local perception, a long way to go | Page 3 | The Boneyard

local perception, a long way to go

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HuskyHawk said:
This may be one of your best posts ever. Agree with your take...and going further, half or more of the people going to games aren't even paying attention. They are eating, drinking, chatting with friends, texting, posting on facebook or Instagram or Twitter. "Look at me, I'm at a game"...meanwhile somebody just turned a spectacular double play and they didn't even notice. The NFL is really the only exception to this I've seen in New England. People watch the games, both live and on TV and will even watch teams that aren't their team. Hockey is probably next best...in terms of the actual core fans paying attention to the game.

College football isn't part of the fabric of our culture in New England. BC has the same problem we do...it does ok when it is winning, but it isn't a must attend/must watch for very many. Things are different in Nebraska, Alabama, Oklahoma, South Carolina... You schedule your life around Saturday games in those places. I think it will be very hard to change that, and it starts with new generations of UConn grads who went to games every Saturday as students. As I've said before, moving all HS football to Friday night would help give one of our best natural audiences a chance to go to games.
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That's where teams (not just UCONN) need to try to cater to the technology demands of the fans. I keep my phone in my pocket until ends of quarters or halves but I know that other fans around me are on their phones during games (or at least, try to be). To each is own, I guess. But if that's a reason why fans all over the country are staying home, then teams will need to be more tech-friendly to allow Joe Fan to be at the game he wants to go to but also have the ability to stream another game on his phone. Also, a sports bar lounge area would do wonders to combat this too. Give fans the sports bar experience AND boost wifi at a game and I think you'll see more casual fans come to games.
 
Dooley said:
That's where teams (not just UCONN) need to try to cater to the technology demands of the fans. I keep my phone in my pocket until ends of quarters or halves but I know that other fans around me are on their phones during games (or at least, try to be). To each is own, I guess. But if that's a reason why fans all over the country are staying home, then teams will need to be more tech-friendly to allow Joe Fan to be at the game he wants to go to but also have the ability to stream another game on his phone. Also, a sports bar lounge area would do wonders to combat this too. Give fans the sports bar experience AND boost wifi at a game and I think you'll see more casual fans come to games.
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Maybe we are just ignorant of the inner workings of the athletic department, but it is annoying that the posters here can generate ideas that are worth a shot and the school keeps doing the same lame crap forever.

Put in Jock Jams:
Intro basketball to 'you all ready for this'
Play Michael Buffer who is ready to rumble!!!!?!!!
 
whaler11 said:
Maybe we are just ignorant of the inner workings of the athletic department, but it is annoying that the posters here can generate ideas that are worth a shot and the school keeps doing the same lame crap forever.

Put in Jock Jams:
Intro basketball to 'you all ready for this'
Play Michael Buffer who is ready to rumble!!!!?!!!
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It's time for the Nobody Beats the Wiz POWERPLAY!!!!
 
We need a Dream Season to capture the imagination of the State. Before the 2010 season I really felt we were ready to explode onto the scene. In the end we made it to the BCS game in Arizona and we were ridiculed by the National Media, lost the game and then our head coach. Think about how things would have been different if we had beaten Michigan and Temple. Anyway, I'm sure our Dream Season is somewhere out there in the future but until then we will be an afterthought.
 
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Rondogg said:
We need a Dream Season to capture the imagination of the State. Before the 2010 season I really felt we were ready to explode onto the scene. In the end we made it to the BCS game in Arizona and we were ridiculed by the National Media, lost the game and then our head coach. Think about how things would have been different if we had beaten Michigan and Temple. Anyway, I'm sure our Dream Season is somewhere out there in the future but until then we will be an afterthought.
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Agree. UCONN desperately needs a 9/10 win season in the next few years.

There were a lot of people before that Michigan game that thought we were going to go to the Big House and win. It's not just that we lost the game, it's how we lost the game. Didn't look like we belonged on the same field as a very mediocre Michigan team (by their standards). Losing to Temple only cemented the very strong negative vibe against UCONN.
 
WingU-Conn said:
This only lets us know you
a) have no friends
b) have no life
c) have no sense of priorities
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I was going to argue with you because I've been to every game at Rentschler but one and have missed only that single home game since 1999 but then realized you are kinda right.
 
I think if we were still getting close to 30k last season then we'll easily top 30k for BYU.

CT has a decent appetite for sports. Our attendance might have a low ceiling of 40k, but the floor is pretty damn high and the basement would be good numbers for some of our conference mates.
 
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I agree that a special season(an eye opening, underdog bowl victory vs a quality opponent) is essential to strengthening the fan base but that has to be followed up. It can't be 10-2 or 12-0 and a good bowl win then 6-6 or 7-5 the next season. The one thing that will get this state really juiced for D-1 football is when they can sniff a chance at one of those 4 playoff spots. Granted that's a ways off, hopefully for our sakes not extremely far off. When UConn has a legit chance at a playoff spot by winning out the last couple of games in a season the state will be buzzing. When they make one of those playoff spots then your talking about building some UConn football history, legacy, tradition. That's the one thing most P-5 football schools have that UConn doesn't. At least one big memorable bowl and/or conference championship win that alumni and fans can hang their hat on and be proud of. Sure UConn has had some minor victories here and there, the win at ND, beating S. Carolina, but they haven't had that marquee win that draws national attention like TCU and Boise have had in the past. In CT you have to compete with so many pro teams for fans so you have to win some blockbuster games to expand and keep your fan base. You have to capture their imagination and that has to start with the team. The university can only do so much, the team has to sell itself on the field.
 
WingU-Conn said:
This only lets us know you
a) have no friends
b) have no life
c) have no sense of priorities
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Lets me know you have done nothing.

Love you guys though. You make my day.
 
rich1122 said:
Lets me know you have done nothing.

Love you guys though. You make my day.
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I've done enough, but I don't need validation from you, so I see no point in posting my resume.
 
ZooCougar said:
The guy who works at the Subway I go to every now and them also doesn't think much of UConn football.
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the subway I went to had a kid very much into Uconn football and attended one of the camps.
 
I don't think it's that surprising, honestly. Rentschler has a capacity of 40,000. Connecticut is a small state with 3.5M people living in it, plus there's obviously some interest from alumni living in surrounding states, yet we can't fill the place for the 6 or 7 home games we have each year. It's obvious that the vast majority of CT residents don't really care about UConn football. Even my dad, who's a pretty big fan of every sport and loves UConn basketball, doesn't pay too much attention to our football program.

But that's not necessarily new, even when the team was decent back when I was in school the stadium was rarely full. I think our program has a lot of potential for a huge growth in popularity, but there has to be some real, sustained success over at least a decade.
 
amory said:
I don't think it's that surprising, honestly. Rentschler has a capacity of 40,000. Connecticut is a small state with 3.5M people living in it, plus there's obviously some interest from alumni living in surrounding states, yet we can't fill the place for the 6 or 7 home games we have each year. It's obvious that the vast majority of CT residents don't really care about UConn football. Even my dad, who's a pretty big fan of every sport and loves UConn basketball, doesn't pay too much attention to our football program.

But that's not necessarily new, even when the team was decent back when I was in school the stadium was rarely full. I think our program has a lot of potential for a huge growth in popularity, but there has to be some real, sustained success over at least a decade.
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Ha ...

This is all BS. And short-sighted.

We can get 38,000-40,000 regularly. It wasn't merely the NEWNESS of our 2003 Big East period that attracted the fans. In fact, I would say that the tailgating and the entire game experience has been enhanced in the ensuing decade. What we saw was a totally decline in spirit of a fan-base because of one poor hire. The drop WAS a significant percentage and worrisome. But, I don't think the attendance at Memphis or at games through a 0-9 loss streak is indicative of where our attendance will be.

We are still new. Talking about the "way back when I was in school - less than 10 years ago" is funny. Our traditions and fan patterns are still fully in development. We need a good year from Diaco. Enthusiasm of the core fan. And, we can easily recharge back to 35,000 and expand the base from there. People are coming to Rentschler (we've heard) from RI? I can tell you that they are coming from Albany and Eastern NY. Fairfield Cty is not too absorbed; but has potential. This is relatively simple stuff in getting a decent schedule and winning. Diaco, I am now convinced, was a damn good hire. He has done the right things every week he has been in our employment. He has a solid staff when exciting backgrounds. So ... again, we are taking the "Stairs". We are still a growth stock.
 
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Our program is basically less than 20 years old. The Big East gave it a nice boost, the AAC represents some adversity, but if we start winning again then the place is going to fill up.
 
Winning will cure all the whinings and associated problems like attendance !!! And BD's team will win!!!
 
whaler11 said:
I like horseracing. I've been to probably 10-12 major tracks (including the spa) and many of the dumps too... the sport is completely dead.
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No, it isn't. Not as many people go to the track anymore on non-event days, but the handle last year was just short of $10B. Why does everything have to be be a grand pronouncement?
 
J187Money said:
Say what you want about FHCRE - but he won at the Rent. And that matters.
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Yes sir. Losing to the likes of Towson, Temple, Western Michigan, and USF at home is simply unacceptable.
 
Waquoit said:
No, it isn't. Not as many people go to the track anymore on non-event days, but the handle last year was just short of $10B. Why does everything have to be be a grand pronouncement?
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It's weird. A simple google search of 'horse racing decline' paints an entirely different picture.

Unless a horse is racing for the triple crown the sport does not exist in the national conciousness.

If the sport wasn't dying, Churchill Downs wouldn't be increasing their hold. Their average handle is under $1.2 million a day and increasing the takeout only is going to quicken their death.
 
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whaler11 said:
It's weird. A simple google search of 'horse racing decline' paints an entirely different picture.

Unless a horse is racing for the triple crown the sport does not exist in the national conciousness.

If the sport wasn't dying, Churchill Downs wouldn't be increasing their hold. Their average handle is under $1.2 million a day and increasing the takeout only is going to quicken their death.
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I'm not going to argue that it's not in decline, but you didn't say that. You said completely dead. And Churchill is a poor example to use, they are nothing but a slot parlor company these days. They only care about horse racing 2 days out of the year.
 
On the soccer thread people keep saying baseball is dead. Only revenues are up to $9B and growing.
 
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