NIU 38
CMU 17

(10-18-2010 09:51 PM)NIUtrav09 Wrote:  Geez MD, 10k? I don't think it will be that bad. I hope not anyway.. I think 14-17k depending on the weather.

Yeah there is going to be a huge dropoff this week. Having 3 home games in a row is hard enough on attendance, throw in Homecoming the week before, and it is going to be sparse out there. The economy is a huge factor also, I cant see more than 11k for this game.

The fact that this is televised doesn't help either. Kind of a catch 22, that television thing.

(10-19-2010 12:23 PM)NIUtrav09 Wrote:  

(10-19-2010 11:51 AM)cyberdawg Wrote:  Best place to begin the process of building a fan base is winning consistently, wining championships and winning bowls and big games vs teams like Wisky or Illinois.

Build a genuine and long lasting WINNER and they will come.

Agreed. You can't force or trick people into coming to games. It might fill the stands for one game but it's not going to increase the fan base. The frats are forced to go to basketball games from time to time. You think they give a crap who wins? Heck no. And they leave the minute their halftime even is over.

Just win.

Students want to have fun, more than they want a winner!
Miami-Ohio stunning success did not excite it's fan base.
Winning is important, but marketing is also important.
Students should not be expected to stay the whole game.
Getting them there is a critical start.
Realizing that their degree is tied to the FB program success is another step.
Winning consistently against the Big 10 with a budget maybe 10% of their budget is not realistic.
NIU has achieved the unofficial status of a Big 10 team, in the eyes of many Big 10 coaches. What we lack is a share of their very lucrative TV revenue. As long as that is the Status Quo we cannot expect to consistently beat them.

Discounted tickets. Busses from NIU satellite campuses like Rockford. Organizing High school kids to attend,and our campus student merry-go-round will keep attendance above 15K.
Students showed up last week. Get out the HMM vehicle with the cheerleaders and they will come.

(10-19-2010 03:46 PM)DiehardHuskie Wrote:  

(10-19-2010 03:24 PM)HuskieFootball Addict Wrote:  We'll be making our usual 260 mile round trip to be there.

GO HUSKIES!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's awesome!

Well.....Huskie football is ....for me and my sons....an addiction! We love NIU football so it is well worth the drive to be at the games. Which is why they insist we make the trip on Nov. 9 for the Toledo game. Of course the long drive home will be MUCH easier when we beat the crap out of the Rockets! Adrenaline and 5 hour energy shots....the only way to travel!

(10-19-2010 12:26 PM)NIUSAE Wrote:  Game has been moved back to 3 pm per email from Athletics.

A whole half hour? Now I am going to have to rearrange all my plans for the day.

Prediction:

Halftime:
CMU 14
NIU 14

Defense gives up a big play, and the Huskies turn the ball over deep in their own territory. Huskies have a 2-1 advantage in TOP.

Final:
CMU 14
NIU 43

Huskies get their act together and Spann starts bowling over worn out Chip defenders. Huskies pour on the Open Pit, and do their cookin' proud.

(10-19-2010 11:33 AM)cyberdawg Wrote:  

(10-19-2010 11:26 AM)7 Wrote:  We struggled for a half, but I thought Buffalo would cover. I gave their defense too much credit.

It was more a lack of UB offense which resulted in a blowout.

Cannot expect even a good D to be back on the field after so many three and outs and expect the margin to remain closer.

We scored 42 points and it should have been a lot more. Every part of Buffalo was bad.

Yep.. turnovers, missed field goals, gave the game to Buffalo and we still blew them out.

Ideas to increase attendance.
Giant umbrellas? A huge blanket showing pictures of crowds we were considering for seating.
Some kind of cover?
Game in the convo or beer tent outside for older folks.
Getting a cold and pneumonia not worth attending in the rain if you are cold and sick,
but wish to show your support not hard core.
We can still make this a fun experience outside FB stadium.

The main import is that students and alumns are shareholders in NIU FB results.
Like it or not an NIU degree is enhanced by strong FB results. So our alumn donations.
FB support could become a way to separate students who are academically similar, but go the extra distance to support NIU athletics.
We need super-fans like NIUGUY and others on this board.
But please remember super-fans do not represent more than a small percentage of NIU FB supporters. Please Super-fans show tolerance for the students who go to games for 2 hours or less. They are contributing something special.

I would like to see a database of all NIU supporters.
Students, alumns etc showing all the games they have attended and for how long.
Maybe pre-game FB rallies like at ND could become a reality at NIU.
WE could meet at Chick Evans field house and learn chants.
Have cheerleaders. Have Frat contests who can scream the loadest with Deci-bell measuring scales. Competitions of which dorms or frats show the most attendance and spirit at games and pre-games.

Of the 6K students who tail gate and did not come into the game at the beginning I would bet many came in during the second half or during the game.

We need a FB fan club at NIU. WE need to spend more on creating jobs for people to record attendance, serve food/beverages, greet students, encourage tailgaters to attend a quarter of a game etc.

We also need a new way of recording attendance. A student who attends 3/4 of a game gets a 1 for attendance, but .75 on a cumulative attendance counter.
When I or many others come in late , we are not counted.

This means that counting takes place during a certain time and then stops.

09,

line for NIU-CMU game has not moved much at all and I don't expect it to either.

NIU 33 Dips 24

We're a wounded "dog" right now (no pun intended). As you know, wounded dogs can be very dangerous, but in our case, it doesn't apply. Our coaching staff has the sideline and locker room demeanor of funeral directors. They make little if any adjustments at half-time, and it's reflective in the attitude and body language of the players (many of whom, I believe, have cashed-in for the season). Chandler Harnish, while in Mt. Pleasant last year, stated, "...I want to be just like Dan LeFevour." He won the hearts of a lot of Chippewa fans that day. Your running game should do well if you stay away from (or successfully block) our linebackers. If Harnish stays within his capabilities, you win easily by two scores.

Sometimes wounded dogs rise up and bite ya when you least expect it.

BTW: It boggles my mind to review the facts below.

CMU has had several successful periods of excellent football teams & titles, far more than has NIU. The competition between CMU & NIU goes way back to old InterstateIntercollegiate Athletic Conf eons ago. Chips gave Huskies and legendary George Bork lead teams fits in the early sixties when I attended NIU.
The 1963 unbeaten NIU team crowned "national college division champions" beat CMU 28-22.

NIU holds the series edge over CMU, go figure.
______

Finally, I would be pleasantly shocked if NIU beats CMU by two scores Saturday.

(10-20-2010 11:17 AM)7 Wrote:  

(10-19-2010 11:33 AM)cyberdawg Wrote:  

(10-19-2010 11:26 AM)7 Wrote:  We struggled for a half, but I thought Buffalo would cover. I gave their defense too much credit.

It was more a lack of UB offense which resulted in a blowout.

Cannot expect even a good D to be back on the field after so many three and outs and expect the margin to remain closer.

We scored 42 points and it should have been a lot more. Every part of Buffalo was bad.

They stopped our running game pretty good in the first half, and part of the second half.

(10-20-2010 12:20 PM)CE-SELLS-GOATS Wrote:  We're a wounded "dog" right now (no pun intended). As you know, wounded dogs can be very dangerous, but in our case, it doesn't apply. Our coaching staff has the sideline and locker room demeanor of funeral directors. They make little if any adjustments at half-time, and it's reflective in the attitude and body language of the players (many of whom, I believe, have cashed-in for the season). Chandler Harnish, while in Mt. Pleasant last year, stated, "...I want to be just like Dan LeFevour." He won the hearts of a lot of Chippewa fans that day. Your running game should do well if you stay away from (or successfully block) our linebackers. If Harnish stays within his capabilities, you win easily by two scores.

A lot worse guys that Harnish could emulate than Lefevour. Seemed like a classy kid and did well in the big games. Just when we stopped having to play Gradkowski, we got Lefevour. Oh well. BTW, where is he now, after the Bears put him on the practice squad, I thought a different team picked him up?

NIU 28
CMU 24


Harnish is just average. Spann gets 100 again, but only one TD. Huskies score winning touchdown in the final minute!

LeFevour is on the Bengals now:

http://www.bengals.com/team/roster/Dan-L...2700ff4d2f

(10-20-2010 07:08 PM)DeKalb098 Wrote:  LeFevour is on the Bengals now:

http://www.bengals.com/team/roster/Dan-L...2700ff4d2f

Bengals picked him up right away after Bears let him go. The those dumb a** Bears got Collins. Stupid move. Probably good for Lefevour though. At least he won't be pulverized like Cutler!

Last 3 games in the 2nd half the Huskies have scored 59 points and given up 7. Hopefully that will continue against CMU. Is it just our opponents being inconsistent, or are we making adjustments at half-time?

(10-20-2010 05:35 PM)NIU007 Wrote:  

(10-20-2010 11:17 AM)7 Wrote:  

(10-19-2010 11:33 AM)cyberdawg Wrote:  

(10-19-2010 11:26 AM)7 Wrote:  We struggled for a half, but I thought Buffalo would cover. I gave their defense too much credit.

It was more a lack of UB offense which resulted in a blowout.

Cannot expect even a good D to be back on the field after so many three and outs and expect the margin to remain closer.

We scored 42 points and it should have been a lot more. Every part of Buffalo was bad.

They stopped our running game pretty good in the first half, and part of the second half.

Didn't we run for like 250?