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Message: [QUOTE="JeremyCuse, post: 1476478, member: 43"] I have made this type of post once a year for the past six years but now seems like a good time to rehash it again: Regarding the decline of attendance there are multiple issues at play. 98% of them will be fixed with consistent winning I think we can all agree on that. But until we get to that day (if ever) there are a host of other reasons why attendance has eroded. Here are a few of them: Marketing - Gross did a lot of great things as AD but Marketing was not one of them. Under his watch its been an absolute disaster. Television, radio, and print ads have been nearly non existent and when you do see one its usually during the 11pm broadcast of Syracuse time capsule showing the 1994 SU vs Rutgers game. Who exactly is watching that save for Mr. Local diehard who already has tickets. When SU does put together a good promotion or deal you need a Lewis and Clark type expedition to find out about it. I am as diehard as they come but if it wasnt for this board I wouldnt know about 75% of the promotions SU is trying to run, how the heck is Susie or Joe casual fan going to hear about it? Just promoting games in general has become an epic struggle on the hill. You would have a better chance of finding the Arc of the convenant then seeing an AD touting SU being 2-0 going into this Saturday on TV. General ineptness of the SU athletic Dept - People like Dan Bartlett and a few others have done a good job turning this perception around but there is still a feeling out there amongst the fanbase that dealing with SU for anything is a total nightmare. Whether its misspelling multiple peoples names in high profile situations (how the hell do you misspell a players name your honoring), odd scheduling decisions, issues dealing with alumni, disasterous 44 announcement etc etc etc. Another perfrect example is the new lot that was supposed to open up across from the fine lot after SU bought all the houses that were there and tore them down. The lot was supposed to open in the fall of 2014, instead theres some sort of legal issue between SU and ESF and that area remains fenced off and is now overgrown and looks awful. Local population apathy - I have mentioned it before but the situation with the local population is far from great. A large chunk of the population simply doesnt have SU football on their radar. I can't tell you how many times in the course of a conversation that someone gave me a puzzled look when I told them I was as the dome for the SU game this past weekend. Most casual fans or peripheral followers don't even consider going to the game, it simply doesn't cross there minds. They may catch it on TV or ask how it went if theres some buzz for a bigger game but actually attending seems absolutey foreign to them. Its one of the oddest things I have ever seen. SU football also still suffers from a large anti-hometown bias. Its cooled a little bit from a few years ago but there is still a good % of people who love to mock the program and wouldnt go if you picked them up in a limo and gave them 50 yardline seats. Concessions/parking/misc - Syracuse is in a tough spot here. The dome isnt in the best locations and obviously parking is limited in the surrounding area. While I dont agree with parking being a big issue it definitely does affect attendance in a negative way. A lof of parking space has been lost the past few years to construction (understandable) but SU hasn't done much to counter balance that. The one public garage available across from the Dome that anyone could park at is now contracted through SU and available via permit only for fball and bball. As someone who has a parking pass and tailgates it doesn't affect me at all but for the casual fan its definitely an issue. Most of them simply aren't interested in parking at Manley or Skytop and taking a shuttle. I know its an issue most schools have but when your struggling with attendance and the on the field product is mediocore at best its something that does play a role. Syracuse has done a nice job opening up the beverage options at the Dome but the food options still feel like is 1987. With a great local food and wine scene I can't figure out for the life of me why SU hasn't capitalized on this. Not going to rehash the point that many have made previously but with so many options it makes zero sense that SU isnt contracting with Dino, Gianelli, Tullys, and many others to offer much better food options. Not only could they charge more but it opens up so many different opportunities for SU on a year round basis for all of the Dome events. [/QUOTE]

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