Can't believe I am complaining after the attendance the last few years.
...but we came in 18-2 last night. We were playing the defending league champ. It was a Saturday night. The hogs played in the afternoon. No NFL or college football to compete against. Perfect weather. Hundreds of upper deck seats were distributed, for free, in community. We have consistently been on the front page of the paper. We are getting votes in the Top 25 poll. This is the best start we have ever had, and may ever have (can't really be much better than 19-2). So yes, I am disappointed we didn't "Pack the Jack" or, at least, draw over 5000 fans. When/if ASU hires a "Chris Beard", starts 18-2 and is playing the league champ on Saturday night in Jonesboro, no way they don't draw over 8,000 fans.
I guess I am still impatient with this city. Nice crowd. Great atmosphere. But, I think the majority of teams in this league (which is a very poor attendance league, overall) would have had more than 4600 folks given the same scenario. Chasse and staff are doing a great job and hopefully we will fill the arena before the season is over (If ASU fans help, at all, we should do it for that game). Hopefully, honoring the 85-86 team will help next weekend, but mostly with old timers.
I understand your frustration, but we have to walk before we can run. This is a golden opportunity to draw casual fans and turn them into permanent fans. I think we are making some headway.
Rome wasn't built in a day, nor a viable basketball program either. A year or so ago, you could have passed out 10,000 free tickets, and I'd doubt if 2,000 would have showed up. Year before last when I last bought season tickets, and had to miss a couple of games, I couldn't give the damn tickets away.
Some people come to see 19-2 teams purely out of curiosity. If they enjoy it (and I don't see how they could fail to have enjoyed last night), then they might come back. And some of them will get the fever, and become long-term fans. But first you have to get them to the games the first time. The geriatric atmosphere at Trojan games that we have traditionally had would not excite anyone, but it was much better last night. The young man with the microphone who MCs the events in the breaks can go a long way toward keeping the fans stirred up. When the team needs help, we need someone bellowing, "ALL RIGHT TROJAN FANS, ON YOUR FEET!"
(01-31-2016 04:56 PM)MICHAELSPAPPY Wrote: [ -> ]Some people come to see 19-2 teams purely out of curiosity. If they enjoy it (and I don't see how they could fail to have enjoyed last night), then they might come back. And some of them will get the fever, and become long-term fans. But first you have to get them to the games the first time. The geriatric atmosphere at Trojan games that we have traditionally had would not excite anyone, but it was much better last night. The young man with the microphone who MCs the events in the breaks can go a long way toward keeping the fans stirred up. When the team needs help, we need someone bellowing, "ALL RIGHT TROJAN FANS, ON YOUR FEET!"
Couple of good points. Giving away free tickets is no longer a problem. The folks who come out and see a fun basketball atmosphere will hopefully come back. I realize this is a "process" and didn't expect us to be selling out the arena in Chasse and Coach Beard's first year. But, I didn't expect to be 19-2, either. I guess that has made me more impatient then I would have been if we were simply "good" (i.e. something like 14-7) which was a realistic expectation coming into this year for the team.
Folks have not been thinking Little Rock. If they think college sports, they think the Sausage Factory. Or they go to a local high school game to see their kids play. First step is just to get the Trojans back into the conversation, and we are doing that.
Someone from the department needs to drop by DTS every week, just to irritate them.
"We have lost two games. How many did you say you have lost?"
Was glad to see that the PA man asked Trojan fans to get on their feet and renew an old Trojan custom by standing until the visitors scored. I hope we continue that every game. Glad to see Curtis up dancing in the aisle last night.
What I was afraid of last night was that we were going to waste the largest crowd without playing ASU, since the opening game against Navy, by losing the game. It seems like most times in the past that we've had a pretty decent crowd, we'd look like Ned in the first reader, and lose, and most of those never came back. Some of those attending last night will be back.
I was able to get some of those free tickets for a few friends but they were in the upper deck. One of them brought his grandson who told his grandpaw that the next time they came back he wanted seats in the lower section to he had a chance to catch a shirt.
Guess we need to get some of those guns to shoot shirts into the upper deck
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Attendance seems to be getting a little larger each game. I understand that some last night were on free passes, but that's part of the way you get your message out to fans. And remember, we were within a thousand of reaching capacity. I just wish the empty seat holders in the lower bowl will give their tickets to someone to use. Way too many empty leather seats on the side across from the teams. And they're usually empty. I realize some company is buying the tickets to help the program, but they aren't using them, or giving them to someone who will.
(01-31-2016 04:56 PM)MICHAELSPAPPY Wrote: [ -> ]Some people come to see 19-2 teams purely out of curiosity. If they enjoy it (and I don't see how they could fail to have enjoyed last night), then they might come back. And some of them will get the fever, and become long-term fans. But first you have to get them to the games the first time. The geriatric atmosphere at Trojan games that we have traditionally had would not excite anyone, but it was much better last night. The young man with the microphone who MCs the events in the breaks can go a long way toward keeping the fans stirred up. When the team needs help, we need someone bellowing, "ALL RIGHT TROJAN FANS, ON YOUR FEET!"
The 4600 in attendance last night contained many who I venture to guess had never been to a Trojan game. I know that the couple who went with us last night had never been to a Little Rock game in The Jack. They were really fired up by the experience and the atmosphere. Last night is exactly how a program goes about building and expanding a fan base!
(01-31-2016 05:26 PM)PTJR Wrote: [ -> ]Last night is exactly how a program goes about building and expanding a fan base!
Bingo!
(01-31-2016 05:16 PM)RBL Wrote: [ -> ]I was able to get some of those free tickets for a few friends but they were in the upper deck. One of them brought his grandson who told his grandpaw that the next time they came back he wanted seats in the lower section to he had a chance to catch a shirt.
Guess we need to get some of those guns to shoot shirts into the upper deck
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Well, those of us who sit in the upper deck have absolutely no chance of getting a shirt. And last night that was a whole hellava lot of folks, and many of them kids.
Athletic Dept working on getting those shirt guns
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
(01-31-2016 06:03 PM)RBL Wrote: [ -> ]Athletic Dept working on getting those shirt guns
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I was going to say, if someone suggests it, Chasse will get on it. Apparently, he already has.
In the past, it would have simply filled LRTrojans and Dr. J's closets.
Was told today that we now have those shirt guns. Look out Outside & LRT as shirts coming your way
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
(01-31-2016 06:12 PM)mjs Wrote: [ -> ] (01-31-2016 06:03 PM)RBL Wrote: [ -> ]Athletic Dept working on getting those shirt guns
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I was going to say, if someone suggests it, Chasse will get on it. Apparently, he already has.
In the past, it would have simply filled LRTrojans and Dr. J's closets.
Yes, we'd have to fight for them now. Too many people up in the upper deck. Need to bring Shields back, as Yogi Berra would have said if he was a Trojan fan, nobody goes to the games anymore, it's too crowded