We simply have to grow this fanbase

[BlueMAB]

- Expand the student section and promote UCONN football to the students! Make them aware of buses to the game.

I sit near the student section and I watched hundreds of them walk out of the stadium at the end of the 3rd quarter of a 4 point game. Pathetic. The students know about the games, and they know about the parties in the parking lot, and for many, the latter is the priority. Like many of the adults, they come for the tailgating, and occasionally stick around for the game.

 

[HartfordHank]

One last thought. You can not schedule game times the way UConn is doing it. You do not see the SEC and Big 10 leaving so many open start times at this point in the season so their fans know that their teams play on Saturdays at their usual start time

Actually not true. Here is the Alabama upcoming schedule. TV rules the schedules!



10/15/11 at Ole Miss * Oxford, Miss. TBA
10/22/11 vs. Tennessee * Tuscaloosa, Ala. TBA
11/05/11 vs. LSU * Tuscaloosa, Ala. TBA
11/12/11 at Mississippi State * Starkville, Miss. TBA
11/19/11 vs. Georgia Southern

Tuscaloosa, Ala. 1:00 p.m. CT
11/26/11 at Auburn * Auburn, Ala. TBA

 

[uconNYC]

Because CT is a mid-sized state and we get coverage both in the NYC and Boston markets - if we had a rocking fanbase both ACC and B1G would be lusting after us. Essentially its in our hands, unlike a West Virginia that just does not have the demographics or markets.

 

[toppencil]

One last thought. You can not schedule game times the way UConn is doing it. You do not see the SEC and Big 10 leaving so many open start times at this point in the season so their fans know that their teams play on Saturdays at their usual start time

Actually not true. Here is the Alabama upcoming schedule. TV rules the schedules!

10/15/11 at Ole Miss * Oxford, Miss. TBA
10/22/11 vs. Tennessee * Tuscaloosa, Ala. TBA
11/05/11 vs. LSU * Tuscaloosa, Ala. TBA
11/12/11 at Mississippi State * Starkville, Miss. TBA
11/19/11 vs. Georgia Southern

Tuscaloosa, Ala. 1:00 p.m. CT
11/26/11 at Auburn * Auburn, Ala. TBA

TV controls the start times and they want flexibility. It's the same everywhere.

 

[toppencil]

UConn should be proud of how far we have come. It takes generations to get to a true big time level. Michigan has been in the Big 10 since 1896. Give it time.

 

[ZooCougar]

Road travel is not that big even in the Big 10. I went to IU and Ohio State was the only out of state team that completely filled the place up, and they bought most IU tickets also it seemed.

Also, IU recently did a stadium expansion and they were not coming any where near the need to do so attendance wise, they did it because they had to in order to keep up.

Plus, it's IU. Hardly a challenge for a road win.

I agree with Pudge completely on the sentiment. No fanbase anywhere gives a crap about a road game in Buffalo. But Pudge is right, we don't travel well yet.

When I was in college in Tennessee, I used to go to one or two UT home games a season. Getting a ticket to see them play Alabama was hard. You could buy a scalped student ticket, but sometimes you needed to show a UT student ID to get into the stadium.

But if they were playing UCLA, then they never checked any ID, because they would have empty seats and UCLA was never seen as a threat.

 

[HartfordHank]

At a lot of the "Big" schools the fan base plans on game day being an all day event, possibly an all weekend event. It does matter to them what time the game is, they have committed their entire day to the game. Some have driven in Friday night in the Winnebago and will drive home on Sunday. The campus is set up to accommodate them and welcomes them.

 

[pepband99]

UConnJim - I agree with most of your post, but the comment on TV times being "You do not see the SEC and Big 10 leaving so many open start times at this point in the season so their fans know that their teams play on Saturdays at their usual start time" is totally wrong, at least for the SEC (and pretty much everywhere but the B10). The B10 is a special case, both in the fact that they have their own network, and cling to their 11AM CMT start times as a preferred option.

 

[mattp]

i think maybe we should move UConn to Mississippi. they love football down there and both of their BCS teams are subpar. it's an open market. maybe Louisiana could support 2 BCS teams

 

[SubbaBub]

Road attendance is based on so many things, a few which we can't do much about. Some fans of other teams travel to most games regardless of proximity and cost to attend, but even for the big schools this is a relatively small group consisting of retirees and wealthy boosters with a long time emotional commitment to the program. We are just too young. Continue to win and schedule convenient attractive opponents and it will get better.

Other schools also have large alumni bases in the road markets they visit. Their AD's leverage this in scheduling and is helped by tight regional conferences filled with attractive opponents.

On the homefront, did anyone else notice that the PA has been holding the announcements to allow the crowd to celebrate TDs. Also, the pc Richard whistle has been moved and less of an annoyance. Nice job on those.

Also, the fanfest is getting better. The band and cheer squad are performing and posing for pictures. Great. A few more food/ promotional booths would be nice. As would a small CO-OP trailer to ease lines inside and help people get to their seats.

I get the addition of the DJ to serve the younger demographic and see how it could add value long term, but right now it isn't quite working. Tighten up the playlist, the stadium should react to whatever is played. Work in new stuff slowly. Promotion if the DJ is OK but lose the "YEAH BOY" hype and probably all of the talking. Again words on the screen for any song you want us to sing along with.

Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk

 

[Palatine]

We are in our infancy. That is true.

As more students graduate, students that have had football Saturdays (and Thursdays and Fridays) as part of their college experience, the base will widen. As more and more local kids play and star for UConn, Connecticut football will become part of the state culture. And being on the sports pages every week in the fall will help make us more popular. The thing that all these have in common is that they will occur naturally.

To this point, the marketing of UConn football has been beyond awful. The Hathaway regime was not interested in building the fan base. They wanted to squeeze as many dollars as possible out of the program. The latter has to come into balance with the former. There needs to be investment spending and it needs to be aggressive. Every game should be considered an event on par with the circus coming to town starting with the spring game. And I'm not talking about Geno giving away an ipod.

 

[businesslawyer]

We are in our infancy. That is true.

As more students graduate, students that have had football Saturdays (and Thursdays and Fridays) as part of their college experience, the base will widen. As more and more local kids play and star for UConn, Connecticut football will become part of the state culture. And being on the sports pages every week in the fall will help make us more popular. The thing that all these have in common is that they will occur naturally.]

That is incredibly well said. Luckily, of course, those are only excuses for the fans being more devoted, and not for coaches being able to attract the best recruits from NY, CT and PA. Then, none of those factors are relevant.

LOL.

 

[Silk City]

What about some organized bus trips to away games? It gets a lot of people out there to away games in bunches and does a lot of the work for you. A good amount of people in Connecticut have the money for a road game, but it is a pain to put together trips to a lot of these places if people just want to see the game and leave. (That's the case for places like Buffalo, Rutgers, Syracuse, etc. They're not tourist destinations so all people want to do is cheer on the Huskies and then head out without messing up their schedules too much.

I was in Nebraska this summer and they were making a big deal about a bus trip to Wyoming (who I believe they played last weekend). I don't think it was through the school; I think their fan base put it together on their own. Their ride is longer than a UConn to Buffalo, and the degree of the away team's stature to the opponent is pretty similar to UConn/Buffalo as well. But I have no doubt they had those buses packed and probably filled up a big chunk of the stadium.

If UConn could start doing this for drivable games I think it would benefit both the fans and the program. Plus, it's easy because you can add buses based on the interest level, just as the school does for trips from Storrs to Rentschler. I don't think fans would mind coughing up a few extra bucks for transportation if it means potentially avoiding hotel costs and getting to ride with other Husky fans.

 

[Bootsthemonkey]

I was at a park recently and saw some kids running around with UConn football t-shirts on. I never would have believed my eyes if I saw that ten years ago. Never would have happened.
I say target the kids. This is when they choose their teams, at a young age. Do something like allow youth football teams to play a series at halftime, like the NFL does. being a kid, getting to play in that stadium in front of a big crowd, you never forget that.Maybe they do it already and I just haven't seen it - I haven't been to a lot of games. My job has me work a lot of weekends.
Maybe you have some sort of a contest for kids to win tickets - youth sports teams, groups, organizations. But I think a lot of us adults grew up being fans of other D-1A (FBS) teams simply because UConn was 1-AA during our formative years. Those adults are going to maintain their allegiances. A lot of people I know are Syracuse or BC fans, probably because those were the D-1A teams around here to follow when they were growing up. The kids, however are in their formative years, choosing their teams. That's your future fanbase growth.
And when I think of those kids I saw in the UConn shirts I think that this is where things are going. But it doesn't hurt to help that process along as much as possible - and it takes time.

 

[BlueMAB]

I say target the kids.

I agree, and somebody at UConn does too. Got this website via email yesterday from UConn.

www.JuniorHusky.com

 

[Jarhead_1775]

In the last two seasons, I have been to games at Michigan, Ohio State, and 3 weeks ago I was at a game at Camp Randall Stadium At U Wisconsin. It is like night and day.

A few thoughts:
- I think one big issue is the price of the chair backs, and the lack of people in them. Not sure how this can be resolved, but it is rare where I see that section filled up.
- Expand the student section and promote UCONN football to the students! Make them aware of buses to the game. Set up a huge tailgate spread for the students where they can hang out before the games. The student section at Wisconsin was the best I have ever seen. Totally involved and they all had unique things they did.
- The Stadium atmosphere at the Rent is horrific. Can we do something original? Or something unique to UCONN? At Wisconsin, they played several different songs, (one of which "Jump Around" had everyone, not just the student section, dancing and going crazy before the 4th quarter - And it was a blowout). Find some song, any song (please no Sweet Caroline), and play it before the 4th quarter. The crowd can sing along, dance, whatever. People have been talking about having a dog sled lead the team out, not sure if this has ever been proposed.
- Let the fans get to know the team a little more. At Wisconsin, they had "Ask the Badger". And several UW football players answered a question ("What was the best invention of the last 100 years?" One player said "a bed", and an O or D Lineman said "Dippin Dots, because it is the future", I could not stop laughing).
- Tailgating - I wouldn't change much. I have been to alot of college venues, and I think UCONN has a fantastic tailgate set up. One thing I would change is do more for the kids. Have Jonathan walk around, or the cheerleaders. Have the band perform. Although they might already do this.

Like this?

 

[Palatine]

The scoreboard should replay every play if possible including controversial plays. Are they really afraid there will be a riot if fans get a second look?

I still want the the sound of a wild pack of dogs over the P.A. whenever UConn kicks off.

I know neither of these things will solve any problems but I'm just saying.

 

[freescooter]

We've don a solid job of building the fan base...could have done better but I'd guess we have a solid base of 35000 for every game, more for bigger conference games. That isn't terrible, and is way better than the original projections which were supposed ot be optimisitc. the problem has been that there seems to be little effort to go to the next level. A better marketing job would certainly help. But so would a better performance. I think a really solid run, 10-2 type season with a national ranking would do wonders. Last year's BCS bowl was a huge step, but the sense was that it was a fluke. A regular run of good to very good teams would be a huge step. A stable conferenece owuld help too.

 

[BG79]

I am a new fan, or at least someone that wants to be a fan. I want a local team to get behind and root for but there seems to be some serious issues that make me really have to seek out how to do so with this team. TV coverage for one, we all know about the SNY debacle from last saturday but the first game of the season had no television coverage at all. I don't get why games arent on local network affiliates and not buried on SNY a channel that very few even know exists on their cable fan unless they're a met fan.

Another thing that is making this very trying is the extremely boring and predictable 1980's high school style offense. It's run run run and more run. I am a fan of a pro style offense but man I'd almost prefer triple option crap over to what we have right now.

Now another issue is I do not know how family friendly the games are. I havent attended a game yet but I'd like to but I want to know if it's the kind of place I can bring a young child to without having beer spilled on us and people fighting or swearing nearby. If anyone has some experience in this area I'd love to hear some feedback and suggestions as to where to sit.

 

[Jarhead_1775]

I am a new fan, or at least someone that wants to be a fan. I want a local team to get behind and root for but there seems to be some serious issues that make me really have to seek out how to do so with this team. TV coverage for one, we all know about the SNY debacle from last saturday but the first game of the season had no television coverage at all. I don't get why games arent on local network affiliates and not buried on SNY a channel that very few even know exists on their cable fan unless they're a met fan.

Another thing that is making this very trying is the extremely boring and predictable 1980's high school style offense. It's run run run and more run. I am a fan of a pro style offense but man I'd almost prefer triple option crap over to what we have right now.

Now another issue is I do not know how family friendly the games are. I havent attended a game yet but I'd like to but I want to know if it's the kind of place I can bring a young child to without having beer spilled on us and people fighting or swearing nearby. If anyone has some experience in this area I'd love to hear some feedback and suggestions as to where to sit.

When you buy tickets, ask for the family section. It's in the north end zone. There is no beer allowed there and it is very well enforced. There are always exceptions to the rule but it's pretty tame.

 

[BG79]

When you buy tickets, ask for the family section. It's in the north end zone. There is no beer allowed there and it is very well enforced. There are always exceptions to the rule but it's pretty tame.

Is there a section that allows beer where people are still well behaved and perhaps have a better view of the field? I am not a huge drinker but I enjoy a beer or two while watching a game. They should really mention that though on the website you buy tickets from. When I was initially looking at tickets there was no mention of specific zones, I guess thats the kind of thing you have to call in for eh?

 

[EdgewoodNHV]

Is there a section that allows beer where people are still well behaved and perhaps have a better view of the field? I am not a huge drinker but I enjoy a beer or two while watching a game. They should really mention that though on the website you buy tickets from. When I was initially looking at tickets there was no mention of specific zones, I guess thats the kind of thing you have to call in for eh?

I sit in the mid-200's in the corner near the student section and most people are pretty well-behaved. You mostly want to avoid the student tailgating lot and the student section itself. Everyone else is pretty cool.

Blowing 8 bucks on a beer while watching the game, however, just never sits right.

 

[BG79]

I sit in the mid-200's in the corner near the student section and most people are pretty well-behaved. You mostly want to avoid the student tailgating lot and the student section itself. Everyone else is pretty cool.

Blowing 8 bucks on a beer while watching the game, however, just never sits right.

Do they at least sell some decent microbrews there or is it all the usual crap?

 

[Dann]

don't worry about the beer^, when we join the acc that will be gone anyway because that conf sucks on so many different levels.

 

[BG79]

don't worry about the beer^, when we join the acc that will be gone anyway because that conf sucks on so many different levels.

They don't allow beer sales?