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Attendance
Oct 26, 2016 10:20:53 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by joe on Oct 26, 2016 10:20:53 GMT -5
Army and Navy are probably close approximations too...(undergrad enrollment/size of football stadia) BCS so kind of a different scenario.
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Post by hc87 on Oct 26, 2016 10:22:52 GMT -5
Army and Navy are probably close approximations too...(undergrad enrollment/size of football stadia) BCS so kind of a different scenario. The Citadel and VMI then....
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Post by Sons of Vaval on Oct 26, 2016 10:24:11 GMT -5
Stadia capacities: Colgate 10k Wofford 13k Furman 16k Holy Cross 25k Nothing matches HC in terms of stadium capacity to student body ratio. It's a very unique and, many would say, special situation, that is often under emphasized and under appreciated. With a few bleachers thrown in at the open end we'd have a BCS capacity stadium I think. Oh, I thought you were referring to the school as a whole, not just football stadium size. South Carolina State is the closest comparison.
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Post by sarasota on Oct 26, 2016 10:57:58 GMT -5
joe- Agree. The other comparisons were not valid.
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Post by sader1970 on Oct 26, 2016 11:00:25 GMT -5
Joe, I believe Fitton is 23,500 but your overall point us well taken.
I do believe that a consistently winning team, an occasional early season night game or two and you would see attendance climb to to 12,000-15,000 levels. Nothing succeeds like winning. The latest regime is at least trying to "market" the Holy Cross brand athletically. That has not been the case for decades. But to have a successful marketing campaign, you have to have a winning product.
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Post by CHC8485 on Oct 26, 2016 11:46:09 GMT -5
It technically makes HC a little less "unique" and I don't think it changes the arguement significantly but ...
Wofford with a 13,000 seat stadium and 1600 students has about 8.1 seats per student.
Holy Cross with a 23,500 seat stadium and 2900 students has 8.1 seats per student.
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Post by joe on Oct 26, 2016 11:49:09 GMT -5
OK, guys, let me be more specific - there is no small, liberal arts, non-military, "college-on-a-hill" type of school with a stadium capacity to enrollment similar to HC. I'm talking about your small, "New Englandy" type of schools that tend to either have small stadiums if they are D1 or are simply D3 schools, like Colgate in D1, Babson or Wellesley in D3. Colgate is obviously doing just fine, thank you, but also deserves bigger crowds.
In terms of the recent examples, SCS is kind a stretch in terms of the type of college it is, and VMI stadium has a capacity of only 10k so it does not apply. Citadel is military. Wofford? OK, this is the closest comparison mentioned.
Why do resistant to acknowledge that HC has a unique problem stemmed partly from being a unique school when it comes to its football stadium. I don't see how this is debatable; it's really a fact. And the point of bringing it up is to underscore how important it is for HC to have its local "fans" on board and not just reply on its tiny student body and local alumni base if it wishes to bring in consistently decent crowds. There is simply no other D1 college football worth watching in Central MA. UMass?
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Post by sarasota on Oct 26, 2016 14:31:43 GMT -5
In the old days we had the same stadium=to=students ratio, BUT there was no cable, big screen, hi-def college football on Saturday afternoons. The TV football productions of today are absolute eye candy. Brilliant colors, high definition, multiple camera angles, multiple replays, professional announcing and color commentators, on-field interviews, pre-game up close and personals, etc., etc. It's impossible for HC football to directly compete with that showing Alabama-Clemson and USC-Notre Dame, etc. There are some ideas that might help. But they would amount to a kind of revolution, like.....move the games to late afternoon/evening (requires lights), move to Friday night (again lights). This would have numerous implications such as travel impacts, classroom impacts, need for all teams to get on the same page, etc. But if you want something to survive competition you have to WORK at it and have IMAGINATION. There is another approach...upgrade significantly our current cable/stream productions, but it costs money. Put a g*ddam camera on the visitors side. Have at least four cameras. Do replays. Erect a jumbotron at Fitton. Have interesting half time interviews, on-field interviews. As more viewers watch the cable/stream production, locals will want to go to the stadium in person. Got to WANT IT TO HAPPEN.
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Post by bringbackcaro on Oct 26, 2016 15:38:31 GMT -5
In the old days we had the same stadium=to=students ratio, BUT there was no cable, big screen, hi-def college football on Saturday afternoons. The TV football productions of today are absolute eye candy. Brilliant colors, high definition, multiple camera angles, multiple replays, professional announcing and color commentators, on-field interviews, pre-game up close and personals, etc., etc. It's impossible for HC football to directly compete with that showing Alabama-Clemson and USC-Notre Dame, etc. There are some ideas that might help. But they would amount to a kind of revolution, like.....move the games to late afternoon/evening (requires lights), move to Friday night (again lights). This would have numerous implications such as travel impacts, classroom impacts, need for all teams to get on the same page, etc. But if you want something to survive competition you have to WORK at it and have IMAGINATION. There is another approach...upgrade significantly our current cable/stream productions, but it costs money. Put a g*ddam camera on the visitors side. Have at least four cameras. Do replays. Erect a jumbotron at Fitton. Have interesting half time interviews, on-field interviews. As more viewers watch the cable/stream production, locals will want to go to the stadium in person. Got to WANT IT TO HAPPEN. Students aren't staying away from games because they'd rather sit on a couch and watch a different game on TV -- they're staying away because the gameday experience is nowhere near where it should/can be. Get lights, push back start times to 3:00-3:30, don't bother people at the tailgates,give the students their own section where they can act like college kids, and the attendance will increase. There was a stretch about 7-8-9 years ago when students started flocking to baseball games on Saturday & Sunday afternoons because the seats along the right field like became a very fun place to be. Kids didn't care what our record was, if there was a high definition alternative on TV, etc. etc. but they started to make it a point to attend those games and it became a great environment.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Oct 26, 2016 15:53:05 GMT -5
Average football attendance Northeast schools 2015 / 2014 Yale 20547 / 15193 (distorted by Harvard Yale and Yale Army) Delaware 15826 / 15682 Harvard 12799 / 15018 Lehigh 8409 / 6349 Princeton 8265 / 9865 Cornell 8125 / 6647 New Hampshire 7303 / 8745 Stony Brook 7268 / NA Villanova 6767 / 5360 Dartmouth 6660 / 5549 Towson 6594 / 7288 Holy Cross 6523 / 6748 Fordham 6499 / 4663 Lafayette 6328 / 6054 Penn 6048 / 8720 Columbia 5988 / 5576 Bryant 5493 / 2585 Maine 5071 / 5657 Colgate 5002 / 4844 Brown 4822 / 5756 Rhode Island 4753 / 5317 CCSU 3427 / 3078 Sacred Heart 3406 / 2681 Bucknell 3256 / 3530 Georgetown 2482 / 2124 Monmouth 2461 / 1832 Wagner 2227 / 2278 Marist 2141 / 1834 Saint Francis 1582 / 1273 Robert Morris 1545 / 1627 Duquesne 1372 / 1380 ---------------------- Some Southern schools Elon 7841 / 6793 Furman 6795 / 7229 James Madison 19498 / 19816 Liberty 18990 / 17016 Old Dominion 20118 / 20118 Reclassifying Presbyterian 3810 / 3565 Richmond 8099 / 7499 VMI 4778 / 5263 W&M 8967 / 8991 Wofford 7007 / 7764 --------------------------- Division III Amherst 1468 / 3653 Wesleyan 2763 / 2574 Williams 1665 / 2657 Wooster 2087 / 2498 WPI 2144 / 1536 __________________________________ Holy Cross football attendance last 14 years 2002 4160? 2003 6884 2004 NA 2005 7051 #37 2006 5742 #68 2007 7172 #54 2008 8431 #46 2009 7552 2010 6607 2011 7038 2012 7671 2013 6887 2014 6748 2015 6523
NCAA data for prior years not retrievable on-line. No rankings after 2008.
It would be a Herculean achievement to get average attendance over 10,000 without scheduling FCS opponents such as Harvard, Dartmouth, Yale, Colgate at home every year.
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Post by wooman on Oct 26, 2016 16:07:19 GMT -5
Your grasp of history on the subject is suspect, '94. For most of its history, HC was a source of pride in Worcester, among alum and non-alum alike - so I'm not sure what the "old simmering resentment" comment is based on because historically the opposite is true. I think that began to change under the Fr. Brooks with his "Holy Cross must do what's best for Holy Cross" ethos. Nonetheless community support for HC athletics persisted through most of the 1980s and into the 1990s because there was a decent product to show up and see. Today you have the double whammy of a sub-par product and the hangover from the lack of institutional engagement in civic affairs which took root during the Brooks era, which brings us to our current point. I think Fr. B and NP could take some pointers from the Bravehearts ownership on how to earn the support of the public. And your grasp of the history is similarly suspect. Fr. Brooks did not create the ethos that Holy Cross must do what's best for Holy Cross. It has always been thus. It started in 1843 when Holy Cross did what was best for Holy Cross in 1843 by finding a way to confer degress when the state would not grant the College a charter and has continued since. I ask you to name one decision Holy Cross made prior to 1980 that was made becasue it will be good for Worcester but perhaps was not in Holy Cross' best interest. Holy Cross' engagement in civic affairs grew under Fr. Brooks and continues to do so to this day. The Holy Cross Student Programs for Urban Development (SPUD) began in 1968 (2 years before Fr. Brooks became president). It and other programs flourished and grew throughout his tenue and have continued to grown since. Holy Cross' engagement in Worcester are not high profile programs. They address the most basic needs of individuals for food, shelter, health and education. Doing that doesn't get you praise from the average citizen, becasue it's not seen. They are programs average citizens don't want to see up close and so do not see nor appreciate the impact. Have you ever been to the Mustard Seed, Abby's House, Matthew 25, the Nativity school, etc. All things Holy Cross supports and is involved with which directly benefit the city. And the community did not support HC athletics through most of the 80's and into the 90s. I was there for basketball games in 1982, '83, '84, & '85 - before Fr. Brooks talked about being in the entertainment business. I don't remember the Hart Center being sold out for too many games when I was a student, particularly in 1984 & 85. Fitton Field was significantly more crowded than today, but I don't remember Fittion Field packed, much less sold out for many games against any school not named Boston College. Yes, in the mid 1980s, when making the announcement about the Colonial League and was asked specifically what the people of Worcester would do for sports entertainment, Fr. Brooks answered in the most arrogant and worst possible way. And that's where your gripe is and what is shaping your perception ... Fr. Brooks flipping you off. You - and other Worcester sports fans - deserve to be angry about that. But please don't lump everything Holy Cross does into the same pot of not caring about the greater Worcester Community. Holy Cross cares deeply about and is involved with the Worcester community. Perhaps you just don't see, value or agree with where HC chooses to be involved and make an impact, but HC as an institution is engaged in the civic affairs of Worcester. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on many points of this discussion, CHC8485. You are quite correct that Holy Cross students contribute significantly to the community in the ways you describe. I think the same can be said about students at Assumption, Clark, Becker, WPI, etc. You may have a different take on this, but I do draw a distinction between the contributions of students and the overall institutional commitment to the community.
The Nativity School of Worcester is truly a gem, but Holy Cross has never provided financial support for its operations. Sure the Nativity model here and elsewhere has its roots in the Jesuit community and thus there is a tangential connection to the Cross. However, the notion that HC operates and/or financially bankrolls the school - as some have intimated - is not accurate. Please know that I'm not saying that HC is completely derelict as a civic institution. HC's support of the mobile public library vehicle is one notable example of their community involvement - and probably the signature example of HC's involvement in Worcester. My broader point is that given HC's national footprint, influence, and resources the institution's civic engagement is comparatively limited. The closest academic peers that HC has in the city are WPI and Clark, which are schools whose civic engagement eclipses that of HC IMHO. Clark's partnerships with the Main South community are too lengthy to mention here, and WPI's community work with Gateway Park has enhanced both the school and the community it calls home.
Judging from your handle, CHC8485, you may have a few years on me, but I too went to a fair number of hoops and football games in the early to mid 1980s and I generally recall healthy crowds. For hoops, attendance in the early to mid 80s was probably not at the level of the Ronnie Perry, Jr. era when a Cross game was sometimes a tough ticket, but going to a game back then was still an event. I took my family to a game last season and I could have literally counted the number of fans in the Hart at tip off. With football, I similarly remember crowds well north of 10,000 on a regular basis back in the 1980s. Today a good high school game on Friday night is apt to outdraw a HC football game.
Like others have said, a lot of people have simply moved on and directed their attention elsewhere when it comes to athletics. You now have a whole generation of people in the area that have no recollection of what once was HC athletics. You have to be in your late 40s to really have any memory of the tail end of HC's athletic prominence. The de-emphasis on athletics under Fr. Brooks, coupled with an atrophied civic relationship that HC has in the community, compounded by mediocrity in the W-L column brings us to our current point. A long term commitment to progress on all three fronts will be needed if there is any hope of reversing this trend IMHO.
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Post by zambonihomie13 on Oct 26, 2016 16:49:07 GMT -5
In the old days we had the same stadium=to=students ratio, BUT there was no cable, big screen, hi-def college football on Saturday afternoons. The TV football productions of today are absolute eye candy. Brilliant colors, high definition, multiple camera angles, multiple replays, professional announcing and color commentators, on-field interviews, pre-game up close and personals, etc., etc. It's impossible for HC football to directly compete with that showing Alabama-Clemson and USC-Notre Dame, etc. There are some ideas that might help. But they would amount to a kind of revolution, like.....move the games to late afternoon/evening (requires lights), move to Friday night (again lights). This would have numerous implications such as travel impacts, classroom impacts, need for all teams to get on the same page, etc. But if you want something to survive competition you have to WORK at it and have IMAGINATION. There is another approach...upgrade significantly our current cable/stream productions, but it costs money. Put a g*ddam camera on the visitors side. Have at least four cameras. Do replays. Erect a jumbotron at Fitton. Have interesting half time interviews, on-field interviews. As more viewers watch the cable/stream production, locals will want to go to the stadium in person. Got to WANT IT TO HAPPEN. Students aren't staying away from games because they'd rather sit on a couch and watch a different game on TV -- they're staying away because the gameday experience is nowhere near where it should/can be. Get lights, push back start times to 3:00-3:30, don't bother people at the tailgates,give the students their own section where they can act like college kids, and the attendance will increase. There was a stretch about 7-8-9 years ago when students started flocking to baseball games on Saturday & Sunday afternoons because the seats along the right field like became a very fun place to be. Kids didn't care what our record was, if there was a high definition alternative on TV, etc. etc. but they started to make it a point to attend those games and it became a great environment. +1. Th extent of student/young alumni interest in HC football is basically dependent on tailgating, and right now it is one of the worst tailgating situations there can be. The police/security situation at Fitton has been discussed ad nauseum and needs to change. College students are going to spend their Saturday's drinking, wouldn't we rather have that occur in a controlled environment that would attract prospective students and lead to a spirited atmosphere on gamedays, rather than secluded in their dorm rooms/houses? Noon is too early, as has been discussed. Rope off a prime section for students, rather than having them be dispersed and isolated throughout the crowd. If every Saturday is an event, than students will come now matter the team's record, just like they do at big time schools. Friends of students may even want to visit on fall weekends just to tailgate, have fun and watch football. Make sure they have home dates with teams such as Harvard, Dartmouth, Yale, Colgate, Villanova, Fordham, etc. These are schools that students often at least have some sort of connection with. Which is why I think HC in HE/ECAC is a slam dunk since that's where students had the most fun when I was on the hill, and all the schools in those leagues are closer peers to HC, but I digress.
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Post by zambonihomie13 on Oct 26, 2016 16:51:44 GMT -5
And your grasp of the history is similarly suspect. Fr. Brooks did not create the ethos that Holy Cross must do what's best for Holy Cross. It has always been thus. It started in 1843 when Holy Cross did what was best for Holy Cross in 1843 by finding a way to confer degress when the state would not grant the College a charter and has continued since. I ask you to name one decision Holy Cross made prior to 1980 that was made becasue it will be good for Worcester but perhaps was not in Holy Cross' best interest. Holy Cross' engagement in civic affairs grew under Fr. Brooks and continues to do so to this day. The Holy Cross Student Programs for Urban Development (SPUD) began in 1968 (2 years before Fr. Brooks became president). It and other programs flourished and grew throughout his tenue and have continued to grown since. Holy Cross' engagement in Worcester are not high profile programs. They address the most basic needs of individuals for food, shelter, health and education. Doing that doesn't get you praise from the average citizen, becasue it's not seen. They are programs average citizens don't want to see up close and so do not see nor appreciate the impact. Have you ever been to the Mustard Seed, Abby's House, Matthew 25, the Nativity school, etc. All things Holy Cross supports and is involved with which directly benefit the city. And the community did not support HC athletics through most of the 80's and into the 90s. I was there for basketball games in 1982, '83, '84, & '85 - before Fr. Brooks talked about being in the entertainment business. I don't remember the Hart Center being sold out for too many games when I was a student, particularly in 1984 & 85. Fitton Field was significantly more crowded than today, but I don't remember Fittion Field packed, much less sold out for many games against any school not named Boston College. Yes, in the mid 1980s, when making the announcement about the Colonial League and was asked specifically what the people of Worcester would do for sports entertainment, Fr. Brooks answered in the most arrogant and worst possible way. And that's where your gripe is and what is shaping your perception ... Fr. Brooks flipping you off. You - and other Worcester sports fans - deserve to be angry about that. But please don't lump everything Holy Cross does into the same pot of not caring about the greater Worcester Community. Holy Cross cares deeply about and is involved with the Worcester community. Perhaps you just don't see, value or agree with where HC chooses to be involved and make an impact, but HC as an institution is engaged in the civic affairs of Worcester. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on many points of this discussion, CHC8485. You are quite correct that Holy Cross students contribute significantly to the community in the ways you describe. I think the same can be said about students at Assumption, Clark, Becker, WPI, etc. You may have a different take on this, but I do draw a distinction between the contributions of students and the overall institutional commitment to the community.
The Nativity School of Worcester is truly a gem, but Holy Cross has never provided financial support for its operations. Sure the Nativity model here and elsewhere has its roots in the Jesuit community and thus there is a tangential connection to the Cross. However, the notion that HC operates and/or financially bankrolls the school - as some have intimated - is not accurate. Please know that I'm not saying that HC is completely derelict as a civic institution. HC's support of the mobile public library vehicle is one notable example of their community involvement - and probably the signature example of HC's involvement in Worcester. My broader point is that given HC's national footprint, influence, and resources the institution's civic engagement is comparatively limited. The closest academic peers that HC has in the city are WPI and Clark, which are schools whose civic engagement eclipses that of HC IMHO. Clark's partnerships with the Main South community are too lengthy to mention here, and WPI's community work with Gateway Park has enhanced both the school and the community it calls home.
Judging from your handle, CHC8485, you may have a few years on me, but I too went to a fair number of hoops and football games in the early to mid 1980s and I generally recall healthy crowds. For hoops, attendance in the early to mid 80s was probably not at the level of the Ronnie Perry, Jr. era when a Cross game was sometimes a tough ticket, but going to a game back then was still an event. I took my family to a game last season and I could have literally counted the number of fans in the Hart at tip off. With football, I similarly remember crowds well north of 10,000 on a regular basis back in the 1980s. Today a good high school game on Friday night is apt to outdraw a HC football game.
Like others have said, a lot of people have simply moved on and directed their attention elsewhere when it comes to athletics. You now have a whole generation of people in the area that have no recollection of what once was HC athletics. You have to be in your late 40s to really have any memory of the tail end of HC's athletic prominence. The de-emphasis on athletics under Fr. Brooks, coupled with an atrophied civic relationship that HC has in the community, compounded by mediocrity in the W-L column brings us to our current point. A long term commitment to progress on all three fronts will be needed if there is any hope of reversing this trend IMHO.
I'm fairly uninformed on the history of HC/Worcester town-gown relations (despite being immensely involved in them during my time on the hill) and think both of you have some valid points, so I'll leave those unaddressed... ...but show me a high school football game in Central Mass. that brings in 7k in attendance and I will not only be very impressed but may start heading there for tailgates.
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Post by wooman on Oct 27, 2016 11:45:31 GMT -5
Students aren't staying away from games because they'd rather sit on a couch and watch a different game on TV -- they're staying away because the gameday experience is nowhere near where it should/can be. Get lights, push back start times to 3:00-3:30, don't bother people at the tailgates,give the students their own section where they can act like college kids, and the attendance will increase. There was a stretch about 7-8-9 years ago when students started flocking to baseball games on Saturday & Sunday afternoons because the seats along the right field like became a very fun place to be. Kids didn't care what our record was, if there was a high definition alternative on TV, etc. etc. but they started to make it a point to attend those games and it became a great environment. +1. Th extent of student/young alumni interest in HC football is basically dependent on tailgating, and right now it is one of the worst tailgating situations there can be. The police/security situation at Fitton has been discussed ad nauseum and needs to change. College students are going to spend their Saturday's drinking, wouldn't we rather have that occur in a controlled environment that would attract prospective students and lead to a spirited atmosphere on gamedays, rather than secluded in their dorm rooms/houses? Noon is too early, as has been discussed. Rope off a prime section for students, rather than having them be dispersed and isolated throughout the crowd. If every Saturday is an event, than students will come now matter the team's record, just like they do at big time schools. Friends of students may even want to visit on fall weekends just to tailgate, have fun and watch football. Make sure they have home dates with teams such as Harvard, Dartmouth, Yale, Colgate, Villanova, Fordham, etc. These are schools that students often at least have some sort of connection with. Which is why I think HC in HE/ECAC is a slam dunk since that's where students had the most fun when I was on the hill, and all the schools in those leagues are closer peers to HC, but I digress. I couldn't agree more, Zamboni. Later starts would help, especially early in the season. Give people a chance to deal with their kids' activities and other Sat. morning responsibilities and then come to the game a bit later in the day. With extremely rare exception tailgating at HC has been enjoyed in an extremely responsible fashion by students, alum, etc. It adds to the game day experience immeasurably and creates traditions and memories with friends and family that last a lifetime. It also helps build camaraderie with visitors. However, when visitors are treated like trespassers and are ushered off the field by cruisers at half time and after the game, it has the opposite affect. I don't understand why there is a need for gestapo type tactics by security and hired WPD officers to solve a problem that really doesn't exist in the first place. It is just one more reason why people don't attend games like they used to. Unlike some of the other reasons which are more nuanced and complex, this is something that could be changed immediately.
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Post by alum on Oct 27, 2016 12:44:54 GMT -5
I have recently been discussing lack of student attendance at sporting events at the high school my kids attended. I have advocated that instead of charging kids to go to football or hoops, they should make the games free and "pay" the kids to attend with giveaways---tee shirts, balls, food, etc. The school does not have lights, but they recently rented lights and gave away tee shirts for a soccer doubleheader and twenty times as many people came as usual. The same ideas should apply to college kids. Make it an event. Have groups sponsor tailgates etc. Have a rally on Friday night and Saturday morning outside Kimball or Hogan. Games ought to be like minor league baseball with no down time at all. I think a big video board is a must.
Alumni groups (athletic teams, regional clubs, etc.) need to sponsor events at games as well. I went to a track/cross country party before a football game last year. It drew a couple dozen fans who might otherwise not have come. I know the HC Club of Hartford has had basketball bus trips on occasion but never a football trip that I can recall.
I know it is not easy, but sometimes you have to try harder.
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Attendance
Oct 27, 2016 14:31:43 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by ncaam on Oct 27, 2016 14:31:43 GMT -5
Did the Worcester Club sponsor an event at any of our football games and do they plan to do so for a basketball game? Support begins at home.
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Jim
Climbing Mt. St. James
Posts: 85
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Post by Jim on Oct 28, 2016 7:50:55 GMT -5
Did the Worcester Club sponsor an event at any of our football games and do they plan to do so for a basketball game? Support begins at home. HCCGW hosted a football tailgate, as it typically does annually. What might you like to see for regional club support at a home game? I am sure the Club's board members would be receptive, since they were the collaborators with Athletics on the basketball coaches night and host game watch parties for the significant televised games.
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Post by JRGNYR on Oct 28, 2016 15:32:46 GMT -5
In the old days we had the same stadium=to=students ratio, BUT there was no cable, big screen, hi-def college football on Saturday afternoons. The TV football productions of today are absolute eye candy. Brilliant colors, high definition, multiple camera angles, multiple replays, professional announcing and color commentators, on-field interviews, pre-game up close and personals, etc., etc. It's impossible for HC football to directly compete with that showing Alabama-Clemson and USC-Notre Dame, etc. There are some ideas that might help. But they would amount to a kind of revolution, like.....move the games to late afternoon/evening (requires lights), move to Friday night (again lights). This would have numerous implications such as travel impacts, classroom impacts, need for all teams to get on the same page, etc. But if you want something to survive competition you have to WORK at it and have IMAGINATION. There is another approach...upgrade significantly our current cable/stream productions, but it costs money. Put a g*ddam camera on the visitors side. Have at least four cameras. Do replays. Erect a jumbotron at Fitton. Have interesting half time interviews, on-field interviews. As more viewers watch the cable/stream production, locals will want to go to the stadium in person. Got to WANT IT TO HAPPEN. When making your next donation to Holy Cross, please put in the "memo" section to which initiative you'd like your contribution allocated.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Oct 28, 2016 17:09:50 GMT -5
Here's my stab at attendance:
Hypothetical attendance of 10,000 comprised of: 1100 students, representing 40 percent of the student body 2500 alumni and alumni family 1500 family and friends of students 500 opponents fans 4400 general public 10,000 total
Question I have is, --given the general lack of media coverage these days, how do these 4400 general public fans 1.) know their is a game, and, 2.) be interested enough in the game to attend?
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Post by sarasota on Oct 28, 2016 18:27:44 GMT -5
If those locals who attend enjoy an enhanced experience (jumbotron, replays, festival atmosphere, etc.), word of mouth will increase attendance. JRG- Why do you accuse HC of being a "money talks; bullsh*t walks" kind of place?
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Post by sader1970 on Oct 28, 2016 19:09:46 GMT -5
Being a little hard on yourself, aren't you? I mean, implying what you say is "bullsh*t" just doesn't seem fair. You've had some pretty good ideas including getting those TV cameras shooting from the visitor side toward the home stands.
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Post by sarasota on Oct 28, 2016 23:26:45 GMT -5
JRG- I assumed your post was sarcastic.
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Post by hc87 on Oct 29, 2016 0:02:09 GMT -5
Here's my stab at attendance: Hypothetical attendance of 10,000 comprised of: 1100 students, representing 40 percent of the student body 2500 alumni and alumni family 1500 family and friends of students 500 opponents fans 4400 general public10,000 total Question I have is, --given the general lack of media coverage these days, how do these 4400 general public fans 1.) know their is a game, and, 2.) be interested enough in the game to attend? Quibbling....think you're "high" on students (today, anyway), "low" on alumni....probably a wash in the long run. "High" on" family and friends" and low on opponents (given the opponent).....ultimately, you're probably not too far off on those 4....it's the "general public" that's the biggest variable.When HC drew well, it was mostly due to "subway alumni"
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Post by nycrusader2010 on Oct 30, 2016 9:57:10 GMT -5
bringbackcaro -- great point regarding the baseball crowds we used to get in 07/08/09 when we got warm weather days in late April. I was at all of those. I think the school was so happy with the student support that they must've instructed Public Safety not to bother us (because they really didn't). I regrettably haven't caught a HC home baseball game since I graduated but hope this has continued.
When my dad was in college, also at an FCS/1-AA school, they used to bring kegs into the student section at the football stadium. His fraternity did not miss a game in the four years he was there. Start the games later, let the students bring beer in and have their own section and they'll show up and support the Crusaders.
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Post by rgs318 on Oct 30, 2016 10:34:57 GMT -5
Does that mean HC is so bad that one has to be drunk to watch it?
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