Apathy?

[SmilinBob]

I wish we had a tradition before the players take the field. For example:

Boomer Sooner Wagon
Colorado with the Buffalo
Purdue has a famous alumni beat the drum
Vikings have someone blow the Horn
Seahawks have the Hawk that flies from top of stadium to handler
Oregon Duck coming out on a motorcycle

We used to have Otto driving a golf cart but that was the saddest thing i ever saw.

Now that we have the LED lights you can either black it out, or possibly Orange it out and have some kind of fan hype video. Then when everything is blacked out have Otto come down from the scoreboard not in the view of fans, non Owen Hart style, and then lights come on and Otto is magically at mid-field waving the Orange flag with the noise meter going for fans to get louder. You can have the Undertaker theme music in the background as we wait for the team to take the field and when they do the music stops and the band hits the fight song. Maybe something fun like this will get people in their seats by kickoff. It used to be back in the 80’s and 90’s I never had more fun when i was young yelling at guys like Major Harris, Ray Lewis, etc when they took the field and used to come pray in the EZ where my seats were.

I've always wanted a snowing light show and Otto comes out in a snow plow while playing the snow miser song. Embrace who we are.

 

[Stern]

I think 1 and 4 are important because people will share pictures on social media. It's FREE promotion and creates FOMO. There's nothing but upside to that. People complain about everything but this is an excellent idea.

1 and 4 won't stick with the "old guy crowd" (which I am a part of) but trust me anyone under 40 1 and 4 are clearly huge things.

 

[Cusefan95]

Glad you asked. Here are 4 simple ideas off the top of my head (and I got more if you want them)

1) Before EVERY home game, have 2 former SU players at the Dome taking pictures and signing autographs for all fans. Put one in the concourse in the 100 level behind one endzone. Put the other in the opposite endzone. People love FREE, people love autographs and most important they love pictures they can put on their Facebook/Instagram/Twitter. You give fans a moment with a former player, AND you are encouraging them to get inside the Dome earlier so they will be in their seat for kickoff. If someone is on the fence of going to an SU game one week, but hey if we go we can get a picture with Rob Konrad or Dwight Freeney, or Justin Pugh...whoever. That may intice them to say lets go, maybe we only stay till halftime but you got people in the door and you give fans a MOMENT with a former player.


2) You have the quad which is totally mis-used. In Syracuse/Onondaga County the Taste of Syracuse, Italian Fest, Polish Fest...ech and all of those things draw huge crowds in the spring/summer. Food Trucks are popular right now. Have about 5-10 food trucks in the Quad with all different types of food. Way for husbands to drag their wives and girlfriends to games. Hey you may not like football...but before the game for 2 hours have a few drinks and lets try some various foods outside, it will be fun. Keyword is "FUN". And for people going to the game, a way for them who may not be into tailgating because that's a lot of work and prep, to go early and enjoy the nice weather months outside in September/October when the majority of SU's home games are.


3) The in-game experience, I understand you have your paid sponsors like Turning Stone who wants to give away $100 or whatever during a TV timeout. And the seat upgrade, those things aren't going away. But sit down and go over the 20 or so (or whatever the number is) of those bits/promotions and be like, does this work or doesn't work. The ones with no sponsor's behind it, be honest and be like this one really is just taking up time and adds no value, let's find something better. The ones with money behind them obviously will stay

4) You have a dance team and a cheerleader squad. Again, fans like pictures. At every gate walking in the dome have a member from the dance team and/or cheerleader squad there to take pictures with kids, family's, or any fan who wants them. Put smiles on peoples faces walking INTO THE DOME!!!

This isn't the 1980's and 1990's where the "game sold itself"...those days are gone and not coming back. People want an "experience" or a "moment". They want to share that on social media, they want to go to an "event" and not a game. For the older crowd, (which I consider myself to be part of at this stage in life)...I don't get it. But I see what the younger generation wants and what other stadiums do when I go and that is how they build that party and FUN atmosphere. Syracuse is really lacking!

And what I laid out may not make a difference TO YOU...but this isn't about YOU or ME...it's about what the modern sports fan wants and expects in going to games these days. They want more than the game! And Business 101, give the customer what they want!

#1 would have more pop if we weren’t terrible for most of the last two decades. Even then it won’t have much pop. There’s not that many players a casual fan would get motivated to go to a game to see, but they don’t show up for “top” guys anyway. Freeney was at a game in a promotional capacity a couple years age, I got a picture with him…there wasn’t a huge line for it.

#2 They’ve had food trucks the last few years, maybe 3-4. I doubt this moves the needle, it hasn’t so far. Adding a couple more trucks to what they already do isn’t going to be a game changer.

#3 This is pretty vague, I’d prefer more band playing/dance team in the excessively long breaks but don’t think that’s going to matter that much.

#4 Photos with the dance team are really unlikely. New Jersey Devils had a dance team that did photos with fans pregame, and the dancers HATED it. Way too many creeps groping them. It was one of the reasons the team eliminated the dance team completely, efforts to use them to market the team opened the team up to hostile workplace lawsuits. Less than zero chance a university will take that chance.

Feel free to post more ideas…but if these are your best four I don’t have much hope you’re going to have any great ideas that will have much impact on your list.

If we win, fans will show up - but only for big games. Maybe part of the reason the university hasn’t “marketed the team correctly” for 30-40 years is they rightly concluded it doesn’t make a damn bit of difference.

 

[Cusefan95]

I wish we had a tradition before the players take the field. For example:

Boomer Sooner Wagon
Colorado with the Buffalo
Purdue has a famous alumni beat the drum
Vikings have someone blow the Horn
Seahawks have the Hawk that flies from top of stadium to handler
Oregon Duck coming out on a motorcycle

I don’t know that it would draw a lot of fans, but our pregame/intro stuff is terrible. I’m honestly embarrassed what visiting fans think, it doesn’t even currently qualify as “small time”. And whatever happened to the sound system when the new roof was put on created a major issue, it’s so bad now. I’d hoped they’d be able to tweak it over the summer to be better than last year but it’s still like listening to Charlie Brown’s teacher most of the time.

 

[Cusefan95]

My opinion - there’s nothing Syracuse can do on gameday which will matter all that much as far as drawing more fans in. That’s the biggest issue, Syracuse needs to get to 40,000+ fans consistently, then a lot of the game day complaints would go away almost organically (and game day traditions could develop organically). They gotta focus on marketing well before game day.

The local AHL team had a few players go to my kids school last winter and play games with the kids. My kids were already hockey fans, but friends of theirs who weren’t started to ask their parents to go to games. Even my daughter paid more attention during games when the guy who played with her class was on ice (prolly a 2nd/3rd line wing) because she wanted her “friend” to do well.

No idea if Syracuse has players go to local school, I’m sure there’s a lot of logistical challenges with that. If it’s not done or is rarely done, step that up. Ideally tie it somehow to NIL to get the players appearance money.

If there was way to get photos of cheerleaders and dance team members with kids, school visits would present the least risk. I’m also not sure that’s viable to send cheerleaders to local school, but if it’s possible it should be considered.

Get preteen kids to want to go because they feel a connection to the team; mom and dad will take the family to games as a result.

 

[SWC75]

It was mentioned that last year's NC State game was our last sell-out. This Clemson game apparently won't be. Why? What's the difference? Are people, after last year, expecting a second half collapse, rendering our start irrelevant?

 

[Bayside44]

It was mentioned that last year's NC State game was our last sell-out. This Clemson game apparently won't be. Why? What's the difference? Are people, after last year, expecting a second half collapse, rendering our start irrelevant?

All the stuff that mentions kids (which I generally agree with) conflicts with a nooner.

ND was noon last year but that's a unique animal with their self-identified fans. NCSU was 3:30 and big difference.

Best thing is going to reduce capacity to get some scarcity and make the place a bit more comfortable.

 

[Stevenson]

For the Army game I got four seats row A section 129 for $150. Field level by the cheer team, on the fifteen yard line, for $150.

The cost of tickets is not the issue.

I spent $30 to park and $30 on food / drink.

$210 all told. That's not bad (to me).


When I took my family to an Orioles game last month I spent $190 for four tickets. Then another $60 for food and drink. Then another $160 for a couple jerseys for the kids.

$410 all in. Sucked but it was the kids first major league game and it was on a family vacation. Well worth it to me.

Your going to pay for the experience. I think that's where the school lacks.

Outside Camden Yards is an experience before the game.

The Quad and lack of tailgating space means the overall event lacks the pizzazz other events have.

Just my two cents.

Don’t forget how much of a dump Marshall Street is

 

[Stevenson]

So what can SU do to engage with fans more meaningfully? What are other schools doing that SU isn't?

I'm genuinely curious. Often when I hear these gripes they're either (a) pretty vague, (b) about things that simply aren't going to happen (e.g. opening practices), or (c) involve "solutions" that don't scale and really make a difference.

Just win games. Winning is the atmosphere we’ve been missing.

 

[GoSU96]

It was mentioned that last year's NC State game was our last sell-out. This Clemson game apparently won't be. Why? What's the difference? Are people, after last year, expecting a second half collapse, rendering our start irrelevant?

The same reason season tickets dropped: Notre Dame.

 

[anomander]

I don’t know that it would draw a lot of fans, but our pregame/intro stuff is terrible. I’m honestly embarrassed what visiting fans think, it doesn’t even currently qualify as “small time”. And whatever happened to the sound system when the new roof was put on created a major issue, it’s so bad now. I’d hoped they’d be able to tweak it over the summer to be better than last year but it’s still like listening to Charlie Brown’s teacher most of the time.

It really is awful. I’m really at a loss how we do absolutely nothing. I also don’t know how the sound system got worse. How does that happen when your supposedly upgrading everything, including the WiFi. Remember when they had the TD train? At least they tried something there. I also don’t know why they don’t utilize the LED lights after touchdowns and in between timeouts? Also, as i said before, most schools have some gimmick before the fans take the field and also going into the 4th quarter be it a light show , a catchy song, or waving to kids in a hospital. I understand the on the field product decreased, but so did all of the other stuff associated with big time college football programs .

 

[orangenauburn]

Don’t forget how much of a dump Marshall Street is

It does seem to be a shell of it's former self.

But that could just be from faded, jaded, memories of a time long ago

 

[orangenauburn]

It really is awful. I’m really at a loss how we do absolutely nothing. I also don’t know how the sound system got worse. How does that happen when your supposedly upgrading everything, including the WiFi. Remember when they had the TD train? At least they tried something there. I also don’t know why they don’t utilize the LED lights after touchdowns and in between timeouts? Also, as i said before, most schools have some gimmick before the fans take the field and also going into the 4th quarter be it a light show , a catchy song, or waving to kids in a hospital. I understand the on the field product decreased, but so did all of the other stuff associated with big time college football programs .

If they just turned down the volume a touch it would do wonders

 

[HRE Otto IV]

I do think ticket prices are a factor. Not in totality but in between the 35s. Even if we were an 8-4 team every year we would have empties in those sections, especially in the upper deck. Reducing capacity will not help that. We can sell out three quarters of the Dome easier, but that last 1/4 will always be an issue given the pricing. Outside of the 2 sellouts last year, our big games end up that way. Large crowds besides the middle of the field seats.

 

[HeaterCuse22]

I also offer this additional opinion. The location of the stadium is terrible for the non fanatic/casual fan/local. There is no immediate game time atmosphere. Unlike if we had multiple lots at the stadium for tailgating close access to post game activities etc.

The walk up isnt for everyone, south campus and Manley require the bus service etc.

 

[GoSU96]

I also offer this additional opinion. The location of the stadium is terrible for the non fanatic/casual fan/local. There is no immediate game time atmosphere. Unlike if we had multiple lots at the stadium for tailgating close access to post game activities etc.

The walk up isnt for everyone, south campus and Manley require the bus service etc.

Yep, it hard and getting harder in a world where everything is geared to getting easier

It’s a PITA unless you can drop a couple of hundred on parking.

 

[Eric15]

Have about 5-10 food trucks in the Quad with all different types of food.

I love the food truck in the Quad idea. Zero cost to the University. Seems like a win-win-win for fans, local businesses, SU.

 

[FRANKIEFAN]

I also offer this additional opinion. The location of the stadium is terrible for the non fanatic/casual fan/local. There is no immediate game time atmosphere. Unlike if we had multiple lots at the stadium for tailgating close access to post game activities etc.

The walk up isnt for everyone, south campus and Manley require the bus service etc.

This definitely affects that last 10,000 fans we want to get in to fill the place.

The city should chill the hell out on posting no parking on residential streets on game days its 3-4 hours people can deal let them park all over Ackerman Euclid etc and hoof to the Dome.

BC does the same thing all over Newton for their FB games even though noone goes anymore you can't park on the street in half of Newton. Just stupid and these are legal spots otherwise not fire hazards.

 

[Eric15]

I also offer this additional opinion. The location of the stadium is terrible for the non fanatic/casual fan/local. There is no immediate game time atmosphere. Unlike if we had multiple lots at the stadium for tailgating close access to post game activities etc.

The walk up isnt for everyone, south campus and Manley require the bus service etc.

I personally love the walk up to the Dome. When I'm in town, I tailgate in the lot just south of Marshall Square Mall. I think navigating up through the Marshall Street area and then through campus is way nicer than trudging through endless concrete at say MetLife Stadium.

 

[HeaterCuse22]

I personally love the walk up to the Dome. When I'm in town, I tailgate in the lot just south of Marshall Square Mall. I think navigating up through the Marshall Street area and then through campus is way nicer than trudging through endless concrete at say MetLife Stadium.

I don't hate it either. But people are generally lazy. (Overgeneralization alert)

 

[HeaterCuse22]

I love the food truck in the Quad idea. Zero cost to the University. Seems like a win-win-win for fans, local businesses, SU.

I went to only one game this year, and cant tomorrow due to a wedding. On the quad they had a few food trucks that day but ya more would have been great.

 

[Stern]

I love the food truck in the Quad idea. Zero cost to the University. Seems like a win-win-win for fans, local businesses, SU.

Most ideas that the fans would love would literally cost zero dollars. It's about just giving the fans perks , a reason to show up, show up early, and to get new fans and grow the fan-base.

The world has changed, you aren't getting new fans who will show up "just for the games". Does winning cure all, to a point. But not like it did in years past. Fans, the new modern fans, want more. Not everyone is a diehard football fan, but they will show up for an EVENT/PARTY/FESTIVLE-type atmosphere. And if a football game is being played around it, great

 

[Eric15]

I went to only one game this year, and cant tomorrow due to a wedding. On the quad they had a few food trucks that day but ya more would have been great.

690West after reading that.

 

[upperdeck]

I appreciate the thoughtful response. Good stuff.

I agree about #3. Every non-game minute is the Dome is precious, and SU should be rigorous is making sure that they maximize fan enjoyment in those moments. Sponsored things should be engaging and fun. No arguments from me on this one.

And #2 has been an idea that's kicked around for years. I admit to not knowing the logistical issues with it. Seems like a no brainer. The tented area on the Quad always struck me as a bit elitist. Food trucks are definitely for the people. I'm not sold on the notion that this would attract more people to games, but it would certainly help the atmosphere.

#1 and #4 don't land with me. I mean, it's fine, nothing wrong with autographs and pictures. But it's not a draw. And honestly it's the kind of thing that people here will bitch and moan about anyway (the line was too long, they left too soon before kickoff, why don't they ever get good players, etc).

Look, I agree with you about improving the experience beyond the game. But the team still has to be good and the crowd still has to be willing to be engaged.

Fenway Park is a great example. No one does more to create a festive gameday atmosphere than the Sox. The Fens is practically a carnival. During the season they offer $9 standing-room-only entry to college students and it's a big, drunken party. But you know what? It also helps that Sox fans sing along to Sweet Caroline. It helps that they launch into chants and cheers that aren't prompted by the scoreboard. It's not just Sox management that cultivates the experience, it's also the fans themselves.

And the place has been a morgue the past month, because the team sucks.

there have been food trucks in the quad for several years now.

 

[upperdeck]

I also offer this additional opinion. The location of the stadium is terrible for the non fanatic/casual fan/local. There is no immediate game time atmosphere. Unlike if we had multiple lots at the stadium for tailgating close access to post game activities etc.

The walk up isnt for everyone, south campus and Manley require the bus service etc.

explain this.. the vast majority of stadiums you dont have close parking for tailgating.. Its just not a culture here. I mean I was at LSU. walked way more than a mile from the parking. tons of tailgating for sure.. But it was not as close to the dome as the quad is. Having people doing it at SKY top is not the issue..