Game Day Experience

[cameron]

This is always a fun topic. What was your take on gameday? What was good? What was bad?

I'll go first.

The PA was very loud. Usually, we have problems with it working. Apparently, that was fixed. Turn to volume down a little, but otherwise it sounded good.

The food was awful, still. New vendor, same problems. I bought my wife a $4 hot dog and it had hard, stale bread with it. If I was only paying $1 I wouldn't mind as much. They need to make the food worth what they're charging.

The advertising is overkill. I get they need to support the budget, and BGSU will always need in stadium ads. I do get that. But when they start running straight-up commercials that you'd see on tv, its too much and not creative.

I do like the new signage in the stadium, but wish it said roll along, instead of this talons up that won't last more than a few years.

[BGGrad01]

Obviously I'd like to see quality match price on concessions but that almost never happens at sporting events. I have a bigger issue with the lines and operations. I mentioned in the other thread that I went down early in the 2nd quarter and stood in a healthy line. I had my son with me and he was a little antsy so we went over the east side. Commiserated with a couple Memphis fans about how bad it was. No bottled water when I got up to order.

I don't mind all the ads - helps to pay bills. The t shirt shooter looked to have some issues but it's a good addition.

Posting tweets on the video board is something I hadn't noticed before - something to pass the down time.

For in game entertainment, I think everybody needs to remember that our style of play leads to ALOT of breaks in the action. That's a lot of commercial time to fill up with some activity.

[factman]

I gave up on stadium concessions years ago and don't even try, so that is a non factor for me. My only complaint is that the PA announcer kept talking over the official announcing penalties, and you had no idea what the call was. There are also waaaaay too many "on field" presentations, for lack of a better word, that they all lose any effectiveness.

[Browns]

The Doyt is still the only place I've been to where you can only wash one hand at a time in the restroom, so there's that.

[vannzee]

Fantastic game with two very good teams but...

I was thoroughly unimpressed with the stadium experience. First off, when we went down to our row one seats behind the Memphis bench the entire row had probably a half inch to an inch of standing water from the rain. I know that you can't control the rain but maybe have better drainage patterns or go thru with some sort of push mop for the bottom row once the rain stops. We had to sit with our feet wet and not put our program or anything down there. Also no cup holders so our drinks had to sit atop the standing water if we wished to not hold them. Partially my own fault but I was surprised how low the first row on the visitors side sits, it was impossible to see over the players so we moved higher up after the first quarter. This is not s problem I have ran into at other stadiums but I partially expected it.

The concessions were an experience enough where other members of my party may not return. First, concession employees were fighting among themselves because of how one girl would call out to others what food item she was needing, cursing and ect. At the half we were told they were out of beer and never had any pizza. After almost an entire half time wait I pay five dollars for a hot dog and they give me one without a bun. Puzzled I ask what the deal was and they tell me that they are out of buns, really did they not expect me to notice? They were rude and seemed stunned that I did not want to pay $5 for a nude bun-less hot dog...I tweeted to the athletic department and received a very generic apology. I went hungry for the game.

Restrooms were very primitive. Sinks were hard to wash both hands at once, and one rest room was without paper towels even before kickoff. Also, one restroom had two wooden fixtures (locker stalls?) impeding traffic to the in door for the mens room. You really had to squeeze past them. I didn't understand why the fixtures had to sit right there.,,

I thought that the tailgating scene was pretty good especially following the morning rains. I liked how they had the cheerleaders walking thru the lots and cheering. Parking was easy and affordable with the coupon.

If it wasnt for the nice day and competitive game I may have regretted making the drive down from Lenawee County.

[vannzee]

Also, I agree about the PA being overly loud or at-least before kickoff (minor thing)...PA announcer did talk over the refs almost everytime and over the pregame hype video

[footballguy51]

Fantastic game with two very good teams but...

I was thoroughly unimpressed with the stadium experience. First off, when we went down to our row one seats behind the Memphis bench the entire row had probably a half inch to an inch of standing water from the rain. I know that you can't control the rain but maybe have better drainage patterns or go thru with some sort of push mop for the bottom row once the rain stops. We had to sit with our feet wet and not put our program or anything down there. Also no cup holders so our drinks had to sit atop the standing water if we wished to not hold them. Partially my own fault but I was surprised how low the first row on the visitors side sits, it was impossible to see over the players so we moved higher up after the first quarter. This is not s problem I have ran into at other stadiums but I partially expected it.

The concessions were an experience enough where other members of my party may not return. First, concession employees were fighting among themselves because of how one girl would call out to others what food item she was needing, cursing and ect. At the half we were told they were out of beer and never had any pizza. After almost an entire half time wait I pay five dollars for a hot dog and they give me one without a bun. Puzzled I ask what the deal was and they tell me that they are out of buns, really did they not expect me to notice? They were rude and seemed stunned that I did not want to pay $5 for a nude bun-less hot dog...I tweeted to the athletic department and received a very generic apology. I went hungry for the game.

Restrooms were very primitive. Sinks were hard to wash both hands at once, and one rest room was without paper towels even before kickoff. Also, one restroom had two wooden fixtures (locker stalls?) impeding traffic to the in door for the mens room. You really had to squeeze past them. I didn't understand why the fixtures had to sit right there.,,

I thought that the tailgating scene was pretty good especially following the morning rains. I liked how they had the cheerleaders walking thru the lots and cheering. Parking was easy and affordable with the coupon.

If it wasnt for the nice day and competitive game I may have regretted making the drive down from Lenawee County.

Welcome to BGSU!

I always eat before I go to the game, usually with some friends that tailgate. I go out to eat after the game. The only time I visit the concessions is for something to drink and that's rare. Unfortunately, the facilities they have to work with do not lend themselves to quality food (not even average food). The stadium is in need of renovations and that's coming down the pike. The last timeline I heard was around 5 years (if we got some big donors it'd probably be sooner). Minor renovations are planned for sooner, but nothing to upgrade the restrooms or concessions (only critical maintenance and locker rooms).

[FalconTurf]

If anybody here thinks new physical concession facilities can fix idiot employees you are fooling yourself. These are dead end, no promotion, no future, employment opportunities and the folks that are working embody that dead end attitude when all hell breaks loose with a line of 100 plus that all want something to eat in 20 minutes.

Here's an idea that may help. Employee flexible employees that can man the gates in pregame and then man the concessions at halftime. This entails the university taking control of both operations or farming both out to the same contractor. These employees then can handle the 20 minute rush before the game and then wash up to head into concessions for the 20 minute rush at halftime while getting paid for what I suspect would be 4-5 hours work.

I'm disappointed that these two situations cannot be solved - concessions and gate. If these two issues are fixed then we can work on other issues like maybe taking those same flexible employees in the stadium to push water and wipe down seats while waiting for the rush at the gate.

As far as food goes - focus little carts or buggies on specific items that take time or at least put small carts out that just sell candy and soda. Sincerely believe private food trucks are best for nachos, brats or other items that take more prep/work.

[Schadenfreude]

On the bright side, the announced crowd was 21,000+. Nice to see.

[hammb]

Fantastic game with two very good teams but...

I was thoroughly unimpressed with the stadium experience. First off, when we went down to our row one seats behind the Memphis bench the entire row had probably a half inch to an inch of standing water from the rain. I know that you can't control the rain but maybe have better drainage patterns or go thru with some sort of push mop for the bottom row once the rain stops. We had to sit with our feet wet and not put our program or anything down there. Also no cup holders so our drinks had to sit atop the standing water if we wished to not hold them. Partially my own fault but I was surprised how low the first row on the visitors side sits, it was impossible to see over the players so we moved higher up after the first quarter. This is not s problem I have ran into at other stadiums but I partially expected it.

The concessions were an experience enough where other members of my party may not return. First, concession employees were fighting among themselves because of how one girl would call out to others what food item she was needing, cursing and ect. At the half we were told they were out of beer and never had any pizza. After almost an entire half time wait I pay five dollars for a hot dog and they give me one without a bun. Puzzled I ask what the deal was and they tell me that they are out of buns, really did they not expect me to notice? They were rude and seemed stunned that I did not want to pay $5 for a nude bun-less hot dog...I tweeted to the athletic department and received a very generic apology. I went hungry for the game.

Restrooms were very primitive. Sinks were hard to wash both hands at once, and one rest room was without paper towels even before kickoff. Also, one restroom had two wooden fixtures (locker stalls?) impeding traffic to the in door for the mens room. You really had to squeeze past them. I didn't understand why the fixtures had to sit right there.,,

I thought that the tailgating scene was pretty good especially following the morning rains. I liked how they had the cheerleaders walking thru the lots and cheering. Parking was easy and affordable with the coupon.

If it wasnt for the nice day and competitive game I may have regretted making the drive down from Lenawee County.

Sorry to hear your experience was so poor, and I wish I could say it was an isolated incident, but sadly welcome to football at BGSU.

There's a reason the popularity of the sport has never been better, and yet we struggle mightily to keep a 3/4 filled stadium. The gameday experience has been a joke for years, and the only real renovation that will likely help the Doyt begins with a bulldozer.

I love BG football, but it's probably the consistently worse gameday experience I've ever found. To do BG football right you must tailgate and fill up on food before you head in. Then you need to smuggle in drinks because you don't want to wait an hour to get a drink at the concession stands. Sadly there is no hope for the restrooms, but taking in some hand sanitizer will help with the fact you cannot properly wash your hands in the restrooms. Then plan to hit up one of the awesome local food establishments in town postgame (this is the advantage of the mid-afternoon timeslots). I'd recommend Reverend's, Myles, or Campus Pollyeyes. All will have big crowds, but it's also good food in a fun postgame atmosphere.

It's really sad that it's come to this, but it's become painfully clear that the Athletic Dept. just doesn't give a damn. In a world where you can sit home and watch a lot of the BG games while flipping to a dozen other games, I wish they'd realize they have to actually treat the fans like they matter.

[Schadenfreude]

I love BG football, but it's probably the consistently worse gameday experience I've ever found.

To the extent we are talking about concessions, I agree. Bowling Green seems to have the most bush league concessions operation in FBS.

[hammb]

I love BG football, but it's probably the consistently worse gameday experience I've ever found. [ /quote]

To the extent we are talking about concessions, I agree. Bowling Green seems to have the most bush league concessions operation in FBS.

The concessions have been bush league for as long as I've been going to games. I remember complaining about it for at least a dozen years on this site...probably longer. It was bad before they hired a concession company, we complained the volunteers couldn't keep up. It was bad with Gladieux. It was bad with Sodexo. I wasn't there yesterday, but apparently it was bad yesterday as well.

At some point I must hold the Athletic Dept. accountable. When they are signing these contracts how in god's name is their not a service agreement where the contractor has measurable standards they must meet? I'm sorry but serving a hot dog w/o a bun, running out of beer and other items, etc. Those are just flat out inexcusable. Hopefully the new guys learn from the mistakes in their first game, but I'm not holding my breath.


Beyond concessions the Doyt has a lot of issues that are, unfortunately, tied to infrastructure. The bathrooms badly need updating. The chair seats need updated for today's modern fat man (i.e. ME). The bleachers where I usually sit really need to have backs on them in this day and age. Cup holders on those bleacher backs are a must. The slope of the seats is just far too gradual for my likings, but that is a bulldoze and start over issue. Same goes for the fact that the lower rows are very difficult to see over the players on the sidelines. As a longtime attendee I never have issues finding my seats, but I don't think (from what I've seen) our event staff does an overly good job of helping people find their seats if they didn't know.

We seem to have constant PA problems; both the booth announcer and the ref mic. Seems like it is either blasting loud or you cannot hear it. I would almost be willing to bet that after people said yesterday was so loud that on the 10th it'll be not loud enough.

In all I just don't think the gameday experience has ever been a priority for the department, and it really pains me to see a first time visitor that has such a poor experience. You don't get a 2nd shot at a 1st impression, and if I had a first time experience that vannzee described I would never return...and I'd probably tell a lot of my friends/family about it. I have been to enough games there that I know what to expect and can taylor my day around the major flaws, but I cannot turn a blind eye to them. We as fans deserve better. And if you ever want to cultivate a casual fanbase, it is necessary to improve the overall experience.

I cannot wait to take my son to games out there, but I do cringe at the what the future holds with regards to restrooms/concessions/etc as he gets older...

[Falcon137]

The Miller Lite party area had next to no one in it. The field suites and the "beer garden" ideas need scrapped. That area should have some table, grills, beer and pop options.

The concessions yesterday were totally unacceptable and not just quality, which is always bad. I had people come to a BG game with me for the first time and could not have been less impressed with everything (outside of the game).

It took someone who sits by us damn near a quarter and a half to get a pretzel and Pepsi. It needs fixed.

The ramps and walkways are inadequate, entrance gates remain a problem.

How they have never added another gate on the south side of the stadium is unacceptable. 75% of the crowd and 90% of season ticket holders park south of the stadium and enter on the west side. Yet nothing has ever been done to help.

Tailgating remains the strength of going to BG games. That coupled with how ridiculous difficult it is to do normal things at a football stadium... enter the stadium, get to your seat, get a soda, get a hot dog, use the bathroom and wash your hands. Is one of the reasons you get alumni and fans show up and tailgate for 4 hours, never make it inside and pack up and leave at kickoff and then head home to watch o$u.

It's hard to build up your fan base when you get people in the door and when they get here they say, "I'll never go back. "

[hammb]

It's hard to build up your fan base when you get people in the door and when they get here they say, "I'll never go back. "

Bingo. Bango. Bongo.

We as BG alumni that are huge sports fans put up with it because we just like to watch the team play that much. You'll never build an attendance boosting casual fanbase with the product that we have put out there. The game should be front and center, but it also cannot be the only redeeming quality of the event.

[Falcon137]

It's hard to build up your fan base when you get people in the door and when they get here they say, "I'll never go back. "

Bingo. Bango. Bongo.

We as BG alumni that are huge sports fans put up with it because we just like to watch the team play that much. You'll never build an attendance boosting casual fanbase with the product that we have put out there. The game should be front and center, but it also cannot be the only redeeming quality of the event.

Exactly my group goes to the games because we are alumni who love BG and BG is our 1 team we root for.

Is the casual fan in Findlay going to come back if they stood in line for 30 minutes to pay $8 or $9 for a burnt hot dog and pepsi?

That was a great, entertaining college football game yesterday. BG could have won on a last second TD and I'm guessing most of the casual fans who showed up, still would have said...I won't be back.