The features of every home basketball game
The once proud Cajun basketball program has fallen under hard times under Coach Robert Lee. Although Coach Lee told all of Lafayette he was not surprised to be ranked 5th in Sun Belt West (how many tickets do his comments sell? Who wants to support a team with that attitude?), the Cajuns still must lure fans to the Cajundome in hopes of returning the program to the glory years under Jessie Evans.
Attendance has dropped because the Cajuns are no longer winning, poorly crafted home schedules yield home losses and not home wins, and the fallout from the NCAA violations which took place under Lee. In order to increase their attendance, the Cajuns ought to have the following features in every home game.
Caveat: The Cajuns do not have a lot of money so every decision must be monitized. In other words, if there's no sponsor, don't do it -- the Cajun will lose money. Each is relatively easy to do and fan friendly. It won't be difficult to find a sponsor, although being associated with Cajuns basketball is no longer as sexy as it used to be.
1. Family of the Game -- Each game, feature a family of four or three, preferably younger, and have a main person asking the family questions. Where they are from, why did they come to the game, what's their favorite part, when are they coming again. The interview ought to broadcast over the big screen during a timeout. Then, thank the family, and give them a bag of goodies for showing up, which include tickets to the next game.
2. Professional Update -- Each game, show video highlights and stat updates from the Cajuns who made it to the pros under the guidance of Jessie Evans. Show Oriene Green highlights, along with Brian Hamilton updates. Finish by saying, "Ragin Cajuns basketball: A gateway to professional basketball." This might seem hard as the Cajuns do not recognize Greene on their website (https://forumeus.com/sh...&postcount=141).
3. Commercial about the University -- Not every person who attends a Cajuns game is associated with the university. Each game, run a commercial talking about the good parts of the university, the updated facilities, the multiethnic face of the university, the blending of cultures, the academics, the increase in financial aid, the on campus community, the potential activities and the good time you can have. But, focus on how the university is not just for students from Lafayette and Louisiana. Have interviews with out of state, international and non caucasian students. The makeup of Lafayette and Louisiana is changing and the Cajuns must adapt.
4. Academic update/Student Athlete of the Week -- Each game, have a male and female student athlete who are Student athletes of the week. Discuss their academic, athletic and off the field accomplishments. In addition, feature an academic update, which, much like the professional update, provides information on the academic accomplishments of students, professors and graduate students in Lafayette. (see: CajunBot story)
5. Why I chose to be a Ragin Cajun -- Each game, because recruits will be in attendance, the Cajuns must feature a piece featuring athletes and students, of all race, from all areas of the world, discussing why they became Ragin Cajuns. Yes, featuring Jake Delhomme and Brandon Stokley will satisfy old timers, but this is, for the most part, for recruits. Talk about Ike Taylor, who played in Super Bowl "Jerome Bettis is from Detroit," and Charles Tillman, BJ Ryan and other players. Much like a professional update, this might be difficult because UL does not want to promote Taylor (https://forumeus.com/sh...2&postcount=13).
6. Update on the next game -- Each game, run a commercial at the end of the half and the end of the game, featuring Coach Lee and all the players, each taking part in the commercial to say, Thanks for coming, We appreciate your support, our next game is (insert date), and come out to support. Thanks again.
7. Name that tune -- Each game, grab 3-4 contestants, play songs from a decade or with a theme and each must raise a sign, preferably of the sponsoring company, to get the song correct. All fans join in because they known the songs. Easily could be done during media timeout.
8. Section Volleyball/Dice -- Each game, run a large volleyball net from the top of the lower bowl to the bottom and down the stairs. In other words, along the stairs, the net seperates two sections. Hold up the net, toss in a giant nerf volleyball and say, for 30 seconds, you're going to play volleyball, the section who does not have the ball at the end of 30 seconds all win a bunch of (insert company's product). Same thing with dice, but get large, gigantic dice. It would involve three sections. Start at the top toss it down, everyone participates, and let it roll to the gym floor. The section which "rolls" the highest numbers wins the prize.
9. Timeout with Coach Lee -- Each game, before the tip, have an interview/human interest story with Coach Lee about his philosophy, his players, his practices and goals for the team. Don't mention the NCAA violations, but focus on how his players respond to him. This connects the coach with the fans, and allows recruits to see the fans reactions to the coach.
10. Facilities improvement -- Each game, feature an update on the facilities improvements at the university. Whether it's a radio building, a business building or, more important, the indoor practice facility, donors need to see where their money is going and recruits and non athletic students need to see the University cares about the future and is improving facilities.
11. Dance with Cayenne Pepper -- During a timeout, allow the mascot and 5-6 little kids (6-9) to come out and dance to a song. "Crank that Superman" probably isn't the best song, but something family oriented and fun. Most important, after the dance is over, say, over the PA system, Parents if you want your kid to dance, call (insert number) to register. The interest will be out of this world.
These are all easy, and there are more ideas to come in the future. Remember, for a feature to be successful, everyone must win -- fans, sponsors, and the Cajuns. Two straight failling seasons, NCAA violations, home losses and Coach Lee not being bothered by being predicted to finish 5th in the West makes selling Cajuns tickets a tall order. But, if the Cajuns do these things, in addition to making the experience more fan friendly, the attendance could very well improve.
These all have the potential to get fans talking, and increase awareness and maybe interest in the program. Hopefully the Cajuns take their basketball game experience more seriously than they do mentioning their pro players on their website, which they currently do not.
The Cajuns can improve by making the required changes and using these important, fan friendly game features. But, will they?
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Originally Posted by TillmansNumber1
Re: The features of every home basketball game
Re: The features of every home basketball game
