Anyone else love Syracuse basketball But...-

[Orangepace]

The Dome for basketball is the biggest draw to our University. Second would be the Carmelo K Anthony Center. Truthfully, I would love to see a new venue built for football near the Skytop section of campus.. Then find a way to lower the floor in the Dome and replace the benches for bucket type seating. Move the court to the center, add in more rows now that you've created a new "lower" level seating. Add in some luxury boxes between the current lower section and the new lower section. Bring back the curtain, but in much greater form.. Use it for the Nov/Dec games where there is a lower draw to games.. Place the curtain behind the new 200 level (the current lower section). In Feb/March.. the curtain goes and we play to bigger crowds. I know there are a lot of complications this would cause and it may not even be feasible based on teh current structure... Hell, I'm no engineering guy.

Would love the Dome to be configured to be THE basketball facility and develop a new football stadium.

 

[Eric15]

The Dome for basketball is the biggest draw to our University. Second would be the Carmelo K Anthony Center. Truthfully, I would love to see a new venue built for football near the Skytop section of campus.. Then find a way to lower the floor in the Dome and replace the benches for bucket type seating. Move the court to the center, add in more rows now that you've created a new "lower" level seating. Add in some luxury boxes between the current lower section and the new lower section. Bring back the curtain, but in much greater form.. Use it for the Nov/Dec games where there is a lower draw to games.. Place the curtain behind the new 200 level (the current lower section). In Feb/March.. the curtain goes and we play to bigger crowds. I know there are a lot of complications this would cause and it may not even be feasible based on teh current structure... Hell, I'm no engineering guy.

Would love the Dome to be configured to be THE basketball facility and develop a new football stadium.

Respect your thoughts and opinion, but I feverishly disagree with everything in this post.

An outdoor football stadium would just be a disaster. On cold, gloomy November days, no one except die hard fans (aka 15-20K) would go to the games. You would completely lose the casual fan. The Dome for football is a unique and incredible asset - the thought of having some run-of-the-mill outdoor stadium like BC or Minnesota bores the life out of me.

I know people like to suggest putting the court in the middle of the Dome for big games, but in my opinion, it's just completely unnecessary. It seems to me like it would just make the Dome more cavernous. You'd need about 55K-60K people in it to make it feel full (if you added seats on the field around the court), which I don't think is attainable.

Bottom line, I'm all for minor sprucing up of the joint (which Gross has been good about), but the foundation of the Dome is perfect to me.

 

[Bayside44]

Hate the Dome !

I see that it is dating our program. They have $ for another new court this year
but are to cheap to give a better value for the unsold seats
What we have now and what it has become is not a comfortable or collective
Syracuse basketball fan arena period.
Many regulars with no energy.
The 30k days is now few and far between and has been I know or even 20k
My question is who is responsible to market all the unsold tickets.
If it not selling at the price their asking the price could go down day of game.

Sometimes are players need a boost that a home court is suppose to give
and with the wine and brie crowd in the bleachers it embarrassing .
It is suppose to be fun and I can have more fun watching the game
at a freakin sports bar with real fans that enjoy the game and have energy

Anybody that thinks we are lucky needs to go watch a game at Louisville
Their fan base are no better than ours but we don't prove it they do case and point last night

The Carrier Dome is our signature as much if not more than anything else. Moving it would be as dumb as the Yankees talk of moving to New Jersey back in the day. And FWIW those courtside seats at UL cost a heck of a lot more than at SU, there is a wine crowd moreso than we'll ever be.

 

[dollarbill44]

Completely revamp New York State. Dump the government, start over with the tax system, give lavish incentives for business development, regionalize (i.e. county-run) education and publice services. In short, improve the economy in CNY and the Dome atmosphere will vastly improve. That includes legalizing marijuana and turning Club 44 into an Amsterdam-style cafe, if you know what I mean.

And for the record, I do not smoke pot, I just don't think it should be illegal.

 

[Bornorange]

"DSyR440, post: 129421"]Okay, I have to finally ask it. What the $*&# is up with your avatar?"

Did the Taco Bell dog turn into a demon smackhead?

Dog? I thought that was an avatar for Calipari.

 

[Marsh01]

Bigger, nice and better doesnt mean the atmosphere will be better.

Case in point. Yankee Stadium and giants stadium. Having frequented both many times I can honetly say that I prefer the old stadiums ten-fold over the new stadiums. Asthetically both new stadiums are great. Clean, wide hallways, state of the art, I'm not saying they are bad in any way. They however have no character, no homey home field advantage, nothing. I sat in the new giants Stadium (I will never refer to it as Met Life or acknowledge the Jets even share it because it will always be Giants Stadium) and I was less than impressed. I miss the swirling winds of the old Giants Stadium. Same goes for Yankee Stadium. Yea the jumbo tron is awesome but there is no feel for something special like there was with the old stadium.

I think I would feel the same way if they built a basetball only arena. And for the record, at 41 years old and having been going to the Dome since it opened in 1980, I dont need a student section (ala Cameron) right on the court. You can make noise from anywhere. The Butler NIT game in 2002 had about 7-10k in the building and it was one of the loudest games I have ever attended in the Dome.

 

[Orangepace]

Respect your thoughts and opinion, but I feverishly disagree with everything in this post.

An outdoor football stadium would just be a disaster. On cold, gloomy November days, no one except die hard fans (aka 15-20K) would go to the games. You would completely lose the casual fan. The Dome for football is a unique and incredible asset - the thought of having some run-of-the-mill outdoor stadium like BC or Minnesota bores the life out of me.

I know people like to suggest putting the court in the middle of the Dome for big games, but in my opinion, it's just completely unnecessary. It seems to me like it would just make the Dome more cavernous. You'd need about 55K-60K people in it to make it feel full (if you added seats on the field around the court), which I don't think is attainable.

Bottom line, I'm all for minor sprucing up of the joint (which Gross has been good about), but the foundation of the Dome is perfect to me.

Never said I wanted an outdoor stadium.. that would be horrible.

 

[Eric15]

Never said I wanted an outdoor stadium.. that would be horrible.

Sorry, my bad. So you want to have another Dome on Skytop for football, but reconfigure the current Dome strictly for basketball? Is maintaining two Domes within a half-mile of each other realistic in this current economic climate?

 

[HoustonCuse]

Mobile phone posting not trying to write a poem, Really get over yourself!

Many people know the atmoshere leaves alot to be desired period 80 % of the time.
People who say it "ain't" broke don't fix would have 20lb cell phone still in their hands. We the fans and the players deserve a better enviroment for the other 80 % of the non 30K games period!

The Dome is an advantage until they realize the real reality of the dome as a venue. It is unique but we should do so much more with it!

Over half of college hoops team have better home court advantage sans the two or three big turnouts a year

Sounds like your issue is with the fans, not the arena. I'm not sure how a new arena would change the habits and personalities of the CNY fan base.

 

[rstone7727]

Sorry, my bad. So you want to have another Dome on Skytop for football, but reconfigure the current Dome strictly for basketball? Is maintaining two Domes within a half-mile of each other realistic in this current economic climate?

No of course not, I think we are just fantasizing here. What is doable though, would be to spend some cash with a total remodeling of the Dome. Paint, new curtain that fully divides the Dome, not just looks like it's divided from a tv perspective. That would help keep the noise contained. I love the new brighter orange we are using, that has really brightened up the court area. Now we need to standardize that color in all team gear.

 

[senorpalmer]

The Dome isn't just part of the identity of the program, its a college basketball icon. Its not perfect, and its a fine topic of discussion as far as what could be adjusted/improved, but how could any legit SU fan HATE it?

 

[Scooch]

Let's just be crystal clear: it is the FANS that make an atmosphere, not a building.

The Dome is fine.

 

[alliedp]

The Dome is one of the few things that make Syracuse unique in college basketball (and football) and, I believe, a big reason we seperated ourselves from our old upstate rivals like Colgate who chose a different path. What the hell would be the point of getting rid of the program's most recognizable physical feature around the same general time that we will be (eventually) losing the program's most recognizable face in Coach Boeheim? Are you trying to level the playing field for everyone else? I am all for critical thinking in terms of how Syracuse could make things better, but eliminating the differentiating factors and making SU more like the programs with whom we compete would seem to be damaging to the brand.

 

[OttoMets]

Bigger, nice and better doesnt mean the atmosphere will be better.

Case in point. Yankee Stadium and giants stadium. Having frequented both many times I can honetly say that I prefer the old stadiums ten-fold over the new stadiums. Asthetically both new stadiums are great. Clean, wide hallways, state of the art, I'm not saying they are bad in any way. They however have no character, no homey home field advantage, nothing. I sat in the new giants Stadium (I will never refer to it as Met Life or acknowledge the Jets even share it because it will always be Giants Stadium) and I was less than impressed. I miss the swirling winds of the old Giants Stadium. Same goes for Yankee Stadium. Yea the jumbo tron is awesome but there is no feel for something special like there was with the old stadium.

I think I would feel the same way if they built a basetball only arena. And for the record, at 41 years old and having been going to the Dome since it opened in 1980, I dont need a student section (ala Cameron) right on the court. You can make noise from anywhere. The Butler NIT game in 2002 had about 7-10k in the building and it was one of the loudest games I have ever attended in the Dome.

All good points. New arenas are all the same - Newark is Louisville is Philadelphia is Washington - and none could replicate the energy of a full Dome. (I'm not trying to ignore the original poster's point that the problem is more the early-season games than a full Dome, but it's important to keep in mind that any new building would eliminate some aspects of the Dome that make it great.)

And I was at the 2002 Butler game and agree completely. Compare it to, say, last year's Villanova game or the 2003 Rutgers game and it's easy to see that the passion, not the number of people in the seats, is what makes a great atmosphere.

I agree that the Dome atmosphere fluctuates between disappointing and awful for November and December games. It's not the fault of the physical structure. It's the fault of a local fanbase that would rather watch the Florida game on television than be there in person. It's the fault of students who want to camp out and show up 5,000 strong when there's a chance that a clever sign might get them on national television, but don't care enough about the team to show up for 12 other games. It's the fault of someone in Dome management or the athletic department who is too arrogant, ignorant, or greedy to recognize that a college basketball game should involve cheerleaders and a band, not commercial advertisements and canned pop music.

And it'd be nice to see the blue curtain again some day. That video board in the east endzone is pretty much impossible to see anyway.

 

[OttoMets]

No of course not, I think we are just fantasizing here. What is doable though, would be to spend some cash with a total remodeling of the Dome. Paint, new curtain that fully divides the Dome, not just looks like it's divided from a tv perspective. That would help keep the noise contained. I love the new brighter orange we are using, that has really brightened up the court area. Now we need to standardize that color in all team gear.

Not to nitpick, but isn't the new orange on the court much less bright than it used to be? I like it a lot, but it looks like a much duller shade.

It would be nice to see some paint on the uppermost concrete facade (where the roof meets the walls). Perhaps it would make the space look smaller, but the 2005/2006 introduction of color to the second and third decks really made the building look better. Painting the top rim and maybe even the risers of the stands would be interesting.

 

[kirbivore]

You take the trade-offs of the sleepy, bored 15k crowds in November and December for the opportunity to get 1 or 2 30,000+ crowds during the conference season. Those 30k crowds can't be replicated anywhere in the country. The Dome is still a huge recruiting edge. I would certainly not be in favor of wiping out such a unique basketball venue.

The thing about those November/December crowds is that 95% of other programs would kill for that kind of attendance any time, let alone Nov/Dec.

 

[ljmilman]

Let's just be crystal clear: it is the FANS that make an atmosphere, not a building.

The Dome is fine.

This. Anyone who was in The Dome for Gameday two years ago, or for Villanova last year, or for Georgetown/UConn the past 4 years (for the most part) knows that the Dome is in no way preventing SU from having the most intimidating atmosphere in the country.

 

[OttoMets]

This. Anyone who was in The Dome for Gameday two years ago, or for Villanova last year, or for Georgetown/UConn the past 4 years (for the most part) knows that the Dome is in no way preventing SU from having the most intimidating atmosphere in the country.

Additionally, that charging students a nominal fee for game tickets does not prevent Syracuse from having the best atmosphere in the country.

The idea that a.) students don't go to games because tickets aren't free or b.) students deserve free tickets because they pay tuition is an odd one.

 

[ljmilman]

Additionally, that charging students a nominal fee for game tickets does not prevent Syracuse from having the best atmosphere in the country.

The idea that a.) students don't go to games because tickets aren't free or b.) students deserve free tickets because they pay tuition is an odd one.

Yeah. I mean, I was a student until this past May. And yes, it would be nice to receive free tickets. But the fact of the matter is, I believe it cost something like $240 for 6-8 home football games AND 15-20 home basketball games. That comes down to something like $8-10 per game. It's not like they're ripping the students off. In fact, last year SU had the most student season ticket holders it's ever had...

 

[Orangepace]

Sorry, my bad. So you want to have another Dome on Skytop for football, but reconfigure the current Dome strictly for basketball? Is maintaining two Domes within a half-mile of each other realistic in this current economic climate?

Not to keep arguing, but to be honest.. what is realistic in the upstate economic climate? It doesn't change much and hasn't in a while.. There will always be few jobs for college grads and competition for those jobs may be amongst the most difficult in the country.. In the upstate economic climate, I agree, it's not necessarily realistic, but I thought all we were doing here was fantasizing..

 

[Eric15]

Not to keep arguing, but to be honest.. what is realistic in the upstate economic climate? It doesn't change much and hasn't in a while.. There will always be few jobs for college grads and competition for those jobs may be amongst the most difficult in the country.. In the upstate economic climate, I agree, it's not necessarily realistic, but I thought all we were doing here was fantasizing..

Not arguing at all, just friendly debate. Happy Holidays.