SU / Dome Staff are killing us.

[Cusefan0307]

The problem is that it’s not marketed or promoted well. And the university is paranoid about making it free, adding any entertainment or promoting it because of the stabbing that took place at the Midnight Madness event at the Dome 10+ years ago (can’t recall the exact year). This event can be done right with the right marketing and promotion but our AD is often lacking in those areas. Hopefully Coach Red and staff take an active interest in making it a great event again once they get settled into the job in the next couple of years.

It was 2012. I don’t see the need to make it more than basketball. We have everyone clamoring to get info on the new guys here. I don’t see why it’s so difficult for some here who are diehards to go up and just watch the basketball. Win this year and people will show up next year.

 

[Sherman20]

I must have that face that screams “ THREAT TO CROWD CONTROL!”
Seriously though…one more story from the “ event” on Friday. First of all, no buzz at all, very few people and I felt like any attempt to show excitement would be met by a “ Crowd Control Attendant” asking me to leave.( slight exaggeration). Maybe this was due to a paranoia over the free event events of I think last year where we had the violence. Anyway, a friend of mine ,who is a big time autograph collector, made up a bunch of player cards of all members of both the mens and womens basketball teams and attached to a big poster board. They set up about 6 or 7 stations in the backcourt for autographs after the event. He went through each line to get the cards signed and the players all seemed to love that he did this. He had one line left to hit and went to get his last signings. A “ Crowd Control Attendant” stopped him and said they were shutting down and he couldn’t get any more autographs. There were only 4 or 5 people left in the line at this station. I told this guy that my friend went through the trouble of creating all these cards and just had these last 3 to sign. The guy was totally rigid and said no. There was still a number of people still milling around and my friend snuck around to the side to get this last few. Just as he got to the players, this attendant got up in the face of my friend to remove him but the players intervened and said it was ok and signed. They told my friend how cool they thought what he did was. My friend went to the attendant after to apologize for going around and thank him for allowing him these last few and extended his hand. He was met with a cold stare and a “ get out of my face” look. I’m sure there will be some here to defend this guy but frankly,the event staff at this Tip Off thing did nothing but detour any casual fan that might have been there from wanting to come to any future game.
Rant over.

You should email your experiences to Pete Sala and Wildhack. This is unacceptable behavior for a fan event. They need to hire new event staff managers and retrain all of the event staff or totally clean house. This nonsense has been going on for decades.

 

[Cusefan95]

I’ve always thought the “sports usher” paradigm is backwards. They are trained all over the country as law enforcement types, when they should be trained more as waitstaff

A waiter says “sir what can I do to make your night enjoyable?” A cop says “no you can’t!!”

Many ushers also derive self worth from this mini authority they are granted. Sometimes they don’t have this authority in their “real” life.

And some, of course, are just delightful. But overall, there’s a definite power play phenomenon at play with sports ushers

Schools/teams/stadiums are more concerned with minimizing risk of getting sued than in enhancing the entertainment value. I can’t see that changing anytime soon.

Plus, at times rules are in place for a reason. The usher in my section at New Jersey Devils games is tyrannical about not letting people go to their seats after play starts, you have to wait for a whistle. In fact she starts holding people a few seconds before play restarts, and I hear people grumble about that all the time. But last winter I went to a Florida Panthers game, which was a free for all with people coming and going constantly - I’d guess 40% of the time people were blocking my view of the action.

In that situation, who is the usher acting as a waiter to - the guy who wants to get back to his seat ASAP, or the guy already in his seat that doesn’t want his view blocked by the guy going back to his seat. When you have fans with mutually exclusive desires, the usher HAS TO BE a cop and tell one of them ‘no’.

All you can hope for is that the rules they are trained to enforce are reasonable (even if they don’t seem that way to the fan being told ‘no’) - I’m ok with them being enforced with an iron fist once they are given those orders.

(The usher at Devils games is a large black woman. She’d held me up just before Adam Henrique scored the series winning goal against the Rangers in 2012; when he scored she got so excited she gave me a bear hug and started jumping up and down screaming her head off. That’s one of my favorite hockey memories; I’ve had a soft spot in my heart for her since then).

 

[Newhouser]

Attending a JMA event is waiting for something to go off the tracks. It is a relief if you go to a crowded football game and your lot hasn't been oversold, the bag your wife has brought all season suddenly becomes a millimeter to long forcing you to go to another gate that doesn't even check it, your row isn't holding 20 more people than its designed to, your beer purchase doesn't take 5 minutes because it takes that long for your transaction to be completed, etc.

They aren't good at the event end.

 

[Cusefan95]

Basketball kickoff has never had the MOJO at Cuse as other places. Midnight Madness as far as I know wasn't a thing in Syracuse when it was at its peak

I went to what I think was the first one when it was at Manley when I was in school. I’m a huge basketball fan, but honestly the whole idea of Midnight Madness is lost on me. If people enjoy it, great - I wouldn’t go for free to it.

I think the spring games for football are different since it’s so far out of season - that I actually enjoy. I’ll pass on Midnight Madness stuff though.

 

[Consigliere]

SU needs to stop doing this event. It’s getting embarrassing. There’s no interest or excitement. They would be better served to go to Utica and Rochester. Smaller arenas and something a little different.

Those of us who attend do enjoy it, especially when there are a lot of new faces. Can certainly be done better with more fan engagement, and blocking off the entire side court for students that have shown they aren’t that interested is ridiculous at this point - particularly when the movable football end zone seats aren’t used, but for the 1000 people who show up every year it’s apparently worth the effort.

 

[Cusefan95]

Attending a JMA event is waiting for something to go off the tracks. It is a relief if you go to a crowded football game and your lot hasn't been oversold, the bag your wife has brought all season suddenly becomes a millimeter to long forcing you to go to another gate that doesn't even check it, your row isn't holding 20 more people than its designed to, your beer purchase doesn't take 5 minutes because it takes that long for your transaction to be completed, etc.

They aren't good at the event end.

At some point between when I graduated from college and now, I developed a passionate hatred of bench seating for this reason. The best part about going to chairs is this issue will be going away now.

 

[two3zone]

My buddy had an usher come up to him and tell him to stop vaping aggressively after he used his inhaler this past Friday.

 

[littlereg]

My buddy had an usher come up to him and tell him to stop vaping aggressively after he used his inhaler this past Friday.

He’s just gotta rip the vape then and he’ll be okay!

 

[cali315phan]

Was this tip off our weak version of midnight madness? This is what we did for our new HC?

 

[DoubleDee]

Was this tip off our weak version of midnight madness? This is what we did for our new HC?

Its not really any different than its been for the last number years. Minus a stabbing, they're pretty drab.

 

[SUforme]

Midnight madness used to be on ESPN and I would watch but it hasn't been for quite a while. I miss those days. It's not like we don't know anyone with ESPN connections or anything...

 

[OrangeDW]

Its not really any different than its been for the last number years. Minus a stabbing, they're pretty drab.

I demand a backboard shattering dunk or I’m not coming!

I think Hima could do it and he’s holding out on us.

 

[kirbivore]

I must have that face that screams “ THREAT TO CROWD CONTROL!”

CIA level 1 threat!

 

[UpstateSM]

My ushers for football and basketball are both awesome. Made sure I brought the wonderful lady who deals with our section for football a Dunkin gift card week one this year. We get away with a lot. Lol

 

[JRHEETER]

My ushers for football and basketball are both awesome. Made sure I brought the wonderful lady who deals with our section for football a Dunkin gift card week one this year. We get away with a lot. Lol

Oddly enough my section used to have an awesome guy, would high five after plays and wins etc


Now our section has a new person every week, bummed about it

 

[OrangeDW]

Long time ago, like early 00’s we stayed in the parking lot listening to the end of the Giants-Eagles game on the car radio in the parking lot. I think the Giants almost had a miracle hook and ladder for a score, but fell short and the Eagles won by 1. I’m pissed.

We go into the Dome and the usher gives us crap for not being there on time(it was like 2 minutes into the game or something), because it was a TV game. Like he acted legit put out about us not being there for tip off. Even more pissed.

Then had to deal with the guy selling programs in the McNabb Eagles jersey yelling to people about how the Eagles won. Fuming.(just kidding on that one, that guy was the best)

 

[JRHEETER]

Long time ago, like early 00’s we stayed in the parking lot listening to the end of the Giants-Eagles game on the car radio in the parking lot. I think the Giants almost had a miracle hook and ladder for a score, but fell short and the Eagles won by 1. I’m pissed.

We go into the Dome and the usher gives us crap for not being there on time(it was like 2 minutes into the game or something), because it was a TV game. Like he acted legit put out about us not being there for tip off. Even more pissed.

Then had to deal with the guy selling programs in the McNabb Eagles jersey yelling to people about how the Eagles won. Fuming.(just kidding on that one, that guy was the best)

Miss that guy selling programs