What would it take?

[johnnylightnin]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...=.ef1983555001

[T1]

That's interesting. It sounds like people are just losing interest in football. I can't think of any way to explain that.

[SicemDawgz]

That's interesting. It sounds like people are just losing interest in football. I can't think of any way to explain that.

Nearly every game is on TV, that’s #1. I would think a close #2 is the average family is being priced out of the market. Family of 4 tickets is $100, plus concessions, parking and gas. Your looking at around $200, or $5 for ESPN+. With the quality of product that we’ve put on the field the last 2 years, the $5 option is appealing. I would suspect that’s the case in a lot of areas of the country.

[ptaylor]

Basketball is not far behind. $15 for adult general admission, $12 for child general admission (not even the red seats.) Family of 4 for basketball is $54, not including concession. Whole lot more basketball games than football. This for Harding, Tougaloo, Houston Baptist, and SWAC round robin.

[T1]

I've been reading. There are several factors, but I think the biggest thing I've read is that the millennial generation isn't into sports. They don't want to spend their money on it.

[Dawgpix]

The product on the field is only a two year problem dating back to last year. When you lose 3 home games (two winnable) and follow it up with a really bad loss to UAB the following year it KILLS any momentum you might have had, but we really did not have it going into last year.

FWIW, lsu was not selling games out which is their bar. They still aren't. Even our game was announced as a sellout, but there were empty seats all over the stadium.

LSU "sold out" their tickets. All their tickets are marked and labeled with a seat number.

We can't "sell out" our tickets until we print and sell tickets all with a seat number.

[inudesu]

This thread is eerily similar to discussions also taking place on the Cajuns message board regarding attendance issues at LaLaff Football games. Knowing that attendance issues are not limited to these two schools, and is a growing concern throughout the country, it boggles my mind that these two schools who have such a rich history with each other can't seem to come to terms and agree to play each other every year! Apparently pride continues to get in the way of making a good financial decision. An annual game between the Cajuns and Bulldogs will not guarantee a sellout crowd in either Lafayette or Ruston, but the game WOULD ALWAYS GUARANTEE much better attendance than games played against South Carolina State, Bowling Green, New Mexico State, Idaho, and many Sun Belt and CUSA games as well. It seems to me that scheduling this game every year should be a no brainer for both schools.

I am fine with playing ULL or ULM.

I am very much against a permanent series.

[SicemDawgz]

I am fine with playing ULL or ULM.

I am very much against a permanent series.

I second that. No more than every 10 years or so.

[CajunDave1]

I am fine with playing ULL or ULM.

I am very much against a permanent series.

If either team could schedule other teams who will come to Lafayette or Ruston that will draw larger crowds on a fairly regular basis than Cajuns vs Bulldogs, I too would be OK with not playing every year. Unfortunately, neither school is apparently capable of doing that at this time. Therefore, why not play every year until that can be done? Neither school is in a position to ignore the financial consequences of scheduling. Apparently the Basketball & Baseball coaches have figured that out.

[HogDawg]

It's a perfect storm of sorts...attendance is down everywhere. It just hurts us more...and we seem to be exacerbating the national trends with poor management and "let down" performances.

That said, UAB is better than EVERYBODY thought they would be. The loss doesn't look as bad in hindsight (though it was certainly painful to watch).

UAB's 2018 success was engineered by a CUSA that was over-anxious to see UAB regain football again quickly after their self imposed 2-yr shutdown in 2015 & 2016. No doubt, both CUSA and the NCAA gave UAB far too many special player exemptions and unusual scholarship benefits for their comeback. This meant UAB started the 2018 season with 37 seniors, most of whom are 6 & 7 yr athletes, and between the ages of 24 and 27.

This is what Skip Holtz was referring to immediately after LA Tech's loss to UAB, when he said "we were playing against some very grown men out there tonight".

The result? UAB has a huge physical advantage over its conference brethren in 2018. The conference should be embarrassed by this outcome. Some unfortunate school in 2018 -- most likely LA Tech-- will lose a CUSA West football title, and perhaps its first CUSA football championship, due to some very unfair circumstances beyond its control. Unfortunately, the rest of CUSA is being penalized for UAB's stupidity of shutting down its own football program in the first place.

[inudesu]

If either team could schedule other teams who will come to Lafayette or Ruston that will draw larger crowds on a fairly regular basis than Cajuns vs Bulldogs, I too would be OK with not playing every year. Unfortunately, neither school is apparently capable of doing that at this time. Therefore, why not play every year until that can be done? Neither school is in a position to ignore the financial consequences of scheduling. Apparently the Basketball & Baseball coaches have figured that out.

1. I think an annual game would likely result in diminishing returns. Probably always going to draw better than a UMASS or UNLV but at some point we'll have all seen it and done it and it will be just another game like Rice or UAB for us and TXST or USA for y'all. There is always a chance that the series would get closely contested and became "a thing" but I mean - we did that for like 70 years and it developed into *above average attendance* which is cool, but not worth committing to for decades on the off chance it turns into Georgia/Georgia Tech or SC/Clemson or something.
2. That would make it harder to schedule the games that do exceed ULL games in attendance and/or interest. A permanent game just makes it that much less likely that we can schedule the (all too rare) home games with MSU or Baylor or A&M or OkSt. or Houston or SMU or Army or Navy or ULM. Same for y'all.

[Tech52]

UAB's 2018 success was engineered by a CUSA that was over-anxious to see UAB regain football again quickly after their self imposed 2-yr shutdown in 2015 & 2016. No doubt, both CUSA and the NCAA gave UAB far too many special player exemptions and unusual scholarship benefits for their comeback. This meant UAB started the 2018 season with 37 seniors, most of whom are 6 & 7 yr athletes, and between the ages of 24 and 27.

This is what Skip Holtz was referring to immediately after LA Tech's loss to UAB, when he said "we were playing against some very grown men out there tonight".

The result? UAB has a huge physical advantage over its conference brethren in 2018. The conference should be embarrassed by this outcome. Some unfortunate school in 2018 -- most likely LA Tech-- will lose a CUSA West football title, and perhaps its first CUSA football championship, due to some very unfair circumstances beyond its control. Unfortunately, the rest of CUSA is being penalized for UAB's stupidity of shutting down its own football program in the first place.

I imagine most, if not all, CUSA coaches have a bit of frustration in this.

[HogDawg]

That's interesting. It sounds like people are just losing interest in football. I can't think of any way to explain that.

Nope. They are not losing interest in college football. Rather, they are losing interest in attending games in person, preferring instead to tune in via TV.


Here are a few legit reasons: (This has nothing to do with LA Tech in particular.)

1) Games are expensive. In addition to the ticket costs, many schools require PSL's (personal seat licenses) be purchased each year just to earn the right to purchase tickets. Others require certain "donation levels" to the school for the right to purchase good seats (we've seen this ourselves.)

2) TV overides the interest of attendees. College football used to be for Saturday afternoons. Now, the games are sometimes played on Wed, Thurs, and Friday nights, as well as on Saturday mornings, such as we're doing with our last home game of the season this year. These mid week games in particular, hurt attendance. Also, the large number of TV timeouts --not to mention video reviews of plays-- makes attending a game in person a real whip. TV timeouts aren't a big deal when watching at home on TV, drinking your beer, eating your pizza and surfing the Internet simultaneously. One could even argue that it gives you a chance to bounce around to other TV channels to checkout the scores & highlights of other games. But for those of us sitting in the stands baking in the sun, or freezing in the rain, or listening to that loud mouth Tech chick on the video board, it can be a beat down.

3) Bama fatigue. Yeah, it's real. I used to like following Alabama football peripherally. But now I'm sick of it. And I'm not the only one. Enough already, huh! A lot of other schools need to man up.

4) Poor scheduling. You guys don't need me to tell you that watching Alabama play Citadel is a waste of everybody's time. Yet, there they are, on Bama's 2018 football schedule. The previous year it was Mercer, Chattanooga and Kent State. I mean...seriously? And everybody in America is equally guilty of such silly scheduling. Is it really any wonder that people don't want to fight traffic, and go to the expense to attend these games?

[T1]

I read some of those reasons, but it's not just college football. Attendance is also down by the same amount or more for the NFL and MLB.

[BhadDawg]

I read some of those reasons, but it's not just college football. Attendance is also down by the same amount or more for the NFL and MLB.

I think everyone has a pretty good idea of what is causing the decline. The problem is the inconvenience-expense-time consumption of attending in person -VS- the convenience-value-and time saved of watching the game in a bar&grill or at home.

Compare that to going to a TECH football game, we actually have very good parking and shuttle transportation. There are no real traffic jams, tickets are easily obtained(although overpriced for the product), a great game day experience(at one time), and just a number of things that make attending a TECH game easy to attend. We have discussed on here before what a monumental task it is to do something like an SEC game, it is just not worth it to many anymore.

I think we are really missing the boat right now, with some exciting football(not skipball) and fun game days and decent ticket prices, fans could easily attend a TECH game. They could do this without burning up an entire weekend and blowing the families yearly entertainment budget, if there was ever a time we needed to be playing exciting football, playing exciting teams, and having blowout game day activities with easy tailgating and parking, it is now.

I am sure what we are doing now is meeting all of our Southland AD's expectations though.