Students?

[OSUFALCON]

Not counting the players, band, cheerleaders or dance team did we have more than 30 students at the game tonight? Awful! It's painful to say but like here at this forum only two or three comments about the game. No interest in the program right now. Yes this team isn't that good but they deserve some support. Oh well forget it......................

[TG1996]

I don't know about you or anyone else, but the site has been loading spotty at best tonight.

Disappointed at the continued low student turnout, regardless of how the team is performing.

[NY-BG-FAN]

I'll say the same thing I always say about attendance. I'd rather be at a BG game with 30 people that want to be there, than 300 that had to be talked into it.

I hate seeing people complain about lack of marketing blah blah blah. If you have to jam it down people's throats that they should be liking BGSU sports if they just can't get into it on their own, I doubt those people will ever consistently support the teams or university anyway so what's the point. Getting them to one game through marketing efforts won't do much in the long run.

Not to mention the students that you have to "market" to so they attend sporting events are usually the most likely to bail after one bad loss. BGSU certainly doesn't need that kind of "support."

I used to fret about attendance, but you just have to force yourself to let it go. If you go to the BG game and have a good time, who really cares about a number on the box score.

[RedHawk65]

Not counting the players, band, cheerleaders or dance team did we have more than 30 students at the game tonight? Awful! It's painful to say but like here at this forum only two or three comments about the game. No interest in the program right now. Yes this team isn't that good but they deserve some support. Oh well forget it......................

Speaking of the dance team, I hear there is a guy on said team. Can anyone verify? And is he any good (at dancing that is)?

[TG1996]

Not counting the players, band, cheerleaders or dance team did we have more than 30 students at the game tonight? Awful! It's painful to say but like here at this forum only two or three comments about the game. No interest in the program right now. Yes this team isn't that good but they deserve some support. Oh well forget it......................

Speaking of the dance team, I hear there is a guy on said team. Can anyone verify? And is he any good (at dancing that is)?

Yes, there is a male member of the dance team. I'm sure he appreciates your fans' infatuation with him.

[RedHawk65]

Not counting the players, band, cheerleaders or dance team did we have more than 30 students at the game tonight? Awful! It's painful to say but like here at this forum only two or three comments about the game. No interest in the program right now. Yes this team isn't that good but they deserve some support. Oh well forget it......................

Speaking of the dance team, I hear there is a guy on said team. Can anyone verify? And is he any good (at dancing that is)?

Yes, there is a male member of the dance team. I'm sure he appreciates your fans' infatuation with him.

You should know we can't just do things halfway. See BOTRZ!.

[BgWaRrIoR]

Im also done complaining about attendance. It would have been a good crowd tonight, if the students would do something besides just sit there and text. Seriously, why come if thats all your going to do?? My old high school's bb games are more exciting than BG games. When I took my campus tour, my guide told me that bb games were great and that AA was one of the loudest arenas in the MAC. Im quite disappointed, both men's and women's games....................but theres nothing i can do. Even if i could, i have no clue what to do. Its so frustrating, because you know if ppl would get into the game it would be a great atmosphere. I hope the Stroh will be different

[BGSU33]

It's as simply as this.....win and put a good product on the floor (which we’re not doing right now) AZZ will light up, students will slowly start coming out again, general fans will increase, etc,…..but lose and put a mediocre product on the floor (which we are doing now – and have been for years now) and AZZ will remain dead, the students won’t come out, and general fans will have no interest. Period.

[Matty B]

I for one will place a very large percentage of the game on the marketing. Say what you want about "having to talk kids into coming.." the fact is that students DON'T EVEN KNOW WHEN GAMES ARE OCCURING. the only effort marketing makes is a tarp outside Anderson arena.. on one side... that MAYBE 25% of students attending class will even see... and then it doesn't even differentiate whether its a men's or a women's game.

There are TONS of basketball fans on campus. Go to the rec center at 5PM on any weekday and see how long you have to wait to get on a court. There is interest, but no effort towards bringing these students into AA has been put forth.

I took a visit to University of Cincinatti last year to watch the Cronin Classic/Chris Knight Show.. and they virtually made it a SIN to miss any sporting event on that campus (there was a football game that weekend as well... Flyers EVERYWHERE... Schedules EVERYWHERE... instruction sheets on how to dress for games, etc. EVERYWHERE...

I understand UC is a slightly larger school with a little more money... but this is just their effort of printing out pieces of paper... OH, and everything that I just mentioned in the previous paragraph... all that applied to ALL THE OFF CAMPUS HOUSING/APARTMENT COMPLEXES AS WELL!!!!!

If anyone involved with BGSU's athletic department, whether it be Brian from Marketing, Louis Orr, or Greg Christopher, would just make the effort to INFORM STUDENTS THAT WE HAVE A TEAM AND THEY ARE PLAYING ON THIS NIGHT.. attendance would increase DRAMATICALLY!!!! post flyers with large pictures of AA back when it was packed, send a marketing rep out to the dorms and greek houses... have a damn promotion or 2... ANYTHING!!!!!!!



now the reason I use this argument instead of the "put a good product on the floor and people will come" argument, which is a valid one, is that last night I saw BG's players come out of the tunnel... and saw the deflated look in all of their eyes when they realized that they were playing probably their most important game of the year to date in front of a virtually empty arena.

You can't tell me that doesn't affect the product we put out there.....

[Falcon137]

I took a visit to University of Cincinatti last year to watch the Cronin Classic/Chris Knight Show.. and they virtually made it a SIN to miss any sporting event on that campus (there was a football game that weekend as well... Flyers EVERYWHERE... Schedules EVERYWHERE... instruction sheets on how to dress for games, etc. EVERYWHERE...

I understand UC is a slightly larger school with a little more money... but this is just their effort of printing out pieces of paper... OH, and everything that I just mentioned in the previous paragraph... all that applied to ALL THE OFF CAMPUS HOUSING/APARTMENT COMPLEXES AS WELL!!!!!

I'm not going to get into a blame game about bball attendance at BG.

But, I will say it is unfair to compare UC and BG. After Huggins was let go their bball attendance took a huge downturn, I believe most of their games this year have drawn around 6-7k, which is pretty astounding considering the market they are in, the tradition they have, and the teams they play. They barely sold out the crosstown shootout, the only reason they did is because Xavier brought 2-3k fans.

Ask real UC fans what they think of student turnout at bball games right now.

[Falcon137]

If anyone involved with BGSU's athletic department, whether it be Brian from Marketing, Louis Orr, or Greg Christopher, would just make the effort to INFORM STUDENTS THAT WE HAVE A TEAM AND THEY ARE PLAYING ON THIS NIGHT.. attendance would increase DRAMATICALLY!!!! post flyers with large pictures of AA back when it was packed, send a marketing rep out to the dorms and greek houses... have a damn promotion or 2... ANYTHING!!!!!!!

You mean the sign in the window that says, "Basketball Game Tonight" isn't enough?

[Class of 61]

I for one will place a very large percentage of the game on the marketing. Say what you want about "having to talk kids into coming.." the fact is that students DON'T EVEN KNOW WHEN GAMES ARE OCCURING. the only effort marketing makes is a tarp outside Anderson arena.. on one side... that MAYBE 25% of students attending class will even see... and then it doesn't even differentiate whether its a men's or a women's game.

There are TONS of basketball fans on campus. Go to the rec center at 5PM on any weekday and see how long you have to wait to get on a court. There is interest, but no effort towards bringing these students into AA has been put forth.

I took a visit to University of Cincinatti last year to watch the Cronin Classic/Chris Knight Show.. and they virtually made it a SIN to miss any sporting event on that campus (there was a football game that weekend as well... Flyers EVERYWHERE... Schedules EVERYWHERE... instruction sheets on how to dress for games, etc. EVERYWHERE...

I understand UC is a slightly larger school with a little more money... but this is just their effort of printing out pieces of paper... OH, and everything that I just mentioned in the previous paragraph... all that applied to ALL THE OFF CAMPUS HOUSING/APARTMENT COMPLEXES AS WELL!!!!!

If anyone involved with BGSU's athletic department, whether it be Brian from Marketing, Louis Orr, or Greg Christopher, would just make the effort to INFORM STUDENTS THAT WE HAVE A TEAM AND THEY ARE PLAYING ON THIS NIGHT.. attendance would increase DRAMATICALLY!!!! post flyers with large pictures of AA back when it was packed, send a marketing rep out to the dorms and greek houses... have a damn promotion or 2... ANYTHING!!!!!!!



now the reason I use this argument instead of the "put a good product on the floor and people will come" argument, which is a valid one, is that last night I saw BG's players come out of the tunnel... and saw the deflated look in all of their eyes when they realized that they were playing probably their most important game of the year to date in front of a virtually empty arena.

You can't tell me that doesn't affect the product we put out there.....

Matty,
I was an alum who attended the "alumni day", which meant, among other things, going to ALL THREE events that day (women's and men's basketball and hockey) + a pizza party at the Mileti Center. To get into the men's game, all you needed to show was a stub from either the women's game or hockey game...PLUS they made a big deal about giving a year's worth of Taco Bell stuff to the kid with the best creative SIGN. I only saw about a half dozen signs lifted for viewing in this TV game. As to excitement, if you can't get "up" for what BG's women's team is doing, then you're dead! The men's game vs. Akron was a terrible exhibition and I was very disappointed. But the women's game was lively and action packed, despite it being a blow out win for the Falcons. Hockey was also enjoyable...and outdrew BOTH basketball teams combined, if you don't count the "freebies" for the men's game. I'm assuming that Mich. just might be a bigger draw than Akron, not to mention a lot of Ann Arbor folks in the house.

Oh, and by the way, for some reason I didn't need to have someone come and TELL me when our teams were playing...of course, that was back in the stone ages, BEFORE cellphones. Pretty lame excuse IMO.

[gmartin]

Speaking of cell phones! Most college students now-a-days have cell phones. Most students register their cell phone for use to the Emergency Text Message System.

My friend works down in Carbondale, IL for Southern Illinois Univeristy. They send text messages out to the students one day prior to the game. He said they can message 16,000 students who have cell phones registered in 3 minutes. If just 1 out of 4 students would attend the game I think they did their job.

WHY CANT THIS BE DONE AT BG! I know for a fact, Michigan, Northwestern, Louisville, Drake, and Evansville markets upcoming games with text messages.

Think it is time BG steps up and tries something like this. I know when I was a student, 18 years ago, I received emails promoting upcoming games. The only problem is many students may not check their emails in time.

[factman]

If one out of four BG students attendended the basketball game, we wouldn't have any room for season ticket holders!

[Ryan Autullo]

You can argue that his timing was bad, but Gregg Brandon was spot on when he said the student body at BG is apathetic about Falcon athletics. It hurts, but it's the truth.