As a fairly recent graduate I’d say the Gampel experience is a bit lackluster when considering our elite status in the sport. A few reasons come to mind:
1. Mansfield is tiny and not into sports compared to these Big 10/12 college towns. There aren’t a ton of bars to go to beforehand, the parking sucks, and the townsfolk just aren’t into it. They resent the university rather than embrace it. Completely different from other places in the country. Which is sad.
2. The arena itself kind of sucks. It’s an old ugly nipple in the middle of campus that until a few years ago didn’t serve beer. Theres no real history in it either so I’m not sure why they haven’t built a more modern one for their flagship programs.
3. The teams we play there aren’t that exciting. Usually it gets crazy for Villanova or a good Marquette team but nobody’s really thrilled to play St John’s or DePaul. It’s not like we’re playing other big state schools.
4. There is a lack of tradition. There’s nothing that’s passed down by the classes or alumni, people just pregame and show up. Besides a couple chants it’s really just like a professional environment - nothing really school specific.
