CSNbbs

According to a C-USA poster, Louisville has only sold 800 tickets to this year's GMAC Bowl..........obviously a reflection of the deep disappointment in this year's UL team after so many high expectations pre-season.

That is why I was kind of surprised that Mobile didn't go for "sure thing" (in terms of attendance) So. Miss since they got second choice in the bowl process. I guess they thought Louisville fans would spend more hotel nights in Mobile, and in the past have always "traveled well". I also think that they were hoping for fan intrigue over the Ragone vs. Leftwich match-up. Apparently not, at least from the Louisville point of view.

Herd fans here can probably tell us how well Marshall is doing in selling tix......I think they took over 8K last year but the game is mid-week before Xmas which makes it kinda tough.

I have a feeling that this might be the first GMAC Bowl that doesn't sell out the 40K County Stadium there. ........also looks like UT opponent BC is doing a lousy job of sending fans. Methinks that all this talk of "traveling" fans in other conferences is sometimes exaggerated a little bit.

A recent article in the Mobile Register said that the bowl had 4500 seats left to sell, but I suspect that counted the schools' guaranteed buys as sold regardless of how the schools are doing on remarketing them.

If you believe what you read on the UL boards, Car_inal football has much bigger problems than unsold bowl tickets.

I believe the problem w/ ticket sales for both bowls relates to both UofL and BC having higher expectations going into the season. The GMAC and MCB therefore are hard to get excited about.
Concerning the GMAC selection...my opinion is that they were looking more for an exciting, high scoring game that could garner high TV ratings and weren't looking so much at attendance figures. After all, wouldn't you rather see Byron play against the UofL defense versus the SoMiss D??? Which matchup do you think will produce more fireworks on the field???

The GMAC Bowl has had over 40,000 in a 41,000 seat stadium every year. This year will not be different. Louisville fans aren't interested. That's their problem. The tickets will sell anyway. The locals in Mobile support this bowl very well.

While I agree that the local community supports this bowl game very well, if UL returns 7K of 8K tickets (I don't honestly know what their allotment amounted to but I guess it'd be the same as Marshall's) with less than a week to go before the game, I guess I'd surprised if they can keep their "string" of having every GMAC Bowl sell out this year. But it's only a 40K stadium, so maybe the locals will "come through" and fill it up.

I really dont think either team is all that interested in playing the other. It will make for a nice evening for the local people in Mobile and that is about it. Louisville as well as Marshall gain nothing from one defeating the other. All it will do for us is show that we can defeat the CUSA teams that we have played over the last four years. Louisville 2x East Carolina and Cincy..wow that will really get you alot of national recognition... :rolleyes:

Quote:All it will do for us is show that we can defeat the CUSA teams that we have played over the last four years. Louisville 2x East Carolina and Cincy..wow that will really get you alot of national recognition...

And to think many Herd fans wanted to JOIN Conference USA!!
:eek:

At one time I was one of those fans. Then I began thinking in terms of merging the two into one conf and sending the rest on their way, some to 1-AA football and some to find another conf to affiliate with. I have for sometime recognized the fact that CUSA is in many many ways no better off than the MAC, yes they have more bowl tie in's but to what bowls..BCS
no, so what is the great difference? They have a few more basketball teams that ususally make it to post season and do ocassionally get close to the final 4, granted Louisville has won, but look at the other sports, how many NCAA titles do they have compared to the NCAA titles of the MAC..pretty much the same. CUSA has better name recognition but that again has come from basketball not football as well as the non rev sports.
Both conferences are not what they would like to think they are, which is why I would like to see some type of merger between the two. Of course if you ask any member of CUSA they feel they are lightyears above the MAC which if they really took the time to examine everything they are not. Anyway I for one am not one of the CUSA proponets from Marshall

GMAC uses this bowl game as a perk for its employees of the financing arm. It will sell out.

I realize that...but its not due to the fans of the schools like other bowl games..same thing with the MCB...perk tickets are not fan tickets and there is a big difference when you look at the attendence of other bowl games. I find it totally rediculous to play a bowl in a 40,000 seat stadium..you have mandated it to minor status right there, so now what do you do if by some crazy way you land a big time program that wants to bring 20-25,000 fans..you have already minimized it by the size of the stadium. The GMAC unless it moves from Mobile will always be a minor bowl. Take it to Birmingham to a larger stadium, hook up with a major conf, increase the take and see what happens with that..same for the MCB...a major tie in is needed like the Big 10

According to an article in the Herald Dispatch (Huntington newspaper) GMAC officials indicated less than 1000 tickets remained available for the game on Wednesday. It will be interesting to see how many each school actually sold, and the percentage of locals that are in the stands. At least this stadium will be full.

Quote:I find it totally rediculous to play a bowl in a 40,000 seat stadium..you have mandated it to minor status right there,

I completely disagree. A full stadium makes a great atmosphere. Ridiculous is having only 40,000 people in the 80,000 seat Silver Dome.

In Detroit yes especially when there is not a tie in to the Big 10. In the south its a different story. The GMAC needs to as I have stated increase the payout to a million dollars and put the game in Birmingham along with a tie in to the SEC, not saying that if they cant come up with a CUSA or MAC team that they really want then they would call the SEC. Same thing for the MCB, increase the payout to a million again and hook up with the BIG 10. That way you have the possibility of a Michigan, Ohio or Illinois school from the MAC and the Big 10 has someone from the same general area. For the GMAC it would make sence as the SEC is a southern conference for all intents and purposes, big traveling crowds big ticket sales. The MAC rep would then have an opportunity to play a more known football school thus helping ticket sales, which is why it would need to go to a larger stadium. The way it is now the bowl game looks like a 1-AA playoff game in a 40,000 seat stadium, packed or not...small stadium small bowl...big stadium with the right conf alignment equals a bigger bowl and more money for all...its something to consider

Marshall 77.......I was surprised that the MCB didn't increase the payout and make a stronger "play" to get a better B10 team. They ended up settling for the #7 team, and I realize that no program really wants to go bowling in Detroit, but if the MCB anted up a cool mil I wonder if they could move up the "pecking" order in the B10 one or two notches. Just getting the B10 #5 would be pretty good for the MAC #1 or #2.

The GMAC has what I would hope the MACC could have if we found the "right" neutral site......local support! The Mobile community rallies around this game, and thus it's been a very successful bowl. I do think that the poor ticket sales from Louisville will deprive the bowl of a sell-out this year.......and from what I've read on the Herd boards there may be less than the 8K Marshall took last year as well.

One question: Why isn't the Mobile Bowl played this Friday or Saturday vs. this Wednesday??? There are no other bowls this weekend??? I don't get it???

Everything I have read any where about any of the minor bowl games suggests that ticket sales are slack. For example, I've picked up posts noting that CUSA-champ TCU has sold about 2000 tickets for the Liberty Bowl so far. I'd guess that there will be a lot of people dressed as empty seats in New Orleans tonight.

I'll suggest two contributing factors:

(1) Although it doesn't seem like it to MAC fans, we have an oversupply of bowl games. The schools lose money, and the host committees apparently break even at best. Who in the heck is making money off these things? ESPN, I guess.

(2) The economy, stupid. Without starting a political debate, I think it's safe to note that the economy still is perceived as pretty soft, and a bowl trip is a luxury expense for most people that probably comes after paying the bills and buying the kids' Christmas gifts on their priority scale.

Now how many UC fans are going to be watching that game when the basketball team is playing #5 Oregon at the same time, both on ESPN or EPSN2?
Easy answer.
Who wants to see this game????? It's a mystery to me. .And who thought someone wanted to see this game is another mystery...

Well, at the risk of actually defending the University of Concrete, the Bearcats are the second-best college team in the greater Cincinnati metro area, and I bet they'd hang in a game with the Bengals.

OTOH, they got outdrawn at their own stadium by a high school playoff game. (The 'Cats had the day game at Nippert. The Cincinnati Elder game drew a bigger crowd the same night.)

With regards to attendance at minor bowls, I agree about the economy, plus I think that the late setting of the BCS bowls (and thus all the minor bowl match-ups to a large degree) allows fans very little time to plan to make bowls, or get good deals on airplane tickets, etc.

Look at the UC game tonight in NO.......they only finished playing the regular season something like 12 days ago, and didn't know what bowl they were in until that time......hardly enough time to get a good showing at a minor bowl.

And boy, does that SuperDome look empty tonight......hard to tell but are then even 15K in the house?