(03-06-2014 04:12 PM)BobL Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 11:28 AM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 11:26 AM)thxjoenovak Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 11:04 AM)cartershaw Wrote:  This was brought up in another thread...

I was curious the reasons why people don't buy season tickets.

I can think of some reasons:
Kids
Kids activities
Time commitment
Financial
Live in another state
Weather for half the games is too cold
Don't want to go alone

For these reasons, I don't think who we play, when we play make a difference.. I am looking for reasons outside of this..

+1

You are absolutely correct. Programs with established, large, loyal fan bases show up...Anywhere & Anytime.

You cant apply the Alabama model to NIU, the playbook is completely different. To live in this la la land that people should show up because they love the team, its a great idealistic thing, but not practical for any mid major.

I do, regardless of weather, day of game or opponent

And, that is very commendable. However, if our attendance were to be comprised only of people who felt this way, what do you think our attendance would be? Perhaps a couple thousand? The point is that we are preaching to the choir here. What we need to do is find a way to consistently attract the more casual fan and entice him/her to become a season ticket holder. That's how you sell the product and build the fan base. We are simply not very good at selling the product. The reasons have been addressed in this thread.

(03-06-2014 02:14 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 02:11 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 02:07 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

The AAC title game is at the highest ranked teams home field.
One thing we must remember is the AAC plays on Friday nights so we would not be getting away from weeknights totally.

Exactly. If we hosted a conference championship at Huskie Stadium I am certain it would sell out. Even in the MAC I think that would be the case.

A football conference championship...in Huskie Stadium? In December? No, it would not sell out. Sorry, I disagree.

Isn't the AAC championship usually an afternoon game?

First Saturday in December, in the afternoon, for a conference championship, I'd definitely say it would sell out.

(03-06-2014 03:57 PM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 03:47 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 03:38 PM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 03:32 PM)OldTtimeNIU Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 03:21 PM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  No way , no how am I buy this pile of steamy crap. The time for excuses is over, Toledo is doing it, CMU has got MSU into their stadium. Other schools are very successful. Before we can say how difficult it is, we need to have a commitment to that, we have not had that commitment yet. It probably is not easy, but that is one of the jobs of an AD. We are cursed because we have AD's who know they will be gone in a few years and don't care about the growth of the program. Its a tough spot to be in. I think Korcek is absolutely right that you have to go after a different kind of hire, someone who is devoted to the university and long term growth.

Name the schools that consistently get of home games with
BCS teams....probably not too many..but you have all the answers so you do the reaearch

Even in the MAC you have plenty of examples, Toledo has recently brought in Purdue and Boise State, CMU has Syracuse coming in, Miami-OH has Cincinatti coming in, Bowling Green has Indiana coming in. I didn't mean to sound frustrated, I just really get tired of all these excuses why everyone but us should be able to do this. My only point is, lets see if we can, lets make the attempt. We haven't had an AD here for 11 years that has been dedicated to that.

Miami/UC is a historic rivalry.

Whats next, Indiana wont come here because our bathrooms aren't as good as BG? I mean come on guys, excuses!

Its pretty obvious, that the reason we cant advance on the scheduling front is not just because of AD apathy, its fan apathy too, we don't demand better. I guarantee , NIU football is headed toward a dark period, you cant neglect scheduling this long and have it not hurt you. The first year NIU finishes 6-6 or 7-5 just watch attendance dive below 10k for the year. The only reason we are selling any tickets now is because of recent success. Once you take that away and there is no other reason to buy tickets, you are looking at a bleak bleak situation.

Knock it off MD. This doom and gloom bullcrap does not fly with me. You do not have a damn crystal ball...you have no facts on which to base the statement that NIU is headed toward a dark period. So cut the crap.

(03-06-2014 04:22 PM)Dog Fan Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 04:12 PM)BobL Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 11:28 AM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 11:26 AM)thxjoenovak Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 11:04 AM)cartershaw Wrote:  This was brought up in another thread...

I was curious the reasons why people don't buy season tickets.

I can think of some reasons:
Kids
Kids activities
Time commitment
Financial
Live in another state
Weather for half the games is too cold
Don't want to go alone

For these reasons, I don't think who we play, when we play make a difference.. I am looking for reasons outside of this..

+1

You are absolutely correct. Programs with established, large, loyal fan bases show up...Anywhere & Anytime.

You cant apply the Alabama model to NIU, the playbook is completely different. To live in this la la land that people should show up because they love the team, its a great idealistic thing, but not practical for any mid major.

I do, regardless of weather, day of game or opponent

And, that is very commendable. However, if our attendance were to be comprised only of people who felt this way, what do you think our attendance would be? Perhaps a couple thousand? The point is that we are preaching to the choir here. What we need to do is find a way to consistently attract the more casual fan and entice him/her to become a season ticket holder. That's how you sell the product and build the fan base. We are simply not very good at selling the product. The reasons have been addressed in this thread.

I don't know why this has to be explained so often. The people on this board will go to this game regardless of opponent. The casual fan will not, unless there's something else going on, like homecoming.

I don't buy season tickets because sometimes I have no one to go with, sometimes 1, sometimes 4 or 5. I would either have too many tickets or not enough. And while I try to get to every game sometimes it doesn't happen. There isn't a big discount for season tickets, especially when they end up having to discount tickets because they scheduled a game on a weekday at night in November.

(03-06-2014 05:48 PM)HuskieFootball Addict Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 03:57 PM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 03:47 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 03:38 PM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 03:32 PM)OldTtimeNIU Wrote:  Name the schools that consistently get of home games with
BCS teams....probably not too many..but you have all the answers so you do the reaearch

Even in the MAC you have plenty of examples, Toledo has recently brought in Purdue and Boise State, CMU has Syracuse coming in, Miami-OH has Cincinatti coming in, Bowling Green has Indiana coming in. I didn't mean to sound frustrated, I just really get tired of all these excuses why everyone but us should be able to do this. My only point is, lets see if we can, lets make the attempt. We haven't had an AD here for 11 years that has been dedicated to that.

Miami/UC is a historic rivalry.

Whats next, Indiana wont come here because our bathrooms aren't as good as BG? I mean come on guys, excuses!

Its pretty obvious, that the reason we cant advance on the scheduling front is not just because of AD apathy, its fan apathy too, we don't demand better. I guarantee , NIU football is headed toward a dark period, you cant neglect scheduling this long and have it not hurt you. The first year NIU finishes 6-6 or 7-5 just watch attendance dive below 10k for the year. The only reason we are selling any tickets now is because of recent success. Once you take that away and there is no other reason to buy tickets, you are looking at a bleak bleak situation.

Knock it off MD. This doom and gloom bullcrap does not fly with me. You do not have a damn crystal ball...you have no facts on which to base the statement that NIU is headed toward a dark period. So cut the crap.

While I'm not as gloomy as MD, to some extent he has a point. You lose fans quicker than you gain them. We spent 3 years with the team winning 10 games (and not losing any home games) and it still wasn't until this year that we had a couple of big attendance games. Most were still mediocre. If we win 6 games, what happens then?

The fact that other MAC schools with similar stadiums are able to schedule BCS schools (not talking about the whole CMU-MSU thing or even Miami-Cincinnati) means that it should be do-able for NIU. If not, tell us why. I don't think we were really trying with Jifffff here.

Texas.

If you really think about it, and I'm not trying to be Debbie Downer here, but schools in Illinois (or should I say fans) will NEVER be like the southern states. I think we have more casual fans than diehard fans on EVERY level except the Bears. Football is second only to breathing in the south and places like Ohio, Nebraska, and the south. Even during UI Rose Bowl appearance there were STILL open seats. Not even gonna start on NU. As good as they've been for the past few years, they even have problems keeping the butts in seats the entire game. You may see it here in high school but other than that and the Bears, it's just not gonna happen in Illinois. Just my opinion.


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(03-06-2014 11:25 PM)Kansacity88 Wrote:  If you really think about it, and I'm not trying to be Debbie Downer here, but schools in Illinois (or should I say fans) will NEVER be like the southern states. I think we have more casual fans than diehard fans on EVERY level except the Bears. Football is second only to breathing in the south and places like Ohio, Nebraska, and the south. Even during UI Rose Bowl appearance there were STILL open seats. Not even gonna start on NU. As good as they've been for the past few years, they even have problems keeping the butts in seats the entire game. You may see it here in high school but other than that and the Bears, it's just not gonna happen in Illinois. Just my opinion.


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I agree, Illinois is a pro sports state and Chicagoland area is most certainly a pro sports area, that is hard to change, and it probably will never change. The long standing problem at NIU is that those who are apt to follow sports more than likely followed the Illini when they were kids, and most never break that tie that they had as a youngster even though they have no affiliation with the university at all as adults. To have that split allegiance takes away from the dedication to your own school and breeds apathy. Of course this apathy already superimposed on an overall college athletics apathy that Illinois suffers from which you mention. Going to that WMU game earlier this week, just a rough reminder how different the support is at different institutions. I was listening to the senior citizen alums behind me talking about how WMU's seeding would be affected by the results around the MAC that night, and then realized how our average alums probably couldn't even name 5 teams in the MAC.

Yeah, people relating to a school that they never even attended....we call the the "Golden Dome Syndrome" if you know what I mean! *smh*


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(03-06-2014 11:43 PM)Kansacity88 Wrote:  Yeah, people relating to a school that they never even attended....we call the the "Golden Dome Syndrome" if you know what I mean! *smh*


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I cant completely talk down to people like this because I remember walking around campus with an ILLINOIS sweatshirt my freshman year. I trashed it by sophomore year in my defense.

Nobody's perfect....lol


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The MAC should get creative. Who says you have to have the same teams in the division each year? Why not base it on last years results.
A division of all good in one and all bad in the other based on records.
2014
NIU, Ball State, Toledo, BG, Buffalo, Ohio
CMU, EMU, WMU, Miami, Akron, Kent State

A little more entertaining but a lousy championship game.
Schedule would be tougher. The rising star in the crap division would probably be elevated the following year.

(03-06-2014 05:46 PM)PrideinthePack Wrote:  Isn't the AAC championship usually an afternoon game?

First Saturday in December, in the afternoon, for a conference championship, I'd definitely say it would sell out.

Has not happend yet so we dont really know what day and time the game will be. First AAC conference championship game is in 2015 when Navy joins.

(03-06-2014 05:35 PM)HuskieFootball Addict Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 02:14 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 02:11 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 02:07 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

The AAC title game is at the highest ranked teams home field.
One thing we must remember is the AAC plays on Friday nights so we would not be getting away from weeknights totally.

Exactly. If we hosted a conference championship at Huskie Stadium I am certain it would sell out. Even in the MAC I think that would be the case.

A football conference championship...in Huskie Stadium? In December? No, it would not sell out. Sorry, I disagree.

...also remember it would be on a Friday Night too.

Other considerations...
Attendance for the last MACC was just over 21k. Though that was with both fanbases showing up decently

The MACC is usually the week before finals so all the students would be in town. However expecting the student section to be full is that for the MACC the conference actually takes over the stadium seating. Students would have to pay for tickets AND tickets would be split between the two schools.

The biggest benefit would be not showing a 70% empty stadium on TV AND showcasing a MAC campus instead of some city that doesn't support the game/conference.

(03-06-2014 03:45 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 03:21 PM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 03:14 PM)OldTtimeNIU Wrote:  Finally those who criticize need to put some thought into the schedule difficulties that the AD has to battle and realize that it is not easy. BCS teams aren't exactly beating down the doors to come to DeKalb

No way , no how am I buy this pile of steamy crap. The time for excuses is over, Toledo is doing it, CMU has got MSU into their stadium. Other schools are very successful. Before we can say how difficult it is, we need to have a commitment to that, we have not had that commitment yet. It probably is not easy, but that is one of the jobs of an AD. We are cursed because we have AD's who know they will be gone in a few years and don't care about the growth of the program. Its a tough spot to be in. I think Korcek is absolutely right that you have to go after a different kind of hire, someone who is devoted to the university and long term growth.

MD, Please dont use CMU getting MI St as an example...that was forced to be by the MI state government.

CMU is getting Syracuse, Oklahoma St & Kansas in the next 5 seasons.


If we cant get better teams here because of money then Frazier needs to point blank tell us that so we the fans either pony up or shut up. Even better if we fund raise for a specific opponent from a group.

If teams flat out refuse to come to DeKalb for any excuse other than we are too good at home then we need to fix it so that excuse no longer exists... like the lack of a real visitor AD/president box, visiting coaches booth room, visiting locker room, visiting media room, local hotel for visiting team and dining options for the visiting team.

Buffalo has 7 home games this fall including defending Big 12 Champion Baylor and a road game at Army, yep they have 2 FCS opponents at home but still 7 home games for a MAC program is huge. UMASS had Vandy last year(SEC). Having a 69K seat stadium at your disposal eventhough it's not on campus does pay dividends. This fall they have BC & Colorado. That's a heck of a job right there.

(03-06-2014 05:35 PM)HuskieFootball Addict Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 02:14 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 02:11 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 02:07 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

The AAC title game is at the highest ranked teams home field.
One thing we must remember is the AAC plays on Friday nights so we would not be getting away from weeknights totally.

Exactly. If we hosted a conference championship at Huskie Stadium I am certain it would sell out. Even in the MAC I think that would be the case.

A football conference championship...in Huskie Stadium? In December? No, it would not sell out. Sorry, I disagree.

(03-07-2014 10:01 AM)thxjoenovak Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 05:35 PM)HuskieFootball Addict Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 02:14 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 02:11 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 02:07 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

The AAC title game is at the highest ranked teams home field.
One thing we must remember is the AAC plays on Friday nights so we would not be getting away from weeknights totally.

Exactly. If we hosted a conference championship at Huskie Stadium I am certain it would sell out. Even in the MAC I think that would be the case.

A football conference championship...in Huskie Stadium? In December? No, it would not sell out. Sorry, I disagree.

I wonder. Weather would be factor.

That WMU game last year kicked my a**.

(03-06-2014 12:53 PM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-06-2014 11:41 AM)thxjoenovak Wrote:  I'll be there for the Opener Thursday night to see the 2014 Huskies not the opponent.

As will everyone else here, unfortunately the other 15000 seats have to be filled too.

Students fill most of the seats, which is why attendance numbers are bigger on tuesday and thursday than they are on saturdays

(03-06-2014 12:21 PM)ADOG05 Wrote:  Would a conference switch to say American Athletic Conference (AAC), get people to buy season tickets? I'm a season ticket holder and it would make me more likely to renew every year.

You are kidding right??

Our fan base can't make it to Ball St or CMU/WMU/EMU...

You think they are going to Orlando, CT, Houston, Memphi, Tampa, Dallas, Philly, etc??

It would be a nice conference to be in, but we lack the funds, a basketball team, facilities..

Ironically Compher is there now...