bringing this over from the Elon game board, since its more relevant to the AD
(02-02-2018 01:17 PM)WM Beancounter Wrote: (02-02-2018 12:05 PM)Tribe2011 Wrote: Also WM is now a much more rigorously challenging school academically. More demands on students' time.
LOL...
Its impossible to compare the differences in rigor over the decades. There is a perceived increase in difficulty and improved national standing of the college by younger alums and current students, however there is no data to back this assumption. This is likely fueled by the explosion in college ranking systems over the last few decades and misinformation from uninitiated parents to their children.
Most likely, it was hard then and remains challenging.
But lets get back to the point, student/fan experience:
In the early 2000s, student attendance was pretty bad for most basketball games. Crowds in general seemed paltry whenever I went to an event (except for soccer and homecoming football). Atmosphere was lacking without enough electricity to help initiate the fence-sitters in the audience. I knew less than a handful of students who seemed excited to go.
There is absolutely much more to distract students today. The social media time-vortex barely existed. TV was limited compared to what I imagine is nearly universal dormroom netflix bingeing.
The drinking age change likely contributed to a significant drop in student interest, without real on-campus tailgating. This change occurred at a time of diminished success on the court. Kappa Sig may have been a strong force on building student support at games, but their charter was revoked in the late 90s.
Posters frequently state that the product on the court/field is enough to bring people in, but I disagree entirely unless we are getting into the tourney often. Everyone likes a winner, yes, but the significance of a win against Elon is lost on the average person. Everyone understands big games against big-names or NCAA tourney play. For the rest of the season, you need to package this into a modern professional event. In the age of HD televised everything, its not just seeing the game live. You have to help build the suspense with lighting, music, announcers who werent trained in calling Wimbledon.
Without a TRUE winning tradition, the AD needs to work hard to build the atmosphere and incentive to make these must-see events for everyone.