bad teams. I'm predicting 7-5. Upset BYU and/or Boise and it would be even better. We avoid Houston, possibly the best team in the league next year. Fans should come back.

 

[J187Money]

We can see improvement, but not sure if the casual fan will. We can be below .500 next year, yet still see a ton of improvement and things to build on.

It is very simple for me. The season will be a success if I see passionate players play disciplined football. I have never seen a more sloppy team in all the years I have watched UCONN. I can accept teams beating us because they have superior physical talent, but I cannot accept teams beating us because we blow assignments on offense and don't play within the system on defense.

I will be doing cartwheels if some of the players Coach P recruited have a significant positive impact on the team next season.

I guess what I mean is this:

The BY (and I'm sure other season ticket holders) has been SO NEGATIVE over the last three years, why would the casual fan buy a ticket when the hardcore fans are ready to commit suicide. If WE, as a group, get excited, it will get other people excited and the marginal fan might start thinking about this differently...

 

[Stray_Dog]

I guess what I mean is this:

The BY (and I'm sure other season ticket holders) has been SO NEGATIVE over the last three years, why would the casual fan buy a ticket when the hardcore fans are ready to commit suicide. If WE, as a group, get excited, it will get other people excited and the marginal fan might start thinking about this differently...

....or both the casual fan and the die hard fan are in agreement...put something on the field that we (all) can cheer for...and there will be excitement.
1) We need to show that we can beat the teams we are expected to beat. (Needs to happen every year)
2) Be competitive with teams that are expected to represent good competition (Needs to happen every year)
3) with some of these good competitive teams, we put THEM away in the third QTR (this year we may not get this one, but next year and every year after - we need one of these, and it does depend on scheduling)
4) No matter who we play we are able to stay in the game - late into the 4th qtr. (Needs to happen every year and of course it depends on our schedule)
5) We upset teams because we are the perennial - falsely labeled "Cinderella" Team <-- this may take a few years of 10+ win seasons (Not likely to start this year, though, we may hit lightening in a bottle, but I suspect it is likely three seasons away from the start - but unfortunately it needs to start within 2 see CRA)
6) We win our bowl - If we make a bowl this year, it needs to happen, but it must happen in two years.
7) We win the conference - I suspect it is likely three seasons away from this happening - but unfortunately it needs to start within 2 see CRA) Also, keep in mind if UConn did win this season, how weak or strong would this conference be perceived???

in summation: Win Baby Win!
Winning isn't everything it is the Only Thing! -Vince Lombardi
Winners Never quit and quitters Never Win -Vince Lombardi
The greatest accomplishment is not in never failing, but in rising after you fall. -Vince Lombardi

Do these quotes sound like Diaco? Does it sound like Diaco went to the school of Lombardi? Do you know Lombardi had so much respect from his players that they perceived, they went to battle, they went to win for him! Well, I want to see the UConn players and fans feel the same way about Diaco. To do that, he needs the team to win, and us to support this team. IMO I do not expect a perfect season, I so expect perfect effort!!!

 

[rich1122]

We need season's tickets at 28K for a start.

 

[Stray_Dog]

We need season's tickets at 28K for a start.

For a start, I say we need to worry how the Rent looks against BYU. That is a full capacity crowd. A field that lasts for all four quarters. a score that we can be used to showcase/defend our on the field efforts. If there is true effort and we look good, then season tickets will improve and hopefully beyond the 28K. However, in this first game we get blown away, we could have 36K in season tickets and nobody showing up to sit in them when Stony Brook comes in to play. Lose to Stony Brook....and your request of 28K drops drastically and many here seeing the apocalypse asking/begging for membership into the new Big East. So just as coach would tell his players...one game at a time, so I too as fan am looking at the games I will go to, one game a time. We don't need to win on the scoreboard, we need to win with our efforts. Play like last year and I'll give you what you got last year. Play better and I'll give better! CT is an expensive state to live in. Compare our property taxes to N.C. Compare weather to N.C. Why I am here, my family is here, else I would be cheering UConn from a warm beach right now and not from my overtaxed home. Income tax, property tax, gasoline tax, sales tax, car property tax, etc. So why bring that up on a message board...well UConn is a state school, somewhat subsidized. I root for them, but I pay a lot already, add in all my taxes, add in the students cost for tuition...guess what WIN Baby WIN!!! It makes my paying all this money that much less painful!!!

 

[Confident Carl]

We can see improvement, but not sure if the casual fan will. We can be below .500 next year, yet still see a ton of improvement and things to build on.

It is very simple for me. The season will be a success if I see passionate players play disciplined football. I have never seen a more sloppy team in all the years I have watched UCONN. I can accept teams beating us because they have superior physical talent, but I cannot accept teams beating us because we blow assignments on offense and don't play within the system on defense.

I will be doing cartwheels if some of the players Coach P recruited have a significant positive impact on the team next season.

Several on the board have been calling not winning but playing hard and disciplined will be successful. Other than a few blow outs
last year, playing tough had been a UCONN trait. The Michigan game last year is a perfect example. We lost the game in the 4th quarter (probably mostly because of depth issues) SIMPLY PUT WE NEED TO WIN PERIOD! The majority of fans don't care about effort- All they want is the W. I can think of alot of games over the past three years where UCONN played tough but lost.
Having said that, I believe the fans will cut Bob Diaco some slack and give him a couple years to turn things around. Bob Diaco and Coach Patterson have been at IOWA where they are like IOWA's pro team, much the same way UCONN is CT's pro team. UCONN is the only major D1 program in CT and probably was a factor in him choosing UCONN.

 

[Marty Jackson]

If Diaco rights the ship people will forget about last year in about 10 minutes.

yes, but as soon as Diaco loses one game, you'll have some questioning WM's decision. The chicken little faction is a very vocal group.

2-3 losses and we could just take all the PP threads and change the initials to BD, and change 'old' to 'inexperienced'.

Be prepared... It's coming.
7-5 or 6-6 would be a realistic first season for BD.

 

[whaler11]

It's a bit early to worry about the repercussions of losing to Stony Brook.

For what it's worth 7-5 would be an excellent first season for Diaco.

Not even here is anyone crazy enough to question the hire after 2-3 losses. Splitting against BYU and Boise would be a very good outcome.

 

[whaler11]

I think you are wrong C Carl. People were disgusted by the effort in the blowout losses and the lack of energy the team played with all three years.

If UConn is spirited in losses to good teams rational people will understand that is great progress.

 

[Kevin Caliendo]

I think you guys are thinking too micro when its the macro picture that is the big problem. At a time when all live sports are struggling with attendance, in a state where the economy is atrocious in the portion that attracts 90% of the fans, going to see a team that has no chance to be competitive nationally is just not ever going to be a priority. sure its a fun day, but the casual fan who also roots for the Red Sox, Yankees, Pats and UConn hoops teams go in every year thinking their teams have a chance to win. UConn football is never going to win anything important, thus is automatically relegated to afterthought. The best selling point for UConn football is that its a FUN day, the tailgate, the stadium, etc are really well done (notice that parking passes have increased in price by almost 100% in 11 years while ticket prices are basically flat?). But even casual fans know there is no real reason to get emotionally (or financially) invested in the team because, well, they just are not good enough, especially in the AACk, where there is no no hope of playing a top-10 program and maybe getting that one memorable upset/moment.

when the Rent opened, there was hope that UConn could grow into the type of program that could compete with anyone and crack the top-20 on occasion and play in a big bowl game. A better BC/Syracuse, with better facilities and more $$ to invest in its program. That hope is gone. Its just not going to happen in the current arrangement. Even if Diaco is a great coach, by the time his team gets to peak form it will be 2016, and UConn's biggest game will be against Tulsa or UCF. a 10-2 Uconn team in 2016 would likely not even be ranked. And that might be a best-case scenario right now.

Now if UConn can get into a P5 conference, then that original hope might return. Sadly, it's really all that matters. winning helps that goal, I suppose, assuming expansion is ever going to happen again and UConn is really a candidate.

 

[Fishy]

I'd have to think if there were a BY dunk tank you might be the one guy to give Waylon a run for his money for longest line.

If Whaler was on line for a dunk tank, once he got to the front and was handed the balls, he'd turn around and start throwing them at the other people in line. He's kind of a contrarian like that.

 

[whaler11]

If Whaler was on line for a dunk tank, once he got to the front and was handed the balls, he'd turn around and start throwing them at the other people in line. He's kind of a contrarian like that.

You know the old saying... No one ever went broke betting against the Boneyard.

You know you've made it as an idiot when Fishy takes the time to personally insult you instead of just including you in a broad blanket insult.

 

[J187Money]

You know the old saying... No one ever went broke betting against the Boneyard. You know you've made it as an idiot when Fishy takes the time to personally insult you instead of just including you in a broad blanket insult.

I looked at that as a compliment.