Thank-you Mr. Hackenberg.
http://www.bcsn.tv/news_article/show/447..._id=878183

The only new news here is that the idiots at the MAC offices re-upped for another 10 year deal. So they plan on not changing in any other meaningful way to generate revenues for the member schools. UT will be stuck in that whirlpool leading to the sinkhole - if they stay in this conference. Until alums and the casual fans of the city commit money and attendance to games, this is where it will continue to go - down, through the drain, and into the sewer. I suppose it is not possible to go to another conference just for football. That is the only sport where it hurts us. I would hope someone is looking for alternatives and determining the financial impact - along with lost revenues at the gate, season tickets, concessions, parking, and future fans. I doubt it, but you would like to think someone is looking at it. Don't know if that falls on the athletic director or the finance department. I would certainly be doing it if I was in either of those offices. Those are called feasibility studies - which should not be news to anyone. But, sometimes you have to wonder if they are done without ever being looked at again for changes that take place. I would imagine the number of season ticket holders and money donated from those just on this board has dropped by at least 10% and probably closer to 20% - 25%. those numbers are not likely be replaced by graduates trying to find jobs in NW Ohio.

(11-16-2014 09:47 AM)MotoRocket Wrote:  The only new news here is that the idiots at the MAC offices re-upped for another 10 year deal. So they plan on not changing in any other meaningful way to generate revenues for the member schools. UT will be stuck in that whirlpool leading to the sinkhole - if they stay in this conference. Until alums and the casual fans of the city commit money and attendance to games, this is where it will continue to go - down, through the drain, and into the sewer. I suppose it is not possible to go to another conference just for football. That is the only sport where it hurts us. I would hope someone is looking for alternatives and determining the financial impact - along with lost revenues at the gate, season tickets, concessions, parking, and future fans. I doubt it, but you would like to think someone is looking at it. Don't know if that falls on the athletic director or the finance department. I would certainly be doing it if I was in either of those offices. Those are called feasibility studies - which should not be news to anyone. But, sometimes you have to wonder if they are done without ever being looked at again for changes that take place. I would imagine the number of season ticket holders and money donated from those just on this board has dropped by at least 10% and probably closer to 20% - 25%. those numbers are not likely be replaced by graduates trying to find jobs in NW Ohio.

For us this year and into the foreseeable future:
- Rocket Fund Donation: $0
- Season Tickets: 0 (Football & Basketball)

Mid-week games have a lot to do with that. Speaking with our wallets is the only recourse we have to express our concerns that the fans aren't important.

Yeah, mid-week MACtion has played out. Kids (future fans) don't go, because well, they're going to school the next day. Older fans might go for a half, but not if the weather will be iffy. Casual fans pass. There are times I can't give tickets away for these games. "Hey would you like to go to an 8pm game on a wed or Tuesday, freeze your butt off for 3 hours, and go to work the next day?" "No thanks." The only people watching the games are the local die hards and the gamblers. Most people think the MAC is a FCS school. The mid-majors need to either develop their own league with a playoff system or drop to the FCS. Playing for a playoff spot or in the playoffs would be more exciting than this crap. Toledo could still schedule an occasional game against a power school, and then actually play for something meaningful in the post season, other than some crappy third rate bowl in the middle of Idaho.

Good and honest story from what I know of the deal with ESPN. Maybe they should tape delay the games in the local broadcast area. Or not show them at all until the next day. I wish they would rerun the games that are on espn3 on one of the other channels at a later date. I don't have access to three. I want to go to more away games but can't when they are on wk nights. And I can't bring any of my grandkids with me on wk nights.

(11-16-2014 10:25 AM)RangerRocket Wrote:  

(11-16-2014 09:47 AM)MotoRocket Wrote:  The only new news here is that the idiots at the MAC offices re-upped for another 10 year deal. So they plan on not changing in any other meaningful way to generate revenues for the member schools. UT will be stuck in that whirlpool leading to the sinkhole - if they stay in this conference. Until alums and the casual fans of the city commit money and attendance to games, this is where it will continue to go - down, through the drain, and into the sewer. I suppose it is not possible to go to another conference just for football. That is the only sport where it hurts us. I would hope someone is looking for alternatives and determining the financial impact - along with lost revenues at the gate, season tickets, concessions, parking, and future fans. I doubt it, but you would like to think someone is looking at it. Don't know if that falls on the athletic director or the finance department. I would certainly be doing it if I was in either of those offices. Those are called feasibility studies - which should not be news to anyone. But, sometimes you have to wonder if they are done without ever being looked at again for changes that take place. I would imagine the number of season ticket holders and money donated from those just on this board has dropped by at least 10% and probably closer to 20% - 25%. those numbers are not likely be replaced by graduates trying to find jobs in NW Ohio.

For us this year and into the foreseeable future:
- Rocket Fund Donation: $0
- Season Tickets: 0 (Football & Basketball)

Mid-week games have a lot to do with that. Speaking with our wallets is the only recourse we have to express our concerns that the fans aren't important.

If I choose not to go to the BGSU v UT game, due to horrible scheduling, I have decided I will mail the tickets and my 2 lot 10 passes back to the university with a note that I'm not renewing my season tickets.
I am incredibly frustrated with the state of events.
The upside was we had several nice weather Saturday games early in the season and that really made for a great Sept and October.
But why continue to pay a premium if I can't use all the tickets?
Hard decision.
Don't really want to detrimentally effect the program but I think things can only get worse from here.

For our $750k cut of the MACtion we lose fan support and could easily replace that money with 1 road trip to a major conference foe with no return guarantee.
This is an abhorrent deal.

Doing a cost/benefit analysis, I'm sure the exposure was worth it at first when we would move a game from Saturday to Friday to be on ESPN and ESPN2. A few years later it was Thursday or Friday on ESPN or ESPN2. We are now playing on Tuesday/Wednesday to be on ESPN3 or ESPNU and occasionally ESPN2. Are we really getting exposure that's worth the inconvenience?

They seem to be able to black-out events locally. So, instead of blacking them out, why not insist that they are fee-based locally at the cost of a GA ticket?

there have been no studies showing a benefit to the program from increased national tv exposure. there is data showing declines in attendance and student participation in games through the move to mid week scheduling.

fans can speak with more than their wallets. there's other ways to let people know how we feel.

Times have changed folks. At least we arent D2 yet, and are probably on the short list to the AAC where we could possibly survive the media and P5 take over....

Could be a lot worse. Go Rockets! Beat BGSUCKS

(11-17-2014 01:25 AM)UofToledoFans Wrote:  Times have changed folks. At least we arent D2 yet, and are probably on the short list to the AAC where we could possibly survive the media and P5 take over....

Could be a lot worse. Go Rockets! Beat BGSUCKS

The NCAA Tourney currently pays about $1-1.5 million per game appearance extended over a six year period. UT has not been in an NCAA Tournament in 35 years---over a third of a century!----hopefully that changes this year----but this record is not much of a resume builder---I strongly suspect that MBB may have cost UT a change to move up a decade ago and the streak is even longer now plus football attendance and on-field accomplishments have regressed since then. In 2001 the average home attendance at the Glass Bowl was a bit over 30,000----UT can't even average 20,000 anymore.

Unfortunately I think that you are wrong about this AAC short list speculation because I think that most of the expansion for the foreseeable future have already occurred and I am not sure there is any gas is in the "conference expansion" tanks right now---most of the dominoes have ready fallen. Unfortunately, I see UT continuing to be in the MAC for a long, long time

(11-17-2014 12:51 AM)pono Wrote:  there have been no studies showing a benefit to the program from increased national tv exposure. there is data showing declines in attendance and student participation in games through the move to mid week scheduling.

fans can speak with more than their wallets. there's other ways to let people know how we feel.

The only exposure is empty aluminum seats.

If a team moves out of the AAC, Toledo is top 5 on the list. I'm not saying a move is happening from the AAC to elsewhere...but if UC or Memphis left? There aren't many teams that fit the conference better than Toledo does. Especially because basketball has come around.

(11-17-2014 10:28 AM)SylvaniaRocket Wrote:  

(11-17-2014 12:51 AM)pono Wrote:  there have been no studies showing a benefit to the program from increased national tv exposure. there is data showing declines in attendance and student participation in games through the move to mid week scheduling.

fans can speak with more than their wallets. there's other ways to let people know how we feel.

The only exposure is empty aluminum seats.

Exactly...embarrassing and not the kind of exposure UT and the conference needs.

Original ESPN deal that created MACtion:
10yrs ('07-'16)
$14 million

New deal adds to final 3 years of original deal:
3yrs ('14-'16)
$28 million

New deal once previous deal is complete:
10yrs ('17-'26)
$100 million

If you know of a deal worth more money that would allow MAC teams to play on Saturdays only I would be interested in hearing about it.

(11-17-2014 12:28 PM)perimeterpost Wrote:  Original ESPN deal that created MACtion:
10yrs ('07-'16)
$14 million

New deal adds to final 3 years of original deal:
3yrs ('14-'16)
$28 million

New deal once previous deal is complete:
10yrs ('17-'26)
$100 million

If you know of a deal worth more money that would allow MAC teams to play on Saturdays only I would be interested in hearing about it.

Money talks...it's just a shame that the conference has been forced down this path in order to try and keep up.

Some day espn will move on and our fans will have moved on as well.

I just don't get why EVERY game the upper echelon MAC teams like NIU and Toledo play in November has to be on a weeknight. I actually like MACtion and the exposure it gives the schools. I think it helps recruiting Florida and Texas kids because it gives them a chance to see them play on TV. Why can't we limit it to one weeknight home game per school per year though? Have them play a weeknight home game and road game and call it a deal.

(11-17-2014 01:00 PM)7 Wrote:  I just don't get why EVERY game the upper echelon MAC teams like NIU and Toledo play in November has to be on a weeknight. I actually like MACtion and the exposure it gives the schools. I think it helps recruiting Florida and Texas kids because it gives them a chance to see them play on TV. Why can't we limit it to one weeknight home game per school per year though? Have them play a weeknight home game and road game and call it a deal.

I think that's a question for your school's athletic department. You ever notice WMU never plays weeknight games? WMU played 2 MACtion away games in 2011 and hosted 1 MACtion games in 2007, and that's it. Total. forever.

That wasn't done intentionally by the MAC, that has to be at the insistence of the WMU athletic dept. I think its bogus that they reap the rewards but don't have to make the sacrifices.