(02-04-2020 01:50 PM)mrjoolius Wrote:  Exceeding the seating capacity for only gold rush would be one thing. The problem is, in a successful season, we are currently drawing well over the 4,500 for Saturday matchups. Put those same games in a fan friendly new arena and the attendance certainly isn't going down.
Not that I'm comparing what we have to VCU, but they are averaging a sell out of their 7k arena. For S's & giggles, I looked up VCUs attendance numbers from 1998 - the year before the Segal Centre opened up. I then compared it to W&M. Sure, a miracle final four run does a lot for a program, but the numbers are interesting.
1998
VCU @ Richmond Coliseum - 4,002 (11,992 capacity)
W&M @ the Hall - 3,265 (10,000 capacity)
2020
VCU @ Segal Centre - 7,637 (7,617 capacity)
W&M @ Kaplan Arena - 3,470 (8,400)

Learn from history and VCU. If they could do it again, guarenteed they would have gone bigger. Good basketball and great game day experience blew up their attendance. Isn't that the stated goal of this athletic department? IMO, If this program is consistently good and the game day experience is a blast, a decade from now we will be kicking ourselves- even if the capacity is at 6k.