Geno wants to reach out to fans | The Boneyard

Geno wants to reach out to fans

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Kibitzer

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An AP article appeared in the online version of The (Norwalk) Hour, in which Geno is quoted as saying that he (1) wants to reach out to supportive fans in Fairfield County and (2) make attendance at on-campus games a more enjoyable experience.

As for games in Fairfield County, the options are really limited because the contract with the XL Center prohibits regular ("home") season games any where but there or Gampel. The remaining pickin's are slim.

Geno seems sensitive to issues at Gampel pertaining to ticket purchase, concessions, parking problems, and the difficulties of getting in or out (of the campus or parking lots).

Coincidentally I recently sent an email to the new AD to offer some suggestion about related issues from my perspective as a long-time season ticket holder. No response yet.

These comments by Geno, combined with some by the new AD, offer a glimmer of hope.
 

vtcwbuff

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It's encouraging to see some acknowledgement of fan concerns. One wonders if the coach had some guidance from above concerning fan issues.
 
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LOL!!

Love the new avatar, Kib! Truly inspirational, even if it does not characterize your Army experience. Glad that you didn't listen to that fuddy-duddy Revolutionary War lifer Abel Bachelor with his 18th century advice about avatars.
 

Icebear

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LOL!!

Love the new avatar, Kib! Truly inspirational, even if it does not characterize your Army experience. And don't listen to that fuddy-duddy Revolutionary War lifer Abel Bachelor with his 18th century advice about avatars.

I think that is "fuddy-duddy Revolutionary War AFTER-lifer."
 

JS

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It's encouraging to see some acknowledgement of fan concerns. One wonders if the coach had some guidance from above concerning fan issues.

He got some guidance from the Boneyard. I know Alex for one sent him an analysis of the multiple factors bearing on fan attendance issues, and Geno responded that it was quite good. Seems to have been a step toward curing Geno of his reflexive "fans are spoiled" explanation of any lags (by UConn standards) in game attendance.
 

cohenzone

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If the merchant doesn't pay attention to the customers, the business is in trouble.
 
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Maybe next the UConn Athletic Department will discover the deep dark hidden secret known as "group sales and marketing"? Or does that ask too much?
 
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I suggest that Geno have his mother sit in one of those bleacher seats for a game or two and then tell him how her back and knees feel. Seriously, politicians limited the size of Gampel to protect the XL when Gampel was built. This is about Hartford business and has little to do with fans.

A suggestion: Any of those upper, non-back seats that are unsold 24 hours before the game should be offered to students for say $5.00. At least there will be a little noise and a lot more enthusiasm.
 

Kibitzer

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LOL!!

Love the new avatar, Kib! Truly inspirational, even if it does not characterize your Army experience. Glad that you didn't listen to that fuddy-duddy Revolutionary War lifer Abel Bachelor with his 18th century advice about avatars.
The Avatar is obviously Beetle Bailey, drawn for many years by my friend and Stamford resident Mort Walker. Mrs. Kibitzer and I visited him about a week ago in connection with his being an honoree at the Fisher House gala in Foxwoods on November 5. I post the new avatar in his honor, not in any way suggesting I was ever as good a soldier as Pvt. Bailey.
 

Ruffian75

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It would be nice to see games at Harbor Yard (Webster Bank Arena)every season. It is a great venue and offers so much more than Gampel. It would be a great place for the three games in three days World Vision "Classic' as well as the Fairfield game. There is no way in hell I would go to Storrs to sit on a concrete slab for any of those games.
 

Kibitzer

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Ruffian, I agree with you completely. But my understanding is that the UConn contract with XL guarantees that all off-campus home games during the regular season are played there, in Hartford. Games in other regional venues are thus prohibited. That leaves us with the remote possibility of seeing UConn play an exhibition in Bridgeport. This season the options are Assumption (now scheduled for Gampel) and Pace (XL). Which forces us back to those cozy bench seats in Gampel, no matter what Geno says.
 

Phil

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Ruffian, I agree with you completely. But my understanding is that the UConn contract with XL guarantees that all off-campus home games during the regular season are played there, in Hartford. Games in other regional venues are thus prohibited. That leaves us with the remote possibility of seeing UConn play an exhibition in Bridgeport. This season the options are Assumption (now scheduled for Gampel) and Pace (XL). Which forces us back to those cozy bench seats in Gampel, no matter what Geno says.
Sounds like poor negotiating skills.

If UConn really agreed that all off-campus home games are played at XL, neither side had a clear view of their best interests.

Consider the contract from the XL point of view. Why on earth would they care, for a game not played at the XL center, whether it was played at Gampel, Bridgeport or Podunk Iowa? So they negotiated and received a "concession" that grants them no benefit.

However, before concluding that XL blundered in Contract negotiations 101, UConn did worse. UConn has no ability to play a home game anywhere other than Gampel or XL. There's a number of reasons they might wish to play a home game elsewhere, and they've given up the option.

Obviously, there is more to this contract that just this clause, but if there are no other clauses constraining locations, UConn can solve the problem.

They can simply ask that the contract be renegotiated to allow them the option to play home games at other locations.

Before you protest that XL isn't about to give up their strong position, UConn actually has some negotiating power. (Again, assuming the described contract provision is accurate, and there are no other provisions determining location.)

Simply declare that next year, UConn will play all of its games at Gampel or XL, per provisions of the contract, and all games will be at Gampel.

Obviously, XL isn't interested in this happening. Equally obviously, what XL really wanted is some minimum number of games, not enforcement of a rule that home games not at XL are at Gampel. If XL wants nine games, they want nine games, they shouldn't care where the other games are played. Of course, UConn is not interested in playing all games at Gampel, it would give up too much revenue. But they could hold it out as a bargaining chip, and then renegotiate a sensible contract. XL was expecting n games? Give them n games. Then they get what they want, and have the ability to schedule their own remaining games wherever they please.

UConn also has one other point of leverage, again, depending on the rest of the contract. Play Fairfield in Bridgeport, and call it a home game for Fairfield. Which it is. Who knows, maybe they could even play North Carolina in Bridgeport and call UNC the home team. Perhaps there is some other rule that declares that a team cannot be a home team is they travel farther than the opponent, but again, as I said, my solutions are premised on the assumptions that there aren't other provisions affecting location. Even if there is a rule that the closest team is the home team, they could play Yale, or Hartford in Bridgeport, and let Yale or Hartford be the home team. (There must not be a rule that the closest team is deemed the home team, or the Hartford -UConn game in XL would have been a home game for Hartford, and I don't think it was.)
 

Ruffian75

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Ruffian, I agree with you completely. But my understanding is that the UConn contract with XL guarantees that all off-campus home games during the regular season are played there, in Hartford. Games in other regional venues are thus prohibited. That leaves us with the remote possibility of seeing UConn play an exhibition in Bridgeport. This season the options are Assumption (now scheduled for Gampel) and Pace (XL). Which forces us back to those cozy bench seats in Gampel, no matter what Geno says.

It doesn't seem that the World Vision Classic should be dictated as games that have to be played at Gampel or the 40. It would be the perfect situation to pay back all of us Fairfield and New Haven county fans with three games within a half hour drive at a nice venue with easy access, parking, amenities, and an actual concourse to walk around. Gampel is the absolute pits. That place was obsolete the day it opened. The only time I will ever go to games there is if I have a good seat against a top ten team.
 

Phil

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Good point, UConn could act as host, but doesn't have to be the home team.
 
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