UConn Student Football Apathy Needs Prompt Attention | The Boneyard

UConn Student Football Apathy Needs Prompt Attention

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These student complaints are real and significant. No reason they can't be dropped off stadium side at Gate C. Buses can flow that way. There should be tailgate options available. And the cost should be gratis for the bus. I wasn't aware of much of this. These issues need prompt and corrective attention. Winning helps but these impediments must be fixed--now!
 
Love how he threw the jab in about BC to try and conjure up a " message board rant".

As the kid said it. It's supposed to be entertaining, not a chore. Taking the bus to and from campus, showing up with nothing to do, and then watching a bad football team isn't fun.

It's not rocket science.

A food tent/ designated student tailgate and some more winning would do wonders.

What people on here always fail to comprehend is that a) most people aren't die hard fans b) they don't understand conference alignment c) they don't care and just want to have fun.
 
I see the points about paying for buses and no food, but honestly most of this sounds like a bunch of snobby kids that were raised in the fashion of what are you going to do for me right now and not tomorrow
 
The Rent was not built for UConn Students to see their UConn Football Team. It was built for alumni and others so they could have an easy drive to east Hartford vs. up Routes 195 or 44 in traffic. Students will never be really engaged at the Rent. Maybe sometimes for Big games but not generally. I know some schools play at Pro Stadiums but name me ONE P5 team that BUILT a stadium for the University Football Team a 30 min bus ride away? Gample II should be built next to the Rent AGH!
 
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Sky ball said:
The Rent was not built for UConn Students to see their UConn Football Team. It was built for alumni and others so they could have an easy drive to east Hartford vs. up Routes 195 or 44 in traffic. Students will never be really engaged at the Rent. Maybe sometimes for Big games but not generally.
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The problem is the school makes it a chore for them to get to the stadium and when they get there, there's nothing for them to do. I bet a lot of the students would pay extra on their season tickets if bus fair was included and there was something set up in terms of a tailgate for everyone student on the bus. Just have hot dogs, hamburgers chips and soda/water with a few games set up. Like the kid said, they get to the stadium and there's nothing for them to do. Give them a reason to want to get on the bus early to get to the game.
 
DoctorWho85 said:
The problem is the school makes it a chore for them to get to the stadium and when they get there, there's nothing for them to do. I bet a lot of the students would pay extra on their season tickets if bus fair was included and there was something set up in terms of a tailgate for everyone student on the bus. Just have hot dogs, hamburgers chips and soda/water with a few games set up. Like the kid said, they get to the stadium and there's nothing for them to do. Give them a reason to want to get on the bus early to get to the game.
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Something to do? If I was a student it would be knocking off a few in my dorm room and then walking over to the game. Not the same going by bus. Also, if the bus arrives at 2:45 for a 3:00 game why do they need something to do? Are they getting there at 2:00? If so, then that could be adjusted.
 
Sky ball said:
The Rent was not built for UConn Students to see their UConn Football Team. It was built for alumni and others so they could have an easy drive to east Hartford vs. up Routes 195 or 44 in traffic. Students will never be really engaged at the Rent. Maybe sometimes for Big games but not generally. I know some schools play at Pro Stadiums but name me ONE P5 team that BUILT a stadium for the University Football Team a 30 min bus ride away? Gample II should be built next to the Rent AGH!
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It was built because option 1 and 2 failed.
ConnHuskBask said:
Love how he threw the jab in about BC to try and conjure up a " message board rant".

As the kid said it. It's supposed to be entertaining, not a chore. Taking the bus to and from campus, showing up with nothing to do, and then watching a bad football team isn't fun.

It's not rocket science.

A food tent/ designated student tailgate and some more winning would do wonders.

What people on here always fail to comprehend is that a) most people aren't die hard fans b) they don't understand conference alignment c) they don't care and just want to have fun.
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BC vs USC is cherry picking, what about BC vs Pitt with a generous 30k. They don't have USC every week and we don't get Michigan every week. My understanding was that the student seating allocation had been steadily expanded to include the next three sections wrapping toward the press box? Student purchases down?
 
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DoctorWho85 said:
most of this sounds like a bunch of snobby kids.
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I disagree. I'd be making the same complaints. It's incredible to me that this has been going on without any corrective action being taken. These are all fixable issues. Winning is on the Coaches and players. Student attendance is on the administration. They need to fix it. No excuses.
 
1) Setting up some kind of pre-game entertainment would help. Feed the little twits something.

2) The kid from New Jersey should stay in his dorm room. His biggest problem with going to a football game seems to be the part about going to a football game.

3)DiMauro is still jerking himself off about USC. I've been to Boston College football games over the past couple of seasons - there ain't much happening.

4) The answer is all the woes is winning. All the chatter about getting people, students or otherwise, in the stands is a waste of time unless the team is winning. Nobody wants to part with their money or their time to see what we saw over the past three years - a free hamburger and a soda isn't going to get a kid out of his dorm room on a Saturday morning if he's going to see a 40-10 whomping.
 
The buses start leaving as soon they are filled up? How about they don't leave until after the game? Solves the problem of students leaving the stadium early.
 
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It's the fan's fault for not buying tickets. It's the student's fault for being too apathetic. Got it.

Meanwhile UConn will not even have it's cheerleaders or mascot tonight down at the game to support the team in a nationally televised game. This after 3 straight homes game where BYU, Stony B, and Boise had theirs on our own field.

Funny how UConn itself escapes the blame for the apathy with the poor product and the obvious fact they do not take football seriously. They treat a regular season women's basketball game that will be won by 50 with more importance that one of the football games.

They reap what they sow. Only improvement will come with an improved product. The focus on fans or students is misplaced angst. Perhaps we notice the examples that show us that our athletic dept does not treat each football game with the respect it deserves.
 
Nostical said:
I disagree. I'd be making the same complaints. It's incredible to me that this has been going on without any corrective action being taken. These are all fixable issues. Winning is on the Coaches and players. Student attendance is on the administration. They need to fix it. No excuses.
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I was mainly talking about the girl complaining about walking. Obviously that one kid that brought up a cookout with games and things for the students might be a good place to start to not so much bribe the students to show up on time, but more add incentive to it. I also think they should institute a rewards program (like the Jets are doing). It's not just a winning team that can keep the students there.
 
Nostical said:
These student complaints are real and significant. No reason they can't be dropped off stadium side at Gate C. Buses can flow that way. There should be tailgate options available. And the cost should be gratis for the bus. I wasn't aware of much of this. These issues need prompt and corrective attention. Winning helps but these impediments must be fixed--now!
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I couldn't agree with you more. Students should have preferential treatment.

What is this 20 minute walk BS? When I parked in the red lot or was a part of a tailgate in the RV section, there was a shuttle. What happened to it? There needs to be at least two shuttles running the length of the runway one, picking all people up at designated stops. The walk from off-site parking should not be less than the walk for paying customers. (On a related note. Global Spectrum needs to contract a parking service that does not hire morons and can develop a common sense parking policy. LAZ is not that contractor).

Food and drink tents should also be made available prior to the game. If the Alumni Association has a tailgate, then the future alumni should as well. GET ON IT, SUBOG/USG (or equivalent)!!!!! Beyond that, Students need to get a little more creative if they want to bring food with them. Has it regressed so far that kids actually do get EVERYTHING handed to them? In my year (which wasn't SO long ago), college is where we learned and perfected our smuggling techniques. No matter the brand, 3 of the 5 spirits are clear and look like water, people. Dubra and Popov in college makes you appreciate the Grey Goose when you get your first job.

Finally, I'm not a fan of treating students like prisoners, but buses should start making their way back to campus after the 3rd quarter, not halftime.
 
The fact that UConn charges people oh live on campus a fee to go see the campus football team play home games off campus is stupid.

There's a difference between people "wanting a handout" and people "wanting to be treated like they are welcomed rather than something the athletic department wishes they didn't have to bother with".
 
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Nostical said:
It's part of the answer. If your selling a great product but still make it difficult for your customers to get to your store, you need to fix that.
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It's easy as f--- for a student or anyone else to get to the Rent.

Only changes I'd make...make the bus free, make some sort of pre-game burger thing available for a couple of bucks and then keep the little savages hostage until the end of the game.
 
Husky25 said:
Or food should be included with the price of the ticket and/or bus ride.
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I was said that above. I bet the students would gladly pay extra if the bus and food was included in the price of season tickets.
 
CTGoonie said:
The buses start leaving as soon they are filled up? How about they don't leave until after the game? Solves the problem of students leaving the stadium early.
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Yes. Brilliant. Let's increase student attendance by keeping those who want to leave early prisoner. That will do it.
 
Fishy said:
1) Setting up some kind of pre-game entertainment would help. Feed the little twits something.

2) The kid from New Jersey should stay in his dorm room. His biggest problem with going to a football game seems to be the part about going to a football game.

3)DiMauro is still jerking himself off about USC. I've been to Boston College football games over the past couple of seasons - there ain't much happening.

4) The answer is all the woes is winning. All the chatter about getting people, students or otherwise, in the stands is a waste of time unless the team is winning. Nobody wants to part with their money or their time to see what we saw over the past three years - a free hamburger and a soda isn't going to get a kid out of his dorm room on a Saturday morning if he's going to see a 40-10 whomping.
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#4 says it all. This was not a problem the last four years of Edsall.
 
Fishy said:
... make some sort of pre-game burger thing available for a couple of bucks ...
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There's got to be a way to do meal swipes/HuskyBucks if they had to charge, they swipe at the gate to be sure people who enter on a student ticket are one still right?
 
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ASweet3781 said:
They treat a regular season women's basketball game that will be won by 50 with more importance that one of the football games.
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Enough with the WBB digs like this one. Besides being untrue, belittling a huge asset doesn't do the program any good.
 
As has been discussed ad nauseam on this board, you just can't have it both ways. The campus has grossly insufficient transportation infrastructure from the major population centers for a D1 football stadium and having to bus the students in makes it hard for anyone other than the big time fans to actually want to show up, especially when the team is bad. There is no good answer to this problem other than fielding a consistently winning team that makes it the place to be on Saturdays.
 
How much could it really cost for all inclusive? Busses drop off at the gate, big tent right next to the gate, some workers to cook and serve beer, dogs, burgers, hand out angry towels or some shiz, a DJ, games, open after game also with DJ for a "party".
Let’s play a game here. Let’s say all 4000 students take the bus. Busses start 4 hours before game time. 60people per bus. Going to need about 15 busses total coming and going to deliver 1000 people in an hour.

--School busses go for about $125 per hour. need the busses for 8 hours. So about $1000 per bus*15 = $15K for transportation per game.

--School owns large tents, pay somebody to set it up = ~$250

--20 workers at avg. $12/hr for 8 hours =~$2000 with clean up and stuff

--Beer. Each keg has about 160 beers in it. Get Natty Lite. College kids don’t care. Natty goes for about $80 per keg. Through a distributer they could get it for $70 per keg I’m sure. I'm guessing that 50% of the kids will be 21 years old. Each person will need 5 beers. Just an average. 3000 kids that are 21 and over at 5 beers each is 15,000 beers. 15000/160beers per keg = ~94 kegs. 94 kegs at $70 each is ~$6600.

--Water/soda/etc = just guessing $1000

--3000 dogs and 3000 burgers through UConn food vendor. My guess is $0.50 per item. 6000 items*0.5 = ~$3000

--Angry towels or some shiz can be donated for free by a sponsor no problem

--DJ...get a kid from UConn to do it. There are some kids up there that have cult like followings as a DJ. He/She would do it for $500 easy. easy.

--**Ok, so out the door all inclusive price is ~$28,500 per game for a student tailgate.
--$28500/4000students = ~$7 per kid

--Student season tix = $50. at least it was in 2011. Call it $80 for 7 games. add $7 per game to the price of that package.
*******------Student season tix package with all inclusive tailgate and doorstep to doorstep service for
******$130. That's it. No cost to the University.
Hell, call it $150 per season ticket and UConn can get the best insurance money can buy to cover themselves and have extra for intangibles.
 
Fishy said:
1) Setting up some kind of pre-game entertainment would help. Feed the little twits something.

2) The kid from New Jersey should stay in his dorm room. His biggest problem with going to a football game seems to be the part about going to a football game.

3)DiMauro is still jerking himself off about USC. I've been to Boston College football games over the past couple of seasons - there ain't much happening.

4) The answer is all the woes is winning. All the chatter about getting people, students or otherwise, in the stands is a waste of time unless the team is winning. Nobody wants to part with their money or their time to see what we saw over the past three years - a free hamburger and a soda isn't going to get a kid out of his dorm room on a Saturday morning if he's going to see a 40-10 whomping.
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Alumni Stadium (On campus; Cap: 44,500) was not even sold out for the #9 team in the country?!?! Then it certainly will not be sold out (or electric) when the Black Bears come to The Heights.

Attendance for BC home games for the last year plus (Rounded to the nearest 25...just because):
2013
Villanova: 30,925
Wake Forest: 32,475
#8 Florida State: 40,125
Army: 33, 125
Virginia Tech: 30,125
NC St.: 31,250

2014
Pittsburgh: 30,075
#9 USC: 41,625

33715/44,500=76% capacity


So far in 2014 UConn has attendances of BYU: 35,150, SBU: 23,550, and BSU: 30,100. Avg: 29,600/38,500 = 77% Capacity (74% based on 40k capacity).

BC has the same problem UConn does and an on-campus stadium is not a factor. The biggest function of increasing the crowd size (including students) for a sporting event is entertainment value and winning is a huge component of being entertained, as is the manner in which you win and opponent. Student can and should absolutely tweak the transportation and outside-stadium aspects. Make no mistake that tailgating is included in the entertainment value of a live football game. BUT the biggest factor in all of this is entertainment value received for dollar spent.

That is a lesson that does not change throughout life.
 
It's really senseless that they don't offer a free tailgate. Any student taking the bus is likely an on campus student with a meal plan. If these students go to the game they aren't going to the dining hall for lunch so take it out of those fees and have the students 'swipe' or whatever they need to do for accounting purposes.
 
You guys would not believe the dedication this kid showed in getting to the game. He had to walk across campus, past a dingy bar, through a gauntlet of 22 frat boys, all wearing 7 polo shirts a piece with popped collars, and 2 girls in oversized sweaters down to their knees.

BDhDeQCCcAArxWD.jpg-large-480x360.jpg
 
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