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(09-03-2019 08:04 AM)MonGNARch Wrote: [ -> ]Which leads me to my next point, I thought our capacity was over 22k, yet when they announced the sellout it was listed at 21,944?

From what I've gathered, sounds like the announced attendance was lower due to the tickets allotted for NSU band and SB Ballard Construction teams. So I guess 21.9 is the tickets sold? There were a lot of people standing in the mezzanines watching the game, so they either had general admission or were coming down from the corners. So it seemed like the stadium was over-filled, which again makes the 21.9 number confusing.
One thing that I am a little bummed out by, and something that will not get fixed, is the width of the stairs and concourses on the lower levels. The TED seems to have the same width for circulation, and its capacity is half of the football stadium. My wife and I decided to walk a big circle before the game, and it was tight everywhere except under the NEZ. The worst spot was the SEZ where there was a line for students(?) I assume, and people walking, AND people trying to get in from that gate. It was a mess. Think it would be better if they closed that gate while they had the students, or whoever they were, in line near the tunnel.
(09-03-2019 08:26 AM)odu09 Wrote: [ -> ]One thing that I am a little bummed out by, and something that will not get fixed, is the width of the stairs and concourses on the lower levels. The TED seems to have the same width for circulation, and its capacity is half of the football stadium. My wife and I decided to walk a big circle before the game, and it was tight everywhere except under the NEZ. The worst spot was the SEZ where there was a line for students(?) I assume, and people walking, AND people trying to get in from that gate. It was a mess. Think it would be better if they closed that gate while they had the students, or whoever they were, in line near the tunnel.

From my vantage point in 218, the east entrance into the NEZ was SUPER congested and people were still filing in well into the 1st. It's a very small ramp to try and fill in the amount of people it holds. Unfortuantely the West side was closed off due to the NSU band so they had no choice but I would have hated to have been in that crowd. I'm sure this will be fixed by the time they redo the NEZ
One more thing that I completely forgot - I miss the Howitzer. The entrance is kinda blah as it is but the BOOM from the shot always added some literal umph to it, both the main entrance and the 2nd half entrance. Unfortunately I just don't think there is any room for it anymore. Maybe with the new NEZ configuration it can be set up somewhere but I think the days of the Howitzer are long gone, which is a shame.

The horn they use after TD's also sounded super weak. They should use a deep, loud foghorn
(09-03-2019 08:24 AM)odu09 Wrote: [ -> ]
(09-03-2019 08:04 AM)MonGNARch Wrote: [ -> ]Which leads me to my next point, I thought our capacity was over 22k, yet when they announced the sellout it was listed at 21,944?

From what I've gathered, sounds like the announced attendance was lower due to the tickets allotted for NSU band and SB Ballard Construction teams. So I guess 21.9 is the tickets sold? There were a lot of people standing in the mezzanines watching the game, so they either had general admission or were coming down from the corners. So it seemed like the stadium was over-filled, which again makes the 21.9 number confusing.

From the way Harry described it, I gathered that the 22.5k number includes all gameday staff. Those folks should not be included in the tickets sold number.
After thinking about why the concession and bathroom lines were so long I think I may have figured it out. Its the NEZ.

The current NEZ has no services under it (bathrooms, concessions, etc.), which means 5000 people have to go to either sideline and use the bathrooms and concessions on the east and west side. With a new NEZ there will be concessions and bathrooms under the stands which will alleviate people coming to the sidelines.

Another reason to get the NEZ done asap. ODU has to find a way to get that done. Between the congestion and scoreboard issue. Its our highest priority
(09-03-2019 08:24 AM)odu09 Wrote: [ -> ]
(09-03-2019 08:04 AM)MonGNARch Wrote: [ -> ]Which leads me to my next point, I thought our capacity was over 22k, yet when they announced the sellout it was listed at 21,944?

From what I've gathered, sounds like the announced attendance was lower due to the tickets allotted for NSU band and SB Ballard Construction teams. So I guess 21.9 is the tickets sold? There were a lot of people standing in the mezzanines watching the game, so they either had general admission or were coming down from the corners. So it seemed like the stadium was over-filled, which again makes the 21.9 number confusing.

It definitely wasn't over sold. The upper corners were empty, and the East side didn't look more than 3/4 full, if that. I am sure a lot of the empty seats that weren't in the corners were people in the VIP areas instead of their seats, but those corner seats likely weren't sold.
(09-03-2019 09:13 AM)cmett003 Wrote: [ -> ]After thinking about why the concession and bathroom lines were so long I think I may have figured it out. Its the NEZ.

The current NEZ has no services under it (bathrooms, concessions, etc.), which means 5000 people have to go to either sideline and use the bathrooms and concessions on the east and west side. With a new NEZ there will concessions and bathrooms under the stands which will alleviate people coming to the sidelines.

Another need to get the NEZ done asap. ODU has to find a way to get that done. Between the congestion and scoreboard issue. Its our highest priority


That's a good point and I wonder if most from the NEZ naturally went to the west side.
(09-03-2019 09:13 AM)cmett003 Wrote: [ -> ]After thinking about why the concession and bathroom lines were so long I think I may have figured it out. Its the NEZ.

The current NEZ has no services under it (bathrooms, concessions, etc.), which means 5000 people have to go to either sideline and use the bathrooms and concessions on the east and west side. With a new NEZ there will concessions and bathrooms under the stands which will alleviate people coming to the sidelines.

Another need to get the NEZ done asap. ODU has to find a way to get that done. Between the congestion and scoreboard issue. Its our highest priority

I agree with you here. I know there are supposedly things they want to do for the high end donors first, but they cannot let the current configuration drag on for 5 years or more while they put a new coat of paint on the gameday building and add suites.

Before going to the first game in the stadium, I was on board with leaving the NEZ alone for a while, but my experience at the game changed that opinion.
(09-03-2019 09:17 AM)bit_9 Wrote: [ -> ]
(09-03-2019 09:13 AM)cmett003 Wrote: [ -> ]After thinking about why the concession and bathroom lines were so long I think I may have figured it out. Its the NEZ.

The current NEZ has no services under it (bathrooms, concessions, etc.), which means 5000 people have to go to either sideline and use the bathrooms and concessions on the east and west side. With a new NEZ there will concessions and bathrooms under the stands which will alleviate people coming to the sidelines.

Another need to get the NEZ done asap. ODU has to find a way to get that done. Between the congestion and scoreboard issue. Its our highest priority


That's a good point and I wonder if most from the NEZ naturally went to the west side.

East side was just as bad as the West side. There was no appreciable difference.
I know beggars can't be choosers, but I am really glad to see that I'm not the only one who is underwhelmed with our new stadium. I have had several people at work ask me this morning how much I liked the new stadium. I feel somewhat guilty telling them that I didn't really enjoy it as much as I was hoping for. Maybe with all of the hype, I am being a little over critical, but there are some MAJOR issues that needs to be addressed if the main focus is fan amenities. I have basically told them that the approach to the stadium is pretty awe-inspiring. For the stadium to seat as few as it does, it is still pretty impressive from the outside looking in. The same can be said for the view from your seats. I tried to walk around a little to get different vantage points and it does seem like there are very few if any "bad" seats. The problem is, the distance from the gate to the seat is an absolute cluster F***! At this point, there is nothing that can be done about the bathrooms being on the ground level but it seems like there about half as many men's bathrooms as before. After two 20 minute trips to the bathroom from Sec. 204 with a toddler, I was ready to go home. Add that with waiting in line for 15 minutes for a crappy hot dog, I got to see fraction of the game. And what happened to all the stadium attendants that help encourage the flow of traffic. You could barely move. I am definitely hoping that they reorganize some things before the ECU game.
(09-03-2019 09:16 AM)Monarchblue Wrote: [ -> ]
(09-03-2019 08:24 AM)odu09 Wrote: [ -> ]
(09-03-2019 08:04 AM)MonGNARch Wrote: [ -> ]Which leads me to my next point, I thought our capacity was over 22k, yet when they announced the sellout it was listed at 21,944?

From what I've gathered, sounds like the announced attendance was lower due to the tickets allotted for NSU band and SB Ballard Construction teams. So I guess 21.9 is the tickets sold? There were a lot of people standing in the mezzanines watching the game, so they either had general admission or were coming down from the corners. So it seemed like the stadium was over-filled, which again makes the 21.9 number confusing.

It definitely wasn't over sold. The upper corners were empty, and the East side didn't look more than 3/4 full, if that. I am sure a lot of the empty seats that weren't in the corners were people in the VIP areas instead of their seats, but those corner seats likely weren't sold.
This looks more than 3/4ths to me. There will never be a time where 100% of people are in their seats

[Image: c07d26752aaccf0687d0373ea0c171cd.jpg]
(09-03-2019 09:33 AM)odu09 Wrote: [ -> ]
(09-03-2019 09:16 AM)Monarchblue Wrote: [ -> ]
(09-03-2019 08:24 AM)odu09 Wrote: [ -> ]
(09-03-2019 08:04 AM)MonGNARch Wrote: [ -> ]Which leads me to my next point, I thought our capacity was over 22k, yet when they announced the sellout it was listed at 21,944?

From what I've gathered, sounds like the announced attendance was lower due to the tickets allotted for NSU band and SB Ballard Construction teams. So I guess 21.9 is the tickets sold? There were a lot of people standing in the mezzanines watching the game, so they either had general admission or were coming down from the corners. So it seemed like the stadium was over-filled, which again makes the 21.9 number confusing.

It definitely wasn't over sold. The upper corners were empty, and the East side didn't look more than 3/4 full, if that. I am sure a lot of the empty seats that weren't in the corners were people in the VIP areas instead of their seats, but those corner seats likely weren't sold.
This looks more than 3/4ths to me. There will never be a time where 100% of people are in their seats

[Image: c07d26752aaccf0687d0373ea0c171cd.jpg]

I was on the East Side, so I couldn't really tell how full it was, but the West side was not close to that full.
View from the East side[Image: 4bb1fbeb4a0cd24e0ad1de9e3a0969b8.jpg]

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Maybe all of them were in line for nachos 03-razz
Its clear that ODU needs more food options on the concourse.
(09-03-2019 09:55 AM)cmett003 Wrote: [ -> ]Its clear that ODU needs more food options on the concourse.

There is a lot to like about the new stadium. It looks and feels like a real college football stadium now, the seat comfort is a massive upgrade, the fact that they were able to make a relatively tiny stadium, by FBS standards, look and feel much larger, and the fact that it is a necessary start to building the program are a few, so I don't want to just make it sound like it is all negative, but the "huge upgrades" in concessions and amenities was vastly overstated in my opinion. Frankly, I would say that while the in seat experience is an enormous upgrade, the out of seat experience is less enjoyable for me. The food truck setup and kind of carnival atmosphere outside of the bowl was much nicer than the claustrophobic experience on the current concourse, and the blah Aramark concessions options are not as enjoyable as the food truck options to me. The ease of access to a bathroom, even if it was a porta-potty, was preferable to missing half a quarter to use the restroom now.

I know I am probably a minority, but I will miss some of the quaitness and quirkiness of the setup at Foreman. I won't miss the cramped seats and the small time feel of Foreman however. In the end, the new stadium was and is a necessity, and despite my gripes, it is a great first step in moving this program forward.
(09-03-2019 10:10 AM)Monarchblue Wrote: [ -> ]
(09-03-2019 09:55 AM)cmett003 Wrote: [ -> ]Its clear that ODU needs more food options on the concourse.

There is a lot to like about the new stadium. It looks and feels like a real college football stadium now, the seat comfort is a massive upgrade, the fact that they were able to make a relatively tiny stadium, by FBS standards, look and feel much larger, and the fact that it is a necessary start to building the program are a few, so I don't want to just make it sound like it is all negative, but the "huge upgrades" in concessions and amenities was vastly overstated in my opinion. Frankly, I would say that while the in seat experience is an enormous upgrade, the out of seat experience is less enjoyable for me. The food truck setup and kind of carnival atmosphere outside of the bowl was much nicer than the claustrophobic experience on the current concourse, and the blah Aramark concessions options are not as enjoyable as the food truck options to me. The ease of access to a bathroom, even if it was a porta-potty, was preferable to missing half a quarter to use the restroom now.

I know I am probably a minority, but I will miss some of the quaitness and quirkiness of the setup at Foreman. I won't miss the cramped seats and the small time feel of Foreman however. In the end, the new stadium was and is a necessity, and despite my gripes, it is a great first step in moving this program forward.

I agree with everything about this. I was really bummed about how claustrophobic the concourse on the lowest level felt, and I'm not sure if that's something that can be fixed.

We got in line for concessions at around 615 before the rush, and one of the cashiers literally took 10 minutes to process someone's order. All I could think about was how much that was going to suck later on. There's room for improvement there, at least. I am guessing they didn't get much practice during construction.
Few things I noticed:

First - tailgate lot. I'm in the Monarch Villiage lot. I know it's one of the cheaper lots...but it also has a ton of people. It's a grass lot - no one thought to mow the grass before the game? It was seriously at least a foot tall. Bad look. People pay a lot of money to get tailgating...least the school can do is cut the dang grass. I would be cited by the city for having grass that tall. Get it together ODAF.

Entry to the stadium - first was going to go in the South gate...looked like a cluster, so went to the West. Much easier to get in. Short lines.

Bathrooms - not all that impressive. Long lines. Maybe people just need to figure out where the best locations are. Wish there were some on the 2nd level

Seats, view, etc. in 211 was excellent. Very impressed.

Echo the sentiment that the intro is still disjointed and lacks umph...Need the Howitzer back. Need to have the university PRACTICE timing of the intros. Could be so much better.

DJ - love having him. Love the music in stadium, sounds so much better and speakers really pump. BUT - did we REALLY not test the wireless mics before the game? Connectivity loss the whole time. Just sad. That stuff should absolutely be taken care of prior to gameday.

Concessions was a huge issue. I used to be able to run out, purchase a soda or a pizza slice and be back in the seat in less than 10 mins round trip. Now that is more like half an hour or worse. MAJOR issue. This needs to be fixed. We either need more vendors or better traffic flow or something.

Positives and negatives. Actually watching the game it was great. Everything else needs a lot of work.
(09-03-2019 10:10 AM)Monarchblue Wrote: [ -> ]
(09-03-2019 09:55 AM)cmett003 Wrote: [ -> ]Its clear that ODU needs more food options on the concourse.

There is a lot to like about the new stadium. It looks and feels like a real college football stadium now, the seat comfort is a massive upgrade, the fact that they were able to make a relatively tiny stadium, by FBS standards, look and feel much larger, and the fact that it is a necessary start to building the program are a few, so I don't want to just make it sound like it is all negative, but the "huge upgrades" in concessions and amenities was vastly overstated in my opinion. Frankly, I would say that while the in seat experience is an enormous upgrade, the out of seat experience is less enjoyable for me. The food truck setup and kind of carnival atmosphere outside of the bowl was much nicer than the claustrophobic experience on the current concourse, and the blah Aramark concessions options are not as enjoyable as the food truck options to me. The ease of access to a bathroom, even if it was a porta-potty, was preferable to missing half a quarter to use the restroom now.

I know I am probably a minority, but I will miss some of the quaitness and quirkiness of the setup at Foreman. I won't miss the cramped seats and the small time feel of Foreman however. In the end, the new stadium was and is a necessity, and despite my gripes, it is a great first step in moving this program forward.

Yes. And other than the bathroom situation (no restrooms on the the second level was a huge mistake), everything else can be remedied if they keep an open mind, put in some effort and are open to suggestion.

1.Reposition some of the speakers (or maybe add some) so everyone can hear clearly, maybe add some sound proofing to fix the echos.

2. Hype up and synchronize the player intro properly.

3. Add more concession carts to the mid-level concourse.

4. Raise the scoreboard.

5. Add flat screens on the concourses so if people are waiting for food or bathrooms they still see the action.

6. Bring back the food trucks to remedy the crammed walkways, long lines and spread out the crowd more

7. Open more exits to leave the stadium after the game.

8. Improve the announcing.

9. Add more graphics and signage (loved what they did with the tarps honoring old players btw). I understand this is happening by the ECU game.

All of this can be done quickly, and would make a HUGE improvement without a ton of effort or costing a fortune.
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