Guessing you are not a season ticket holder at your school? The MAC already offers free road game tickets with a purchase of a season ticket and it still did not help. We should not be concerned with traveling opposing fans, we should be concerned with growing our own fanbase.

(01-11-2013 08:36 PM)MidnightBlueGold Wrote:  20,807.4 to be exact (and that included a 1AA team).

I remember getting there late one night and having to be the .4 of a fan. It was very painful.

(01-11-2013 09:50 PM)NIUSox10 Wrote:  Guessing you are not a season ticket holder at your school? The MAC already offers free road game tickets with a purchase of a season ticket and it still did not help. We should not be concerned with traveling opposing fans, we should be concerned with growing our own fanbase.

Huh? I can get free tickets to road games with my UT season ticket? Is that what you are saying? Never heard that.

(01-12-2013 12:57 AM)H2Oville Rocket Wrote:  

(01-11-2013 09:50 PM)NIUSox10 Wrote:  Guessing you are not a season ticket holder at your school? The MAC already offers free road game tickets with a purchase of a season ticket and it still did not help. We should not be concerned with traveling opposing fans, we should be concerned with growing our own fanbase.

Huh? I can get free tickets to road games with my UT season ticket? Is that what you are saying? Never heard that.

news to me too.

(01-12-2013 12:55 AM)H2Oville Rocket Wrote:  

(01-11-2013 08:36 PM)MidnightBlueGold Wrote:  20,807.4 to be exact (and that included a 1AA team).

I remember getting there late one night and having to be the .4 of a fan. It was very painful.

That's what you get for being late!

(01-12-2013 01:00 AM)perimeterpost Wrote:  

(01-12-2013 12:57 AM)H2Oville Rocket Wrote:  

(01-11-2013 09:50 PM)NIUSox10 Wrote:  Guessing you are not a season ticket holder at your school? The MAC already offers free road game tickets with a purchase of a season ticket and it still did not help. We should not be concerned with traveling opposing fans, we should be concerned with growing our own fanbase.

Huh? I can get free tickets to road games with my UT season ticket? Is that what you are saying? Never heard that.

news to me too.

UMass did not offer this to season ticket holders. Otherwise I would have checked flight info.

It wasnt unlimited, i think you got to choose from any away game, and receive 2 tickets. Il look up the link from the NiU board. I know a lot of our fans went to ball state and wmu using them.

Schools get so many tickets for their away games right? I suppoes they can do whatever they want with them.

Personally MAC schools should start giving them to their student support groups...

(01-12-2013 03:29 AM)NIUSox10 Wrote:  It wasnt unlimited, i think you got to choose from any away game, and receive 2 tickets. Il look up the link from the NiU board. I know a lot of our fans went to ball state and wmu using them.

Must have been an NIU only thing.

(01-11-2013 09:50 PM)NIUSox10 Wrote:  Guessing you are not a season ticket holder at your school? The MAC already offers free road game tickets with a purchase of a season ticket and it still did not help. We should not be concerned with traveling opposing fans, we should be concerned with growing our own fanbase.

Well, the free road game tickets were to November weeknight games or Black Friday games. Not too surprised that free tickets weren't enough to entice fans to take off work and drive 7-8 hours roundtrip on a Wed. or Thurs. night or to cutout on family during Thanksgiving weekend when the conference races were decided.

(01-12-2013 01:00 AM)perimeterpost Wrote:  

(01-12-2013 12:57 AM)H2Oville Rocket Wrote:  

(01-11-2013 09:50 PM)NIUSox10 Wrote:  Guessing you are not a season ticket holder at your school? The MAC already offers free road game tickets with a purchase of a season ticket and it still did not help. We should not be concerned with traveling opposing fans, we should be concerned with growing our own fanbase.

Huh? I can get free tickets to road games with my UT season ticket? Is that what you are saying? Never heard that.

news to me too.

http://www.bobcatattack.com/messageboard...&PID=82479

(01-11-2013 09:44 PM)perimeterpost Wrote:  Ohio State can sell 100K tickets to a game vs Eastern Michigan, stop blaming the your opponent for your shortcomings.

When you're a MAC school you have 3 types of fans- students, alumni, local residents. When you're a BCS school you have those 3 plus a 4th- non-affiliated band waggoner.

Playing "big names" is what draws in the 4th type, but there's PLENTY that we can all do to focus on bringing in more of the first 3.

There's an old saying- dance with the one that brought ya. There's PLENTY of exciting games and rivalries in the MAC, no need to swap teams out. Ever heard of MACtion? Of course you have, everyone has.

I would like to see a Conference wide focus on attendance with all schools participating in the drive. The greatest asset of the MAC is our proximity, we must use it to drive more travel to road games- better tailgating, student bus packages, season ticket offers (buy a season ticket, use it for home and away games), stuff like that.

If we could get 1K more students, 1K more alumni, 1K more local residents, and 1K more traveling fans to each game that would be an addition 4K butts in seats; great place to start.

The bottom 3rd of this conference needs to get more competitive on the field but that doesn't mean we don't have a lot of fun, exciting, nationally relevant games being played in the MAC every week in the fall, we need to maximize our potential.

So Toledo had a 40% boost to their attendance for playing Boise. And that's insignificant?

And just how do you propose increasing attendance - I didn't see anything in your post that describes HOW we would increase attendance.

(01-11-2013 08:40 PM)MileHighBronco Wrote:  oo7 - Bringing in somebody good ain't all that easy. Many of the big boys don't want to come to our places. Their buddies all make fun of them for going to play at a MAC venue and there is always the chance of getting humiliated. (See: Toledo-Colorado)

That may be true but at NIU we don't even know because NIU's scheduling philosophy is to not even try. Their goal is to play 2 games on the road for money, 1 home game against an FCS team, and then 1 game either at home or away against a bottom of the barrel FBS team - Army, Idaho, at best, Navy. This year our OOC home game slate is: Eastern Illinois.

At one time I looked at the OOC schedules for all the MAC teams going back 10 years and NIU had the fewest good teams play at home of all MAC schools, except maybe EMU (not sure which team it was).

(01-11-2013 01:16 PM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  The stability this conference enjoys is a true blessing, as is having a fan base that understands that "the wheel turns". But it seems now that "expansion fever" has caused some swelled heads to emerge.

"Our team is too big for this conference now", "If only we kicked out X school"...

It's tiresome. As good as you or your team is now they were probably bad at some point in the past ten years and the wheel turns.

And what for?

The "New Big East"? It's CUSA2.0 and it will double or triple your travel costs and take you to parts of the nation where you're alumni base is thinner than Ally McBeal...

They offer the same playoff bowl access, a tv contract that will come nowhere near offsetting your travel cost, are destined to lose their two best northern programs, and are as unstable as heck..

But hey they have the word "Big" in their conference name...

Going on the road to Ypsilanti to play in front of 1000 people is tiresome, but you don't see me complaining.

I often hear people complaining about "accepting mediocrity." I don't consider what is happening at one particular member institution of the MAC mediocre. Mediocre is too nice of a word. Embarrassing fits nicer and sounds better.

So, what was the point of this thread?

My problem with the MAC is that outside of Kent State and Bowling Green this season, every other school on the MAC schedule was a lightweight. Every year the MAC office gives us the easiest cross over opponents in the league for some reason.

If the MAC could get UConn to join FB-Only in the East to balance the divisions then I would be much happier. That would give Ohio 3 solid games in divisional play each year significant to the fans (Miami, Kent, UConn) where its always going to be a tooth and nail fight.

Ohio has too many patsies scheduled on an annual basis; SBC, FCS, Marshall, Akron, Buffalo, UMass with only 2-3 serious games in league play as it stands now.

(01-12-2013 12:27 PM)Louis Kitton Wrote:  My problem with the MAC is that outside of Kent State and Bowling Green this season, every other school on the MAC schedule was a lightweight. Every year the MAC office gives us the easiest cross over opponents in the league for some reason.

If the MAC could get UConn to join FB-Only in the East to balance the divisions then I would be much happier. That would give Ohio 3 solid games in divisional play each year significant to the fans (Miami, Kent, UConn) where its always going to be a tooth and nail fight.

Ohio has too many patsies scheduled on an annual basis; SBC, FCS, Marshall, Akron, Buffalo, UMass with only 2-3 serious games in league play as it stands now.

Three of those opponent's are under Ohio's discretion, not the MAC's (and I don't think Marshall is a patsy). Two others have won a MAC Football championship in last 7 years, versus "0" for Ohio, and the other hasn't been an annual patsy because they just this was their first year in the MAC.

Your problem is that you cheer for a team in the MAC. A conference that basically cannibalizes itself with 9 of its members being located within two states. You can't have Toledo, BGSU, Miami, Akron, Kent AND Ohio all top 50 programs when they're fighting over the scraps left behind by OSU and other BCS programs. It's amazing three of those teams were even ranked in the top 25 this season.

Look at the most populous states and the saturation of Div 1 FBS universities per capita, Ohio and Michigan have more FBS universities per capital than the other states:

California: 7 FBS universities, 38 million people= 5.43 million people per FBS school

Texas: 12 FBS universities, 26 million people= 2.16 million people per school

New York: 3 FBS universities, 19.5 million= 6.5 million people per school

Illinois: 3 FBS universities, 12.9 million= 4.3 million people per school

Ohio: 8 FBS universities, 11.5 million= 1.43 million people per school

Georgia: 2 FBS universities, 9.9 million= 4.95 million people per school

Michigan: 5 FBS universities, 9. 9 million = 1.98 million people per school

We're selling against ourselves ...A recruit is choosing between Kent and BGSU, or Toledo and CMU. They aren't deciding between Kent and OSU, or CMU and Michigan. So, one MAC program's gain is generally another MAC program's loss. You're in the MAC, you're going to be stuck with some "patsy's" man, and if you aren't playing a patsy, then you are the patsy.

How to increase MAC attendance? Look at the successful 2012 season the conference had and when your home schedule says
Ball State- think of the 2 BCS programs they beat, Indiana for the 3rd straight time and USF
WMU- think of UConn who beat Lville on the road in 2012
BGSU- think of the team that was down to Florida by 7 in the 4th quarter
Ohio- beat PSU by 10 on the road
Toledo- took bowl winning AZ to OT on the road
CMU-beat Iowa

2) Schedule as many games with Navy & Army as possible. Whether they're having a good season or bad, these 2 service academies are both Indy's and need to schedule 12 opponents per year and they are draws.

(01-12-2013 03:28 PM)onlinepole Wrote:  How to increase MAC attendance? Look at the successful 2012 season the conference had and when your home schedule says
Ball State- think of the 2 BCS programs they beat, Indiana for the 3rd straight time and USF
WMU- think of UConn who beat Lville on the road in 2012
BGSU- think of the team that was down to Florida by 7 in the 4th quarter
Ohio- beat PSU by 10 on the road
Toledo- took bowl winning AZ to OT on the road
CMU-beat Iowa

2) Schedule as many games with Navy & Army as possible. Whether they're having a good season or bad, these 2 service academies are both Indy's and need to schedule 12 opponents per year and they are draws.

I don't think we drew any more for Army and Navy did we? If so, it couldn't have been by much. We'd probably get better attendance from an in-state FCS school just due to proximity.

(01-12-2013 10:25 PM)NIU007 Wrote:  

(01-12-2013 03:28 PM)onlinepole Wrote:  How to increase MAC attendance? Look at the successful 2012 season the conference had and when your home schedule says
Ball State- think of the 2 BCS programs they beat, Indiana for the 3rd straight time and USF
WMU- think of UConn who beat Lville on the road in 2012
BGSU- think of the team that was down to Florida by 7 in the 4th quarter
Ohio- beat PSU by 10 on the road
Toledo- took bowl winning AZ to OT on the road
CMU-beat Iowa

2) Schedule as many games with Navy & Army as possible. Whether they're having a good season or bad, these 2 service academies are both Indy's and need to schedule 12 opponents per year and they are draws.

I don't think we drew any more for Army and Navy did we? If so, it couldn't have been by much. We'd probably get better attendance from an in-state FCS school just due to proximity.

I don't know for a fact that attendance was higher but I want to say it was. How about an instate FCS team and Army or Navy at home. Except for an AQ team, service academies I believe will give you the highest home attendance. Navy, Army & AFA are all in the top 10 among non AQ
s for attendance.

(01-12-2013 11:03 PM)onlinepole Wrote:  

(01-12-2013 10:25 PM)NIU007 Wrote:  

(01-12-2013 03:28 PM)onlinepole Wrote:  How to increase MAC attendance? Look at the successful 2012 season the conference had and when your home schedule says
Ball State- think of the 2 BCS programs they beat, Indiana for the 3rd straight time and USF
WMU- think of UConn who beat Lville on the road in 2012
BGSU- think of the team that was down to Florida by 7 in the 4th quarter
Ohio- beat PSU by 10 on the road
Toledo- took bowl winning AZ to OT on the road
CMU-beat Iowa

2) Schedule as many games with Navy & Army as possible. Whether they're having a good season or bad, these 2 service academies are both Indy's and need to schedule 12 opponents per year and they are draws.

I don't think we drew any more for Army and Navy did we? If so, it couldn't have been by much. We'd probably get better attendance from an in-state FCS school just due to proximity.

I don't know for a fact that attendance was higher but I want to say it was. How about an instate FCS team and Army or Navy at home. Except for an AQ team, service academies I believe will give you the highest home attendance. Navy, Army & AFA are all in the top 10 among non AQ
s for attendance.

Home attendance? That wouldn't help much.

(01-12-2013 03:28 PM)onlinepole Wrote:  How to increase MAC attendance? Look at the successful 2012 season the conference had and when your home schedule says
Ball State- think of the 2 BCS programs they beat, Indiana for the 3rd straight time and USF
WMU- think of UConn who beat Lville on the road in 2012
BGSU- think of the team that was down to Florida by 7 in the 4th quarter
Ohio- beat PSU by 10 on the road
Toledo- took bowl winning AZ to OT on the road
CMU-beat Iowa

2) Schedule as many games with Navy & Army as possible. Whether they're having a good season or bad, these 2 service academies are both Indy's and need to schedule 12 opponents per year and they are draws.

UB has a 3:3 coming with Army to finish out the decade, last time we had them I think we drew 24K. It helps even more that Army is just 6 hours down the road from us so fan travel is easy.