(05-05-2012 10:34 PM)justin_sane15 Wrote:  

(05-05-2012 10:26 PM)DarrellEW Wrote:  

(05-05-2012 10:18 PM)justin_sane15 Wrote:  Something that's not a myth: UTSA is the only D-1 school to ever lose to a D-3 one.

So how's it gonna feel this Thanksgiving when txst loses to the only D1 team that ever lost to a D3 team?

Yeah, good luck with that.

Should be a competitive game. UTSA played Sam Houston closer than TX State did last year. UTSA was down to FCS #1 by 1 score very late in game.

Get ready for attendance bashing, UTSA. Around here games are forgotten within a couple of hours but your attendance will be scrutinized all season.

I'm not really going to get into this, but it's not a myth.

So, let me get this straight...

UTSA sold tickets in a very large stadium.

There were still plenty of seats available, of course due to the large stadium in which they play.

Rather than allowing those seats to remain empty, UTSA strikes a deal with a local fast food restaurant to give away free tickets to the game.

Thanks to this, the people of San Antonio show up in greater numbers than would have otherwise been possible.

Perhaps UAB, Tulane, and Rice might stand to learn a few things from these Runners of the Road...

The University of Miami would give you free tickets with a Whopper. It doesn't matter how someone gets 40,000 in their stadium as long as they show up. In C-USA we expect to have 25 - 30K a game - I wish we got 40K at a game. UM doesn't get 40K a game.

(05-05-2012 09:57 PM)BullsFanInTX Wrote:  I see a lot of posts on UTSA's supposed give away that aren't rooted in facts. Someone posts a photo of the KFC deal as an "aha, see UTSA gave away TONS of tickets" to inflate their numbers. I even see someone posted UTSA gave away "90%" of their tickets. This is actually false. Let's take a look at some facts.

First, let's take a look at some facts that no one can dispute, and we'll to try to break this down.

Fact: The Alamodome holds 65K
Fact: UTSA averaged nearly 36K tickets sold or distributed.
Fact: UTSA sold 11,000 season tickets
Fact: According to the Express News, UTSA is actually AHEAD of last season ticket sales. Speculation: UTSA will sell 14-15K season tickets this year.
Fact: UTSA nearly tripled the projected ticket revenue.
Fact: Other than the opener, most of the tickets sold were in the lower 2 bowls. Only one side of the upper decks were open the last 5 games. (Note: this makes sense, since the lower bowls hold probably in the range of half the 65K seats).



Now here's where it gets a little tricky. According to UTSA people with knowledge, this so called give away was actually not really a give away. Apparently a large doner (who happens to have ties to KFC) was given a block of tickets. So the tickets weren't actually given away, it was the result of a large donation. UTSA people, correct the record here if you have further details.

Also, apparently these were limited to one section of the upper deck. A quick check of one section shows about 675 seats. So, let's say as an example an entire section was given away. This still leave UTSA with 35K tickets sold, and not nearly 36K, and means the discounted tickets accounted for a whopping 2% of the total ticket intake.

Keep in mind again, most of the seats sold in the later games were in the lower bowls. It wasn't necessary to open all of the upper decks due to the capacity of the Alamodome.

So lets just say in the absolute worst case scenario that UTSA gave away an entire side of the upper deck. (Completely false by the way, didn't happen - I know, I happened to purchase several upper deck tickets as did many others). But, let's just say that happened. You're still talking MAYBE 4 or 5K tickets. STILL, even at this riduculous notion that didn't happen, would STILL leave over 30K tickets sold.

As you can see, the notion that UTSA gave away 90 percent of their tickets and just gave away tons of free tickets is a myth.

Excellent post. You are correct in that the free tickets amounted to a few hundred a game, not thousands. As anyone from San Antonio know, we are a "walk-up" town...meaning that many of our events sell their tickets at the door. UTSA sold 11,000 season tickets. Add in the 10,000 average in students and a huge walk-up crowd and you get 30,000 average. UTSA had hoped to sell 8 luxury boxes for the season, they sold 23! The support the community gave the team far exceeded anyone wildest expectations. For some reason there are a few folks from UTEP and UNT that just can't accept that our first-year team outdraws their teams.

Settle in, Runners.

Bitching about attendance is a favorite CUSA message board past time.

Our AD commented that season ticket sales were ahead of last years, where we sold 11K. Tells me that most of last years' season ticket holders are coming back as well others who are dedicating themselves to the season--a great sign. If we can hit 15K, plus a conservative estimate of say 7K students, that puts us at 22K right off the bat. Throw in the walk up crowds and promotions and I think we're looking at another great year.

A Whopper for a ticket sounds good to me....but if they can get Whataburger to do that we'd sell out every game!! You can't throw a football in any direction in this town without hitting a frickin' Whataburger!!!! haha

(05-05-2012 10:24 PM)justin_sane15 Wrote:  

(05-05-2012 10:20 PM)BullsFanInTX Wrote:  

(05-05-2012 10:18 PM)justin_sane15 Wrote:  Something that's not a myth: UTSA is the only D-1 school to ever lose to a D-3 one.

I could be wrong about this, but I think McMurry is actually a transitional D2 team. Doesn't make it any better though. On the other hand, UTSA played the FCS runner up and No 1 team in FCS most of the year down to the wire, so the McMurry game is a real head scratcher.

They're still D-3, just as Texas State was FCS last year while being in transition.

Yet U T S A an South Alabama are still in transition and are F B S this coming season.

(05-05-2012 10:22 PM)PirateJeff Wrote:  UTSA --- never heard of your school until expansion talks included you all --- but that does not matter...and how UTSA distributed/sold tickets does not matter either. The facts are you are a new program and someone was smart enough to figure out how get 36,000 people to the games...sounds good to me. I am sure they will be smart enough to turn many of them into fans and finanical supporters of the program. It sounds like a win win to me. It is hard to sell the game experience unless people come out to experince it! Congrats on a good start to your football program.

Exactly. Promote, promote, promote.

No one remembers who you beat or lost to the year before as long as you win the next

UTSAs athletic department and the city have worked tirelessly to make UTSA=San Antonio.

The hardest part is done, building city wide support for a new program. Now a different challenge awaits us, continuing that momentum and putting a competitive team on the field. If we can get 14-15K season ticket holders for 12' what a bright spot. (that's with a WAC schedule and an OOC that lacks name recognition)

Logic would say 2013 has an even greater opportunity for success with UTSA coming home to Con USA and a star filled OOC.

I'm hoping an experienced coach like Coker and fertile recruiting grounds pays off and we are a competitive team from day 1. Sure we will take our licks just want us to not be a doormat.

The big challenge for UTSA is maintaining that momentum. Will the city support the likely beat downs of the next few years? And, if they don't, can they be drawn back in by later success?

I think they can, but later success all depends on the leaders (school and city) long term commitment.

I'll say this about the startup programs: all can't be widely successful. I doubt that all four of CUSA startups (I included FIU) will become USF or whoever. There is a limit.


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My guess is UTSA will have the second largest attendance of any existing/new CUSA school next year, second only to ECU.

(05-06-2012 10:26 AM)LaTechBoodawg Wrote:  The big challenge for UTSA is maintaining that momentum. Will the city support the likely beat downs of the next few years? And, if they don't, can they be drawn back in by later success?

I think they can, but later success all depends on the leaders (school and city) long term commitment.

I'll say this about the startup programs: all can't be widely successful. I doubt that all four of CUSA startups (I included FIU) will become USF or whoever. There is a limit.


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I'm thinking FIU, but the stadium holds them back, as well as a pretty weak fan base. UTSAKFC is not going to last.

(05-05-2012 10:36 PM)BullsFanInTX Wrote:  

(05-05-2012 10:34 PM)justin_sane15 Wrote:  

(05-05-2012 10:26 PM)DarrellEW Wrote:  

(05-05-2012 10:18 PM)justin_sane15 Wrote:  Something that's not a myth: UTSA is the only D-1 school to ever lose to a D-3 one.

So how's it gonna feel this Thanksgiving when txst loses to the only D1 team that ever lost to a D3 team?

Yeah, good luck with that.

Should be a competitive game. UTSA played Sam Houston closer than TX State did last year. UTSA was down to FCS #1 by 1 score very late in game.

22-7 isn't close. A loss is a loss.

(05-06-2012 10:43 AM)Tallgrass Wrote:  My guess is UTSA will have the second largest attendance of any existing/new CUSA school next year, second only to ECU.

Maybe. Although UTEP opens vs. the Oklahoma Sooners, which will probably oversell at 53-54K. That will push our average into the mid-30s for the year.

We should be focused on whether UNT, UTSA, LA Tech, and FIU, can outdraw previous attendance numbers by Houston, UCF, SMU, and Memphis. IF FIU fans don't get behind the program, our average attendance will actually drop.

(05-06-2012 11:08 AM)RUNVSFD MINER Wrote:  

(05-06-2012 10:43 AM)Tallgrass Wrote:  My guess is UTSA will have the second largest attendance of any existing/new CUSA school next year, second only to ECU.

Maybe. Although UTEP opens vs. the Oklahoma Sooners, which will probably oversell at 53-54K. That will push our average into the mid-30s for the year.

We should be focused on whether UNT, UTSA, LA Tech, and FIU, can outdraw previous attendance numbers by Houston, UCF, SMU, and Memphis. IF FIU fans don't get behind the program, our average attendance will actually drop.

I seriously doubt UTSA will outdraw UTEP this year. I seriously doubt UTSA will make it out of 20K on averages, which is still good. I'm thinking 40K first game, then 20K for the rest of the year. Their first year in CUSA maybe a little bump back into the 30s, but the novelty factor will wear off.

*cue the UTSA pimps*

All I'm saying is that yeah, you have lots of season tickets sold. UNT also has that same number.

Anyway, I think UNT and FIU will rise in attendance numbers. It's a statistical FACT that when Texas/local/big name teams come to Denton, the crowds are near sell outs. And if we break 27-28K average, Apogee will most likely get the expansion. I doubt LaTech will, they had pretty average attendance last year and they were great. Their stadium as well as playing in Ruston will kill them there. UTSA will probably lower a little or stay the same.

FIU has a small fan base, but has a massive student body and are located in Miami. That stadium may hurt them, though. Looks like a high school field.

(05-06-2012 11:02 AM)meangreener Wrote:  

(05-05-2012 10:36 PM)BullsFanInTX Wrote:  

(05-05-2012 10:34 PM)justin_sane15 Wrote:  

(05-05-2012 10:26 PM)DarrellEW Wrote:  

(05-05-2012 10:18 PM)justin_sane15 Wrote:  Something that's not a myth: UTSA is the only D-1 school to ever lose to a D-3 one.

So how's it gonna feel this Thanksgiving when txst loses to the only D1 team that ever lost to a D3 team?

Yeah, good luck with that.

Should be a competitive game. UTSA played Sam Houston closer than TX State did last year. UTSA was down to FCS #1 by 1 score very late in game.

22-7 isn't close. A loss is a loss.

Yes it was. It was 15-7 LATE in the 4th qtr. I agree a loss is a loss.