"Good. Luck. With. That."

[Dawg06]

I know you guys don't want to play them but it makes sense the same way it makes sense for us to play Grambling and pack the stadium. Like it or not it creates a buzz in Monroe, among alumni both for and against it, and draws interest when we play ulm. When we are selling out every game at home then we can add onto the stadium and consider it not smart. Until then you will not convince me otherwise. Rice, Houston, Navy, UCA, Nicholls st., and every other OOC team besides usm did not bring 5k fans all together and you are talking about 4-5 YEARS of OOC home game ticket sales COMBINED. That isn't too hard to figure out.

No it doesn't. Grambling is an FCS team. That was a one game deal. Grambling doesn't demand a home-and-home. For every game ULM plays in Ruston, they would demand we play one in Monroe. You can't compare scheduling ULM to scheduling Nicholls, UCA, Lamar, etc. We have to play those FCS teams to balance out the money games. You have to compare scheduling ULM to our home-and-homes: Texas A&M, Mississippi State, BYU, Navy, Army, Houston, UNLV, Rice, Southern Miss, ULL, Bowling Green, South Alabama, etc. The exposure from all of those games is significantly better than if we were to play ULM.

[RXDAWG]

I've got an idea. If they will agree to play the first game in Ruston, the winner gets the next home game from then on!

[TechAlum05]

I know you guys don't want to play them but it makes sense the same way it makes sense for us to play Grambling and pack the stadium. Like it or not it creates a buzz in Monroe, among alumni both for and against it, and draws interest when we play ulm. When we are selling out every game at home then we can add onto the stadium and consider it not smart. Until then you will not convince me otherwise. Rice, Houston, Navy, UCA, Nicholls st., and every other OOC team besides usm did not bring 5k fans all together and you are talking about 4-5 YEARS of OOC home game ticket sales COMBINED. That isn't too hard to figure out.

Our average attendance has increased from 14,586 in 2006 (the end of the Bicknell Era) to 22,918 last year not including the Texas A&M game in Shreveport. Five of the top ten most attended Louisiana Tech football games at Joe Aillet Stadium came since 2008 without the need of a game against ULM.

We have close teams like Tulane, Southern Miss, and Tulsa coming to Ruston this year and teams like Rice and Texas-San Antonio next year. Louisiana Tech does not need to schedule football games against ULM to put butts in the seats or draw interest, because Tech is doing it without ULM's help. The program is drawing interest and bigger crowds at The Joe by winning, not by scheduling games against ULM to "create a buzz in Monroe".

Simply put, ULM needs Louisiana Tech a lot more than Tech needs ULM.

[ChuckK3]

Can we quit talking about what USE to happen! These are different times people! Both schools just finished respectably their best seasons ever and attendance has been higher than ever. If you honestly think less than 1,000 people would show up to the game you are clearly out of the times. I don't care what their administration or fans or whoever else you're all still butthurt about did back in the day. Quit saying we're too above them like we're some kind of BCS school because that's exactly the same kind of crap that kept us out of a bowl game which is still an embarrassment that should never happen.

I bet you have an LSU window sticker on your vehicle. Fix that HUGE problem, then we'll try to catch you up to speed, since you were in 2nd Grade when we played them last.

[Russdawg]

That is why I don't mind them trying to call us out and saying we are arrogant, etc... It will ALWAYS be about us, not them. Let them continue. It just puts our name out there more and shows that we are far above them . Even insults are not always a bad thing. Makes them look petty. Until they move past thinking about us, they will stay in their place.

Right!! They have a new AD, are coming off their best season in what, 20 years, and the new AD is talking about Tech. That's like mentioning Coke on a Pepsi commercial. Why not talk about HIS SCHOOL instead of US? He wins a few points with NLULM diehards, but he's already defined himself as just another Tech wannabe. His first week on the job and he already sees the "separation." If we're the measuring stick they want to define themselves by, I guess that's their MO. BUT WE NEED TO STICK TO WHAT'S BEST FOR OUR INTERESTS AND GOALS. JUST SAY NO!!

[Cool Hand Clyde]

quit saying we're too above

hell no!

[theprofessor]

Do we really want more people from our opponents' schools purchasing tickets to our ball games? If the opponents only bring over a couple hundred fans or so for each game, I'm fine with that. Tech is supposed to have a home-field advantage. Scheduling ULM so they can purchase tickets for a Tech-ULM game in Ruston (not sure if that many people in Monroe would come to Ruston, but that's a different topic) would hurt Tech's built-in home-field advantage.

Until we sell out The Joe -- and that's never happened -- yeah, we kinda do need our opponents to buy some tickets. If we can put 24K Tech fans into that stadium, and our opponent happens to bring over 6K, well, I'm not very good at math, but I'm not too worried about us losing our homefield advantage.

[70TECHGRAD]

They play ULM next year. I don't expect to see a Tech - LSU game anytime soon.

The LSU coach peed his pants when TECH scored and went into the locker room with more points than LSU at half time in the last game we played against LSU. So...no, they won't play TECH anytime soon!!! They will play ULM and Northwestern....teams the third string LSU team could beat.

[qng001]

The LSU coach peed his pants when TECH scored and went into the locker room with more points than LSU at half time in the last game we played against LSU. So...no, they won't play TECH anytime soon!!! They will play ULM and Northwestern....teams the third string LSU team could beat.

I went to the bathroom and concession stands at halftime, it was very very quiet.

[Dwayne From Minden]

We are missing a golden opportunity here -

Come Monday we should call a news conference in response and present them a 4 year contract -

1st Game Ruston, 2nd Game Shreveport, 3rd game Ruston, 4th game Shreveport starting in 2016 -

Put the ONUS on them -

If they fulfill the contract we then then consider a game in Monroe

[BRDawg81]

It will be interesting to see how our new AD responds to this if he acknowledges it at all.

[GatorDawg]

I know you guys don't want to play them but it makes sense the same way it makes sense for us to play Grambling and pack the stadium. Like it or not it creates a buzz in Monroe, among alumni both for and against it, and draws interest when we play ulm. When we are selling out every game at home then we can add onto the stadium and consider it not smart. Until then you will not convince me otherwise. Rice, Houston, Navy, UCA, Nicholls st., and every other OOC team besides usm did not bring 5k fans all together and you are talking about 4-5 YEARS of OOC home game ticket sales COMBINED. That isn't too hard to figure out.

I would say we exceeded 5K of opponent ticket sales on OOC home games over the past 5 years even if you exclude Southern Miss. UCA sold more than you think. And Houston sold a ton too. Not to mention that range includes Mississippi State.

[70TECHGRAD]

This is the topic that comes up in the off season every dang year. For those of you that don't know (maybe you are stuck in the old days or too new to know), ulm will not show up after we beat them down. If you were at the game the last time we played, you know this. I was there in Monroe. There were about 150 ulm fans in that stadium (not counting the band) and about 400 Tech fans. I just happened to be in town or I would not have even made the trip. Even if we beat them by 40, it decreases separation in the minds of the casual fan. They begin to think we are on the same level again, after we have done so much to separate ourselves. It serves no purpose. I am so tired of this same conversation every year. I won't post on it, anymore. We should have one of those sticky notes on this board to explain why we don't play the juco.

Truth!!!

[Cal&Ken]

Media exposure, excitement, buzz, ticket sales, $$$$$-something we are sorely in need of. People who don't normally attend Tech games show up when we play ulm for some reason. Lamar, UCA, Nichols St.and all the other OOC teams (minus usm) combined have brought maybe 2,000 tickets over the last 10 years that is terrible.

I think you are living in the past. The TECH fans I know don't want to play them- we have moved on. There is no reason to throw the dog a bone and give them any life.

[70TECHGRAD]

No it doesn't. Grambling is an FCS team. That was a one game deal. Grambling doesn't demand a home-and-home. For every game ULM plays in Ruston, they would demand we play one in Monroe. You can't compare scheduling ULM to scheduling Nicholls, UCA, Lamar, etc. We have to play those FCS teams to balance out the money games. You have to compare scheduling ULM to our home-and-homes: Texas A&M, Mississippi State, BYU, Navy, Army, Houston, UNLV, Rice, Southern Miss, ULL, Bowling Green, South Alabama, etc. The exposure from all of those games is significantly better than if we were to play ULM.

I don't know how anyone could explain it in more simple terms!!!! Great post! Bottom line: It ain't worth it!!!