USUFans.com

So it’s getting noticed. The energy of the crowds that are showing up have been great but there’s just not enough people. It is frankly sad.

We announced 8,667 tonight. There is no. Way. In. Hell. There were that many people there.

Well, I have pneumonia.

This is a lame excuse and possibly only a minor reason, but I think part of it has to do with 6 home games in a row against low ranking opponents. To me it can feel exhausting, but at the same time games are an all day thing for me. I can't see why students cant show up for two hours. I also wish signs were posted around campus to let people know about the game. Social media can only reach so far.

$$$

Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk

Dkdavis wrote: ↑

November 18th, 2019, 9:30 pm

This is a lame excuse and possibly only a minor reason, but I think part of it has to do with 6 home games in a row against low ranking opponents. To me it can feel exhausting, but at the same time games are an all day thing for me. I can't see why students cant show up for two hours. I also wish signs were posted around campus to let people know about the game. Social media can only reach so far.

I don’t think this is a lame excuse at all. In my reply to Jerry I said it feels like between six b-ball games in 2.5 weeks and three football games this month, the town is a little Aggie’d out. That’s ultimately why I’d have used these basketball games to expand the fan base and do whatever it took to get butts in the seats, even if that meant giving out free tickets. We get nothing from empty seats, not in ticket revenue, not in concessions, but most importantly, not in terms of creating new fans.

Hard for folks outside of CV to attend b-ball Friday night, f-ball Saturday afternoon and b-ball again on Monday night. That’s a lot of driving. Not trying to make excuses. Just reality. Having said that, I would have driven back to Logan again tonight if I was feeling well. I did find someone to use my ticket tho.

The next home game is just under 3 weeks away, on a Saturday against Fresno State (the only team to beat us in the Spectrum last year). If that game doesn't bring out the crowds then I'll definitely start being concerned. Attendance has been disappointing and there have been some valid excuses but they all go out the window for the next game.

ProvoAggie wrote: ↑

November 18th, 2019, 9:45 pm

The next home game is just under 3 weeks away, on a Saturday against Fresno State (the only team to beat us in the Spectrum last year). If that game doesn't bring out the crowds then I'll definitely start being concerned. Attendance has been disappointing and there have been some valid excuses but they all go out the window for the next game.

Yep. Fully agree.

This was our only Monday night game of the season, and we knew going in that attendance was going to be an issue, for all the aforementioned reasons. I get not wanting to devalue the product and all that, but it seems like some sort of Family Night package would have been welcome for this game. 4 tickets/4 hot dogs/4 drinks for $40 or something like that.

Or we already had the bring a can of beans for Bean thing going tonight, why not offer discounted tickets for anyone who did that?

I think attendance this year will be disappointing as a whole. Say what you will about the lack of quality opponents thus far, but last year it took until the last week of the regular season, with SDSU and Nevada at home to even come close to a capacity crowd. This year, our marquee home game is against SDSU, but it happens to be before the spring semester starts, so student attendance will likely be sparse. In the past when we had quality opponents at home the excuse was that the Aggies weren't good enough, didn't stand a chance, etc. Now we have a Top 15 team in the country and people won't come because we are too good? I'm so sick and tired of the lame excuses. The sad reality is there just aren't as many passionate Aggie fans as there once were. The only way people will show up is if the opposing team is ranked or we're playing BYU.

Start playing games on Saturday, nobody gives a sheet about flipping UTSA on a Monday night, terrible schedule coupled with odd days to play games= not smart planning by AD they have no one to blame but themselves

ProvoAggie wrote:The next home game is just under 3 weeks away, on a Saturday against Fresno State (the only team to beat us in the Spectrum last year). If that game doesn't bring out the crowds then I'll definitely start being concerned. Attendance has been disappointing and there have been some valid excuses but they all go out the window for the next game.

I think everyone is going to be jonesing for their Aggie hit by then.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

Saturday attendance wasn't awesome either. Folks are missing something special. I drive up from the Salt Lake Valley for every game and it is well worth the time. It is just the "habit" of the valley. Basketball starts in January. We will be fine then. And only have one real game and two scrimmages in Dec. so it will fix itself in time. But man if you aren't coming you are missing the new golden years of Aggie Basketball. Merrill, Bean and Brito put on a show tonight.

I think it's nuts that we don't fill the building. #15 or not. Same as it's nuts that we don't fill Maverik. I've loved all the home games...it'll be a long wait until 12/7. Here's hoping for great results in Jamaica!

Too many games in such a short amount of time, and almost all against cupcakes. When you know you’re going to win by 30+ and you’ve already just watched the team win by that much three times in the last what feels like a week, it’s easy to lose motivation to go.

JFWAggie wrote: ↑

November 18th, 2019, 10:31 pm

Start playing games on Saturday, nobody gives a sheet about flipping UTSA on a Monday night, terrible schedule coupled with odd days to play games= not smart planning by AD they have no one to blame but themselves

eye roll

For me it’s a money thing. I’m not a season ticket holder but follow the team closely. Not really interested in paying an arm and a leg when I can watch at home. Call me a homer, but that was my excuse tonight

Bovee can stick it. Maybe he can get 10 students to come out like he got at Weber.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

USU's market just can't keep up. 2 hours away from the closest main city, 1 hour away from the closest densely populated community(ogden). It is not the fans, rather the market. CV can't supply sellouts like a Salt lake city, Denver, California, etc could.

303aggie wrote:USU's market just can't keep up. 2 hours away from the closest main city, 1 hour away from the closest densely populated community(ogden). It is not the fans, rather the market. CV can't supply sellouts like a Salt lake city, Denver, California, etc could.

And Ogden isn’t really a hot bed of aggie fans.

This is the first b-ball/football game I’ve missed this year, and honesty it was just too many games in a short time span. My kids love the games but just weren’t up for another 2+ hours in the car. I doubt we miss another one this year. I’m sure I’m not alone with this sentiment.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I have a daughter and a nephew attending USU. They both usually go to the games. I asked them last night if they were going to tonight’s game and they both said that they had to study. My daughter said she had 4 tests this week and had already used up her free time attending the other games the last couple weeks. Her cousin pretty much said the same thing. Seems like a lot of professors are getting in a last test before finals this week. At least that’s what their excuse was. My wife and I did drop by my daughters apt. after the game and she was buried in her organic chem notes.

rAggie wrote: ↑

November 18th, 2019, 9:22 pm

So it’s getting noticed. The energy of the crowds that are showing up have been great but there’s just not enough people. It is frankly sad.

We announced 8,667 tonight. There is no. Way. In. Hell. There were that many people there.

He and the people in the ticket office know well before each game how ticket sales are going. If people in the AD are shocked with attendance numbers, they should pull their head out, take a look at what is available well before the game, and do something about it. Marketing isn’t just hoping things get better next time/game. On a separate note, I enjoyed the game tonight (in person).

One thing I’ve learned about attendance is you can’t guilt people into attending.

2018 home attendance through six games: 6,177 avg
2019 home attendance through six games: 7,704 avg

We are doing fine. That's a 25% YOY increase, and we have been "Aggied Out" with all the events packed into the last 2.5 weeks. Last year's non-conference attendance was 6,300 per game, and rose to 7,370 for conference games.

If we see a similar uptick for conference opponents this year, we should expect attendance somewhere in the neighborhood of 9,000 per game. I can't imagine 9,000 people at every conference game will hurt our chances at winning back-to-back conference championships. All that matters to me is that people show up for the games we need them. If we get 2,000 people attending Saint Katherine's and Eastern Oregon, who cares?

303aggie wrote:USU's market just can't keep up. 2 hours away from the closest main city, 1 hour away from the closest densely populated community(ogden). It is not the fans, rather the market. CV can't supply sellouts like a Salt lake city, Denver, California, etc could.

You drive slow, 45 to exit 341 and 72 minutes to exit 306 from Hyde Park.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

YoungBloodAggie wrote: ↑

November 19th, 2019, 8:13 am

2018 home attendance through six games: 6,177 avg
2019 home attendance through six games: 7,704 avg

We are doing fine. That's a 25% YOY increase, and we have been "Aggied Out" with all the events packed into the last 2.5 weeks. Last year's non-conference attendance was 6,300 per game, and rose to 7,370 for conference games.

If we see a similar uptick for conference opponents this year, we should expect attendance somewhere in the neighborhood of 9,000 per game. I can't imagine 9,000 people at every conference game will hurt our chances at winning back-to-back conference championships. All that matters to me is that people show up for the games we need them. If we get 2,000 people attending Saint Katherine's and Eastern Oregon, who cares?

So paid attendance is up but people are not using their tickets the. There were NOT 8,650 people in the Spectrum last night. In fact, I would say there were at least 2,000 tickets still for sale based on my count on the ticket site before the game. I think we are doing creative accounting.

rAggie wrote: ↑

November 19th, 2019, 8:57 am

YoungBloodAggie wrote: ↑

November 19th, 2019, 8:13 am

2018 home attendance through six games: 6,177 avg
2019 home attendance through six games: 7,704 avg

We are doing fine. That's a 25% YOY increase, and we have been "Aggied Out" with all the events packed into the last 2.5 weeks. Last year's non-conference attendance was 6,300 per game, and rose to 7,370 for conference games.

If we see a similar uptick for conference opponents this year, we should expect attendance somewhere in the neighborhood of 9,000 per game. I can't imagine 9,000 people at every conference game will hurt our chances at winning back-to-back conference championships. All that matters to me is that people show up for the games we need them. If we get 2,000 people attending Saint Katherine's and Eastern Oregon, who cares?

So paid attendance is up but people are not using their tickets the. There were NOT 8,650 people in the Spectrum last night. In fact, I would say there were at least 2,000 tickets still for sale based on my count on the ticket site before the game. I think we are doing creative accounting.

Capacity is 10,270, so certainly possible you counted 2,000 unsold tickets and we had 380 walk-ups. In any case, comparing 2018-2019 is fair as they were both counting purchased tickets, not butts in seats.

303aggie wrote: ↑

November 18th, 2019, 11:06 pm

USU's market just can't keep up. 2 hours away from the closest main city, 1 hour away from the closest densely populated community(ogden). It is not the fans, rather the market. CV can't supply sellouts like a Salt lake city, Denver, California, etc could.

2 hours get's you to Provo.

303aggie wrote:USU's market just can't keep up. 2 hours away from the closest main city, 1 hour away from the closest densely populated community(ogden). It is not the fans, rather the market. CV can't supply sellouts like a Salt lake city, Denver, California, etc could.

Who's selling out what in Denver? CSU, CU, AF, DU, the Nuggets - none of these ever sell out.

We will see better attendance when we play better opponents. Truth be told, our attendance was pretty damn solid on a Monday night given the circumstances.

I would have liked to have seen a $40/4 tix/4 hot dogs/4 sodas Family Night Deal offered, but I'm not sure that it would have moved the needle.

"I had no good answer"?!?!?

Then figure it out.

Stop blaming the customer. Fans are customers. They aren't morally or ethically obligated to buy your product. If they see value in the product, they will buy. And the product isn't just a good team. There is a lot more to it than that. You need to sell it to them. That is your job.

We don't have a huge fan base. Our campus is far away from metro areas. That is the reality of things. So, figure out how to overcome those obstacles. But don't guilt me into attending. That's what my mom does for the family Christmas party.

My wife and I, along with our 4 year old, have season tickets. We have not yet and we will not miss any of the games. We love the games. But, life happens guys. If someone has a late work function, a church function, a family issue that came up, they're going to miss it. Life has enough stuff going on and things just come up.

Even for us, the late night throws off my son's schedule and the morning after typically kind of sucks. We drive up to the game, typically get there a bit late because my wife doesn't get off work until 6:10ish, watch the game, cheer raucously (at least according to the looks I get from my wife), stop at my parents house in Wellsville to get my son ready for bed, then drive back home to North Ogden. Hopefully he falls asleep on the ride home, but he sometimes does not. We're not typically home much before 10:30 or 11. That's hard on a 4 year old. If we had more than one or any younger, I don't think we'd make all the games. In past years, when my son was younger, we would miss most of the weekday games. Especially when we've had so many so close to each other against teams that don't sound like much.

I've read a lot of comments that detail that because we're ranked well, people should show up. I mean, I think people should show up even when we aren't ranked, so I disagree intrinsically with the assertion being made there. But even top ranked programs have low attendance days when they aren't going to have a competitive game. Many of them are in larger metropolitan areas, with a history of high performance, and/or a local culture that revolves around the games.

I think some deep breathing exercises could go a long way for some of you. Just keep inviting people, then show up to the games and have fun.

rAggie wrote: ↑

November 19th, 2019, 8:57 am

YoungBloodAggie wrote: ↑

November 19th, 2019, 8:13 am

2018 home attendance through six games: 6,177 avg
2019 home attendance through six games: 7,704 avg

We are doing fine. That's a 25% YOY increase, and we have been "Aggied Out" with all the events packed into the last 2.5 weeks. Last year's non-conference attendance was 6,300 per game, and rose to 7,370 for conference games.

If we see a similar uptick for conference opponents this year, we should expect attendance somewhere in the neighborhood of 9,000 per game. I can't imagine 9,000 people at every conference game will hurt our chances at winning back-to-back conference championships. All that matters to me is that people show up for the games we need them. If we get 2,000 people attending Saint Katherine's and Eastern Oregon, who cares?

So paid attendance is up but people are not using their tickets the. There were NOT 8,650 people in the Spectrum last night. In fact, I would say there were at least 2,000 tickets still for sale based on my count on the ticket site before the game. I think we are doing creative accounting.

Unless you have evidence to the contrary, I think it would be safe to assume this year's ratio of tickets sold to people attending would be similar to last year's, making YBA's point a valid one.

Look, I have 4 kids. They range in age from 16-6. They have social lives, homework, dance, piano, baseball, basketball, and a half dozen other responsibilities. To be honest, driving up to a weeknight basketball game against Podunk State isn't really a priority for my family right now. And attending 8 Aggie games within a 2-3 week stretch isn't really in the budget either. It is what it is. I make it to games when I can, and watch when I can't. But don't try to guilt me into attending.

Rather than say "I had no good answer," get off your (I can't express myself without swearing) and find ways to get more customers from cache valley and the surrounding areas. When ticket sales are slow, come up with creative promotions for locals. Give away free gameday shirts or something. I don't know, I suck at marketing. But figure it out.

Repeat after me:. It is not the customers' fault for not buying your product.

Mr. Sneelock wrote: ↑

November 19th, 2019, 9:36 am

Look, I have 4 kids. They range in age from 16-6. They have social lives, homework, dance, piano, baseball, basketball, and a half dozen other responsibilities. To be honest, driving up to a weeknight basketball game against Podunk State isn't really a priority for my family right now. And attending 8 Aggie games within a 2-3 week stretch isn't really in the budget either. It is what it is. I make it to games when I can, and watch when I can't. But don't try to guilt me into attending.

Rather than say "I had no good answer," get off your a** and find ways to get more customers from cache valley and the surrounding areas. When ticket sales are slow, come up with creative promotions for locals. Give away free gameday shirts or something. I don't know, I suck at marketing. But figure it out.

Repeat after me:. It is not the customers' fault for not buying your product.

Big amen. These games were an opportunity to “expand the base” by offering entry to new fans to get a taste of the excitement of going to a game. Instead they went with a squeeze more blood out of the turnip strategy.

Apathy. Some of us who grew up in Cache Valley are die-hard fans and wouldn't have missed a single game despite the mediocre product being put on the field or court. I would have loved to live in Cache Valley when the Aggies were trotting out teams who could compete at the highest levels. But I recognize that not everyone has the same level of fanaticism for their teams. Aggie ticket prices are on the low side of average, so I'm not sure that's really the issue. Seems that the problem is a large percentage of Aggie alums and people living in Cache Valley simply have other priorities and lack the amount of school spirit that drives a person to be a fanatic.