Per our Associate AD Shelley Binnegar, AAC schools have been having conference calls with ECU to improve their gameday experience and Aresco is using Dowdy-Ficklen as a model for AAC members to strive for. Houston was on the phone yesterday.

Source: Pirate Radio interview

(05-21-2014 01:38 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  Per our Associate AD Shelley Binnegar, AAC schools have been having conference calls with ECU to improve their gameday experience and Aresco is using Dowdy-Ficklen as a model for AAC members to strive for. Houston was on the phone yesterday.

Source: Pirate Radio interview

Fans, 6 hour tailgate, Beer, food of choice, friends and please bring the DJ from Lville(we don't have one but, Lville keeps the crowd energized throughout the game. Even @ Dowdy-Ficklen there are several lulz inside the game) Music is played just not as efficiently as Lville.

$.02

About ten years ago I went to and ECU-Tulane in Greenville. A friend who is an ECU alum and I drove down from Virginia. It was kind of a rainy day and the stadium never filled out, but my impression was that it was like Lite version of what experiences I had going to games at a bunch of other SEC schools and FSU. I kind of got the sense that they could become or do what VT did a while back.

After the first ACC raid, I think the Big East really missed the boat on ECU. Louisville, Cincy and USF were good picks, but ECU was at least as good. They may not have delivered a crucial market, but they had a good football pedigree.

(05-21-2014 02:10 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  About ten years ago I went to and ECU-Tulane in Greenville. A friend who is an ECU alum and I drove down from Virginia. It was kind of a rainy day and the stadium never filled out, but my impression was that it was like Lite version of what experiences I had going to games at a bunch of other SEC schools and FSU. I kind of got the sense that they could become or do what VT did a while back.

After the first ACC raid, I think the Big East really missed the boat on ECU. Louisville, Cincy and USF were good picks, but ECU was at least as good. They may not have delivered a crucial market, but they had a good football pedigree.

10 years ago was really the beginning. Enclosing the endzone has really amped it up. Feels really big time now.

Having fans would help the Houston game day experience.

(05-21-2014 02:18 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:10 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  About ten years ago I went to and ECU-Tulane in Greenville. A friend who is an ECU alum and I drove down from Virginia. It was kind of a rainy day and the stadium never filled out, but my impression was that it was like Lite version of what experiences I had going to games at a bunch of other SEC schools and FSU. I kind of got the sense that they could become or do what VT did a while back.

After the first ACC raid, I think the Big East really missed the boat on ECU. Louisville, Cincy and USF were good picks, but ECU was at least as good. They may not have delivered a crucial market, but they had a good football pedigree.

10 years ago was really the beginning. Enclosing the endzone has really amped it up. Feels really big time now.

New presser and mirrored upperdeck would just about make it perfect.

(05-21-2014 02:22 PM)SteveUCF19 Wrote:  Having fans would help the Houston game day experience.

good one steve.. and obviously beating good teams is not required as ucf has a pretty good game day experience and only 3 top 25 wins in school history (2 of which came last year)

(05-21-2014 02:22 PM)SteveUCF19 Wrote:  Having fans would help the Houston game day experience.

Where did this come from? Houston had a string of sell-outs at Robertson before being displaced by the construction last year.

(05-21-2014 02:33 PM)pesik Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:22 PM)SteveUCF19 Wrote:  Having fans would help the Houston game day experience.

good one steve.. and obviously beating good teams is not required as ucf has a pretty good game day experience and only 3 top 25 wins in school history (2 of which came last year)

(05-21-2014 02:35 PM)BigEastHomer Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:22 PM)SteveUCF19 Wrote:  Having fans would help the Houston game day experience.

Where did this come from? Houston had a string of sell-outs at Robertson before being displaced by the construction last year.

It was a joke (see dancing banana).

(05-21-2014 02:18 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:10 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  About ten years ago I went to and ECU-Tulane in Greenville. A friend who is an ECU alum and I drove down from Virginia. It was kind of a rainy day and the stadium never filled out, but my impression was that it was like Lite version of what experiences I had going to games at a bunch of other SEC schools and FSU. I kind of got the sense that they could become or do what VT did a while back.

After the first ACC raid, I think the Big East really missed the boat on ECU. Louisville, Cincy and USF were good picks, but ECU was at least as good. They may not have delivered a crucial market, but they had a good football pedigree.

10 years ago was really the beginning. Enclosing the endzone has really amped it up. Feels really big time now.

Not to mention we were

1-12
2-9
5-6

from 2003-2005 and it was about the worst period in program history.

(05-21-2014 02:46 PM)StillJonesing Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:18 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:10 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  About ten years ago I went to and ECU-Tulane in Greenville. A friend who is an ECU alum and I drove down from Virginia. It was kind of a rainy day and the stadium never filled out, but my impression was that it was like Lite version of what experiences I had going to games at a bunch of other SEC schools and FSU. I kind of got the sense that they could become or do what VT did a while back.

After the first ACC raid, I think the Big East really missed the boat on ECU. Louisville, Cincy and USF were good picks, but ECU was at least as good. They may not have delivered a crucial market, but they had a good football pedigree.

10 years ago was really the beginning. Enclosing the endzone has really amped it up. Feels really big time now.

Not to mention we were

1-12
2-9
5-6

from 2003-2005 and it was about the worst period in program history.

Yeah, you guys really stunk it up at the game I attended. But ECU had a winning tradition prior to that era. Even still, it was a pretty impressive atmosphere.

The problem that some of the schools located in more urban locales have is that there are a bunch of competiting events in those areas. Whereas, with ECU it's the biggest thing in town, if not that region of NC.

(05-21-2014 03:04 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:46 PM)StillJonesing Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:18 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:10 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  About ten years ago I went to and ECU-Tulane in Greenville. A friend who is an ECU alum and I drove down from Virginia. It was kind of a rainy day and the stadium never filled out, but my impression was that it was like Lite version of what experiences I had going to games at a bunch of other SEC schools and FSU. I kind of got the sense that they could become or do what VT did a while back.

After the first ACC raid, I think the Big East really missed the boat on ECU. Louisville, Cincy and USF were good picks, but ECU was at least as good. They may not have delivered a crucial market, but they had a good football pedigree.

10 years ago was really the beginning. Enclosing the endzone has really amped it up. Feels really big time now.

Not to mention we were

1-12
2-9
5-6

from 2003-2005 and it was about the worst period in program history.

Yeah, you guys really stunk it up at the game I attended. But ECU had a winning tradition prior to that era. Even still, it was a pretty impressive atmosphere.

The problem that some of the schools located in more urban locales have is that there are a bunch of competiting events in those areas. Whereas, with ECU it's the biggest thing in town, if not that region of NC.

Except 60+% of our fans travel from Charlotte, Triad, Raleigh, DC, etc to come to the games..... We just have a bigger fanbase than most of these schools

(05-21-2014 03:09 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 03:04 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:46 PM)StillJonesing Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:18 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:10 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  About ten years ago I went to and ECU-Tulane in Greenville. A friend who is an ECU alum and I drove down from Virginia. It was kind of a rainy day and the stadium never filled out, but my impression was that it was like Lite version of what experiences I had going to games at a bunch of other SEC schools and FSU. I kind of got the sense that they could become or do what VT did a while back.

After the first ACC raid, I think the Big East really missed the boat on ECU. Louisville, Cincy and USF were good picks, but ECU was at least as good. They may not have delivered a crucial market, but they had a good football pedigree.

10 years ago was really the beginning. Enclosing the endzone has really amped it up. Feels really big time now.

Not to mention we were

1-12
2-9
5-6

from 2003-2005 and it was about the worst period in program history.

Yeah, you guys really stunk it up at the game I attended. But ECU had a winning tradition prior to that era. Even still, it was a pretty impressive atmosphere.

The problem that some of the schools located in more urban locales have is that there are a bunch of competiting events in those areas. Whereas, with ECU it's the biggest thing in town, if not that region of NC.

Except 60+% of our fans travel from Charlotte, Triad, Raleigh, DC, etc to come to the games..... We just have a bigger fanbase than most of these schools

No offense. I am sure you have a big fanbase. But I doubt that 60% is accurate.

(05-21-2014 03:12 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 03:09 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 03:04 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:46 PM)StillJonesing Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:18 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  10 years ago was really the beginning. Enclosing the endzone has really amped it up. Feels really big time now.

Not to mention we were

1-12
2-9
5-6

from 2003-2005 and it was about the worst period in program history.

Yeah, you guys really stunk it up at the game I attended. But ECU had a winning tradition prior to that era. Even still, it was a pretty impressive atmosphere.

The problem that some of the schools located in more urban locales have is that there are a bunch of competiting events in those areas. Whereas, with ECU it's the biggest thing in town, if not that region of NC.

Except 60+% of our fans travel from Charlotte, Triad, Raleigh, DC, etc to come to the games..... We just have a bigger fanbase than most of these schools

No offense. I am sure you have a big fanbase. But I doubt that 60% is accurate.

It absolutely is. We did a study on it. I'll try to dig it up.

(05-21-2014 03:14 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 03:12 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 03:09 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 03:04 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:46 PM)StillJonesing Wrote:  Not to mention we were

1-12
2-9
5-6

from 2003-2005 and it was about the worst period in program history.

Yeah, you guys really stunk it up at the game I attended. But ECU had a winning tradition prior to that era. Even still, it was a pretty impressive atmosphere.

The problem that some of the schools located in more urban locales have is that there are a bunch of competiting events in those areas. Whereas, with ECU it's the biggest thing in town, if not that region of NC.

Except 60+% of our fans travel from Charlotte, Triad, Raleigh, DC, etc to come to the games..... We just have a bigger fanbase than most of these schools

No offense. I am sure you have a big fanbase. But I doubt that 60% is accurate.

It absolutely is. We did a study on it. I'll try to dig it up.

Ok. No skin off my back. I guess it makes sense since alums probably wouldn't want to stay in Greeneville.

I think ECU's advantage on that front is the hometown feel that we have like many teams in the SEC (Oxford / Tuscaloosa / Athens) versus our larger "market" brethren. Many fans either live here or are within a 1-4 hour drive away. A football Saturday is a major event here. Whereas Houston, Dallas, Philly, have pro sports throughout the year as well as other major events. Our fans really connect with the teams and feel like they are part of the team. The gameday experience is right up there with most of the P5 teams if not better than. The tailgating is outstanding, the entrance music and purple smoke get you motivated. Obviously, a crowd of 40,000 to 50,000 fanatics is also a much different experience than 25,000 or less. Winning (especially at home) obviously helps as well, but for many of the 100,000 or so that live in this city, plus the thousands that travel from out of town, ECU football is a big highlight of their year.

Temple will have to put a hit out on the Eagles owner so the rent doesn't cost a fortune and they can make it look like a Temple home game without exorbitant rent. Didn't the city have to force Lurie to put in water fountains when the stadium was built?

(05-21-2014 03:19 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 03:14 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 03:12 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 03:09 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 03:04 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  Yeah, you guys really stunk it up at the game I attended. But ECU had a winning tradition prior to that era. Even still, it was a pretty impressive atmosphere.

The problem that some of the schools located in more urban locales have is that there are a bunch of competiting events in those areas. Whereas, with ECU it's the biggest thing in town, if not that region of NC.

Except 60+% of our fans travel from Charlotte, Triad, Raleigh, DC, etc to come to the games..... We just have a bigger fanbase than most of these schools

No offense. I am sure you have a big fanbase. But I doubt that 60% is accurate.

It absolutely is. We did a study on it. I'll try to dig it up.

Ok. No skin off my back. I guess it makes sense since alums probably wouldn't want to stay in Greeneville.

Other than the medical district how could they? Greenville is strictly a college town. Raleigh is 50 minutes down the road with much more industry. No brainer.

(05-21-2014 03:09 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 03:04 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:46 PM)StillJonesing Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:18 PM)NBPirate Wrote:  

(05-21-2014 02:10 PM)UConnFB Wrote:  About ten years ago I went to and ECU-Tulane in Greenville. A friend who is an ECU alum and I drove down from Virginia. It was kind of a rainy day and the stadium never filled out, but my impression was that it was like Lite version of what experiences I had going to games at a bunch of other SEC schools and FSU. I kind of got the sense that they could become or do what VT did a while back.

After the first ACC raid, I think the Big East really missed the boat on ECU. Louisville, Cincy and USF were good picks, but ECU was at least as good. They may not have delivered a crucial market, but they had a good football pedigree.

10 years ago was really the beginning. Enclosing the endzone has really amped it up. Feels really big time now.

Not to mention we were

1-12
2-9
5-6

from 2003-2005 and it was about the worst period in program history.

Yeah, you guys really stunk it up at the game I attended. But ECU had a winning tradition prior to that era. Even still, it was a pretty impressive atmosphere.

The problem that some of the schools located in more urban locales have is that there are a bunch of competiting events in those areas. Whereas, with ECU it's the biggest thing in town, if not that region of NC.

Except 60+% of our fans travel from Charlotte, Triad, Raleigh, DC, etc to come to the games..... We just have a bigger fanbase than most of these schools

Very true. But it was the game day experience that helped build the fan base. We have been deliberately cultivating the tailgating and game activities for several decades. The Purple Haze entrance was somewhat a result of fans being impressed back in the 80s with Florida State's entry of Osceola riding the horse Renegade and planting the flaming spear. Houston and Tulane have a grand opportunity with their new stadiums. The new construction will get the curiosity seekers this year. Having a show for them with tailgating Texas BBQ style and N'awlins style will keep them coming back. As you know NBPirate, we have a lot of wives that come to the game just to tailgate and socialize. Some students will not even go inside the stadium. To them the biggest event is the tailgate party.

Looks like fun:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfzbUKCNwrM (All day tailgating with night game against UNC)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCDWX6NxWgI