These kids deserve better….

[Louie&Bouie]

I have followed SU sports for better than 35 years. Both sets of my grandparents, my parents, and I graduated from Syracuse. I grew up in rural Western Pennsylvania, just across the border from Jamestown, NY. We routinely travelled up here for football and basketball games. My father would pick me up from school on a weeknight, we would drive directly to the dome for a weeknight hoops game, arrive minutes before tip, and drive home immediately afterwards.

The fan apathy in this town is atrocious. We played one of our longest-standing rivals this weekend (I don't know how many times we've played, but I'd guess it's North of 70), and we can't drag 23,000 people in to support this program with a chance to go to a third bowl-game in 4 years. I recognize that those bowl games aren't BCS games, but dammit, they are still bowl games.

After tough losses, when my friends and family call me to talk/complain/rehash the game, my first question to them is always "Did you go to the game?" Invariably, 90% of them say no. They were too busy, the tickets cost too much, they had something more important going on, they would rather watch it from their couch, etc……I had two extra tickets this weekend (my 15 and 14 year old sons were sick). I called 7 people on Saturday morning asking them if they would like to go. All 7 declined for various reasons. My 8th call finally found a taker…….

If I were a recruit in town for this type of performance by the fans WHO WEREN'T THERE, I'd be pretty hard-pressed to say that the atmosphere won me over. I'm sorry, but it"s put up or shut up time for a great majority of people in this town. These kids who have been working their butts off since August deserve better. To those who were there, you deserve major props. IMO, the University should do more to reward that core group.

Again, it was one of our oldest rivals. With a bowl game on the line. What a shame. 10,000-12,000 more butts in the seats may or may not have been the difference, but you know what? It wouldn't have had a negative impact. The casual fans surrounding this program need to decide if they want to be at the level of Va Tech, or Wake Forest. And if it's Wake Forest, so be it. But they haven't earned the right to bitch by ignoring these kids.

 

[IthacaBarrel]

Here we go... It's the entertainment business, tickets cost money, popcorn, beer, parking etc. IF people aren't going to the games it means they aren't finding value in what they are paying for. There is no blood oath that if you live in Syracuse that you are required to #1 be a Syracuse football fan and #2 go to all home games.

Bitch, bitch, bitch, all we want. We have sucked for pretty much 15 years now, and you wonder why people don't want to come. We play in a dome, put an offense out there for more than 1 season that shows we score points, win some games, create some buzz, start 3-0 one year, maybe fans will come back. Geeze

I couldn't sell two 2nd row, 50 yard line seats with a parking pass for $50 on here last week for the Pitt game, and we are the diehards? Understanding most had tix but still? What

Watching at home if are local is far less of a commitment in so many ways...

 

[cvilleorange]

Here we go... It's the entertainment business, tickets cost money, popcorn, beer, parking etc. IF people aren't going to the games it means they aren't finding value in what they are paying for. There is no blood oath that if you live in Syracuse that you are required to #1 be a Syracuse football fan and #2 go to all home games.

Bitch, bitch, bitch, all we want. We have sucked for pretty much 15 years now, and you wonder why people don't want to come. We play in a dome, put an offense out there for more than 1 season that shows we score points, win some games, create some buzz, start 3-0 one year, maybe fans will come back. Geeze

I couldn't sell two 2nd row, 50 yard line seats with a parking pass for $50 on here last week for the Pitt game, and we are the diehards? Understanding most had tix but still? What

Watching at home if are local is far less of a commitment in so many ways...

I just think that we are at a point that the lack of support hurts the program. When recruits go to a game and it is loud and the fans support the team, they are genuinely impressed. I see it partially as an investment- if you want to see results with recruiting, we have to create a good game day atmosphere. I will stand by an earlier statement I had- going to the movies with your kids is more expensive than going to the dome for a football game. This staff clearly wants an offense that utilizes the advantages of the dome, but can't because of personnel. It is what it is, but we can do our part to create a great environment that will:
1. Be an advantage in close games with equally matched teams
2. Impress recruits
3. Make games more enjoyable- definitely more fun with a big crowd

 

[anomander]

21k actually walk through the doors, and about 1/3 of them leave at halftime. That right there says a lot. It says that people just don't care anymore. Obviously this is a huge problem, and it's not going to fix itself.

 

[xc84]

21k actually walk through the doors, and about 1/3 of them leave at halftime. That right there says a lot. It says that people just don't care anymore. Obviously this is a huge problem, and it's not going to fix itself.

Only one thing fixes it. Wins.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Only one thing fixes it. Wins.

Win AND be exciting

 

[anomander]

Only one thing fixes it. Wins.

yes, but there is a lot that goes into getting those wins

 

[Cusefan78]

Why should fans invest in a product that is mind numbing to watch. The university clearly doesn't reinvest into its own program. That shows with the money they pay their own coaches, the lack of an ipf, and lack of excitement through advertising. Just look at the mcnabb jersey retiring. Other than the people on this board who knew about it. Hate to say it but if the university treats the team like a joke then why should the casual fan treat it any other way. And this is from a guy who goes to 90% of the home games and tries to hit at least one road game a year. The product on the field and in the stands is a direct result of the universities lack of input.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Win AND be exciting

I am so encouraged that so many people are coming around to this.

 

[Marsh01]

Here we go... It's the entertainment business, tickets cost money, popcorn, beer, parking etc. IF people aren't going to the games it means they aren't finding value in what they are paying for. There is no blood oath that if you live in Syracuse that you are required to #1 be a Syracuse football fan and #2 go to all home games. Bitch, bitch, bitch, all we want. We have sucked for pretty much 15 years now, and you wonder why people don't want to come. We play in a dome, put an offense out there for more than 1 season that shows we score points, win some games, create some buzz, start 3-0 one year, maybe fans will come back. Geeze I couldn't sell two 2nd row, 50 yard line seats with a parking pass for $50 on here last week for the Pitt game, and we are the diehards? Understanding most had tix but still? What Watching at home if are local is far less of a commitment in so many ways...

Bingo. Pretty much nailed it

 

[Bornorange]

We have had some really good teams (within the last 15 years) and still had lackluster attendance.
Don't put a stadium where you can not park 15,000 cars within easy walking distance.

I would walk through a blizzard at 20 below but I don't think my brother would.

 

[rrlbees]

21k actually walk through the doors, and about 1/3 of them leave at halftime. That right there says a lot. It says that people just don't care anymore. Obviously this is a huge problem, and it's not going to fix itself.

That is a huge exaggeration. I go outside every single halftime. Not a single person left at halftime thru the gate I was outside of.

Sent from my iPhone using Forum Runner

 

[Marsh01]

We have had some really good teams (within the last 15 years) and still had lackluster attendance. Don't put a stadium where you can not park 15,000 cars within easy walking distance. I would walk through a blizzard at 20 below but I don't think my brother would.

Its a lot of things. 4-5 hour commitment as opposed to less than 3 for a hoops game. Parking is a joke. My father actually got into a screaming war with the fine lot attendant. He said the lot was closed as it was "full". Well it wasnt full. 100 spaces were being taken by tailgaters and it got pretty ugly seeing he pays for a pass in that lot. He actually got out of the car and moved the cones

 

[rrlbees]

I have followed SU sports for better than 35 years. Both sets of my grandparents, my parents, and I graduated from Syracuse. I grew up in rural Western Pennsylvania, just across the border from Jamestown, NY. We routinely travelled up here for football and basketball games. My father would pick me up from school on a weeknight, we would drive directly to the dome for a weeknight hoops game, arrive minutes before tip, and drive home immediately afterwards. The fan apathy in this town is atrocious. We played one of our longest-standing rivals this weekend (I don't know how many times we've played, but I'd guess it's North of 70), and we can't drag 23,000 people in to support this program with a chance to go to a third bowl-game in 4 years. I recognize that those bowl games aren't BCS games, but dammit, they are still bowl games. After tough losses, when my friends and family call me to talk/complain/rehash the game, my first question to them is always "Did you go to the game?" Invariably, 90% of them say no. They were too busy, the tickets cost too much, they had something more important going on, they would rather watch it from their couch, etc……I had two extra tickets this weekend (my 15 and 14 year old sons were sick). I called 7 people on Saturday morning asking them if they would like to go. All 7 declined for various reasons. My 8th call finally found a taker……. If I were a recruit in town for this type of performance by the fans WHO WEREN'T THERE, I'd be pretty hard-pressed to say that the atmosphere won me over. I'm sorry, but it"s put up or shut up time for a great majority of people in this town. These kids who have been working their butts off since August deserve better. To those who were there, you deserve major props. IMO, the University should do more to reward that core group. Again, it was one of our oldest rivals. With a bowl game on the line. What a shame. 10,000-12,000 more butts in the seats may or may not have been the difference, but you know what? It wouldn't have had a negative impact. The casual fans surrounding this program need to decide if they want to be at the level of Va Tech, or Wake Forest. And if it's Wake Forest, so be it. But they haven't earned the right to bitch by ignoring these kids.

I don't blame the fans. It's a history of poor decisions made by SU.

Sent from my iPhone using Forum Runner

 

[swish7]

To those who were there, you deserve major props. IMO, the University should do more to reward that core group..

...like free pony rides?...

 

[RICuse44]

Just curious for those who say its not exciting. I am a Giants fan. They have been brutal to watch this year. Just brutal. Yet I watch and so do many others. Tickets there are obscene. I imagine there are a fair number of Jets and Bills fans on the board also. In reality are those games exciting, or more so than what Cuse has put out this year (minus the blowouts of course)? The offense has not been lighting up the scoreboard but there are very few teams that you can watch on defense who blitz as much and from as many different places as our team. And I love it.

 

[CaliCuse]

I have followed SU sports for better than 35 years. Both sets of my grandparents, my parents, and I graduated from Syracuse. I grew up in rural Western Pennsylvania, just across the border from Jamestown, NY. We routinely travelled up here for football and basketball games. My father would pick me up from school on a weeknight, we would drive directly to the dome for a weeknight hoops game, arrive minutes before tip, and drive home immediately afterwards.

The fan apathy in this town is atrocious. We played one of our longest-standing rivals this weekend (I don't know how many times we've played, but I'd guess it's North of 70), and we can't drag 23,000 people in to support this program with a chance to go to a third bowl-game in 4 years. I recognize that those bowl games aren't BCS games, but dammit, they are still bowl games.

After tough losses, when my friends and family call me to talk/complain/rehash the game, my first question to them is always "Did you go to the game?" Invariably, 90% of them say no. They were too busy, the tickets cost too much, they had something more important going on, they would rather watch it from their couch, etc……I had two extra tickets this weekend (my 15 and 14 year old sons were sick). I called 7 people on Saturday morning asking them if they would like to go. All 7 declined for various reasons. My 8th call finally found a taker…….

If I were a recruit in town for this type of performance by the fans WHO WEREN'T THERE, I'd be pretty hard-pressed to say that the atmosphere won me over. I'm sorry, but it"s put up or shut up time for a great majority of people in this town. These kids who have been working their butts off since August deserve better. To those who were there, you deserve major props. IMO, the University should do more to reward that core group.

Again, it was one of our oldest rivals. With a bowl game on the line. What a shame. 10,000-12,000 more butts in the seats may or may not have been the difference, but you know what? It wouldn't have had a negative impact. The casual fans surrounding this program need to decide if they want to be at the level of Va Tech, or Wake Forest. And if it's Wake Forest, so be it. But they haven't earned the right to bitch by ignoring these kids.

 

[Marsh01]

Just curious for those who say its not exciting. I am a Giants fan. They have been brutal to watch this year. Just brutal. Yet I watch and so do many others. Tickets there are obscene. I imagine there are a fair number of Jets and Bills fans on the board also. In reality are those games exciting, or more so than what Cuse has put out this year (minus the blowouts of course)? The offense has not been lighting up the scoreboard but there are very few teams that you can watch on defense who blitz as much and from as many different places as our team. And I love it.

As a fellow giant fan its because they have a chance to play for a title. Tough to get excited (and i am speaking on the overall fan base) when you have no chance at winning a championship.
I think its more the sport than the team. It is for me.

 

[CaliCuse]

in the 60s I worked in Marine Midland with a large group of co-workers . When the weekend approached ,it wasn't uncommon to ask each other what were our plans for the weekend. When the occasion was ,that I would be going to a game at Archibald I can remember being asked "Why"? Now these people were normal in appreciation of sports but the though of going to a game was as foreign a possibility as anything you might imagine even when thre team was full of stars and playing well. Spending money to go to a game? "Hell no! Lousey fans from way back . They always have been . If they weren't winning,getting a crowd was even more remote a possibility. Nothing has changed in Syracuse for many decades. Its sure not going to get any better with these kind of loses. Bandwagon buccaneers. They go to basketball games because Jimmy brings in stars to play for him. He wins and they come .They will pack the Dome when Duke shows up. More than some of our football games. When we bring in some big time football players that excite the fans MAYBE they will show up but not before. Its really up to the coaches to recruit better and win when they do. The crowd will follow that success with proportional numbers.

 

[TheCusian]

I go back to the loss vs FSU on ABC. A high profile blow out hurts attendance like nothing else.

We all knew what was coming and would go to the game anyways - but the casual fan sees the result and thinks "same old" ...

 

[KaiserUEO]

I go back to the loss vs FSU on ABC. A high profile blow out hurts attendance like nothing else.

We all knew what was coming and would go to the game anyways - but the casual fan sees the result and thinks "same old" ...

sorry, thats fluckin stoopid.

who the cares??!

people actually use that as reason???

getting beat by the potential NCAA Champ, hurts attendence??

puhinleaz

im sick of these blowout loss bullshlit excuses

florida got beat by a d3 team, will they play before an empty house soon??

screw the no shows.

this will be turned around and them then too.

reminds me of a raider game i went too about 20 years ago.

they had been down for a bit but were on a rise that basically went nowhere but,

pulled into the lot and there was darth raider, spike shoulderpad guy, some guy with a sword right out of pulp fiction and the rest of that gang with a huge ass banner spraypainted with black letters that read.....

BANDWAGON FANS GO HOME

i agreed then and agree now. i was also scared to death and bought a underground, black raider tshirt out of some guys pantleg for $10 in a preemptive survival effort, i digress but the point remains...

it says alot

 

[Chip]

I don't blame the fans. It's a history of poor decisions made by SU.

Sent from my iPhone using Forum Runner

Everyone takes their blame. Place was half full. To say the fans don't take "some" blame is just ludicrous, unless you're running for Mayor or something.

 

[Louie&Bouie]

I don't blame the fans. It's a history of poor decisions made by SU.]

I do. They don't get to reference Kenneth Shaw forever. The success of this program rests in their hands.

They haven't earned the right to complain if they are not willing to drop a few dollars into this program's coffers. Sorry.

 

[rrlbees]

Everyone takes their blame. Place was half full. To say the fans don't take "some" blame is just ludicrous, unless you're running for Mayor or something.

It's been a steady decline. You could plot the attendance over the past 12 years. The attendance trend across the country as well as decisions mDe by SU makes for a bad mix.

Sent from my iPhone using Forum Runner

 

[RF2044]

I agree--the team does deserve better support for the community. But its easy for me to take that perspective, as a diehard.

But I also think that the community deserves a better product than the one they've been subjected to the last 15 years, give or take the last few where we've rebuilt. The University and the Athletic Department deserve a shi-load of blame for their complicity in letting things get so bad. I firmly believe that.