Well, Jay's opinions are based on data. And, all I hear is excuses as to why we didn't draw crowds when we played P5 schools at home. (We were bad, it rained, it was on a Friday, yadayadayada)
Many of you made the same argument for basketball. You were wrong then, too.
Now....we don't have the money to buy a P5. So, let's put that to bed.
So, who you wanna play 2/1 or 3/1 that would be willing to come to Lafayette that would draw a crowd.
Someone mentioned Mississippi State. Neither fan base traveled to NO. You think MSU is gonna bring 6000 people to Lafayette? Please. You think suddenly we're gonna have an 80% increase from Cajun fans because Moo State is coming to town? Yeah,no.
Sorry, guys.
Personally, I'm not worried about the size of the crowd.
I'm more interested in the schools historical reputation.
On equal footing with the W-L record, when I look at old schedules I don't notice where a game was played, I only notice who the opponents were.
A reason you "need" to sustain multiple P5 opponents annually is you offer potential opponents a SOS incentive.
If you only play one P5 per year your only negotiating value is to offer the opponent a home game. This strategy severely limits the amount of money they will pay.
If you have multiple P5 opponents annually (part of your reputation) the amount of money you can demand and negotiate for goes through the roof.
Louisiana HAS to make its value more than just a home game.
Develop that type of relationship and opponents will gladly do a 3-for-1, some will do a 2-for-1 and every G5 in the country will crave a 1-for-1
ps Do the above and eventually the crowds will show up.
But that’s just lagniappe
All of the National rankings of the last 2 seasons were predicated by the Iowa St win.Originally Posted by CajunRebel
All the other wins over that time frame combined pale in comparison.
What is our goal?
If our goal is simply to pay the bills, the current schedule is fine.
If our goal is to rack up wins and SBC trophies, the current schedule is fine.
If our goal is to grow the program and the attendance, the current schedule is not fine.
Midweek games are a net negative in this regard. The reasons are many, and have been discussed plenty. For now, our hands are tied with the ESPN contract.
The other issue is up to us. I submit that limiting ourselves to 1 P5 game is an obstacle to growth. Scheduling at least 2 keeps your payday, allows deals for future Home P5 games and increases the chances for more Program building wins like Iowa St.
It’s time to take the training wheels off.
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