Realistic Attendance Improvement Suggestions.

[ZoomZoom]

Truth.

Doc A cut a deal with the city/state to get a state of the art building designed to host a regional. The CD was NEVER a proper home for Cajujns basketball.

We can't control access to the arena. We can't control gameday services. It is a cavern.

We don't need a fancy place. Heck, we became legends in a freakin' barn. It's time to rebuild the barn. Put some suites in there. Stock up on 2$ Nattys, and let's (re)light this candle!

Attachment 19321

Attachment 19322

Attachment 19323

Attachment 19324

Dome was 1) that big to get concerts that BR was getting and 2) that’s what EWE wanted. He wasn’t in office but the deal to get the votes ran thru him.


Even McNeese left the Civic Center and Burton to an arena with, ball park, 40% less seats or better.


UL needs to find a legal way to get out the dome deal. And don’t make the same mistake with the performing arts center. Don’t do it.

[sunbeltsports]

I second the "Ragin Cajun" chant notion. Dude on the PA is too loud and takes too long. Let the cheerleaders yell "Ragin.....Cajun". Dude is up there screaming, and you can't hear the fans for 75% of the chant.

[moorecajun]

I second the "Ragin Cajun" chant notion. Dude on the PA is too loud and takes too long. Let the cheerleaders yell "Ragin.....Cajun". Dude is up there screaming, and you can't hear the fans for 75% of the chant.

I agree; he was good getting it started but we can take it from now on with the cheerleaders.

[KajunKrazy]

Let's go back to the original premise of the thread called Basketball attendance. That one experienced thread drift which is understandable. Therefore let's focus on what can be done to improve the situation. Let's be realistic in suggestions. The coach is not being fired and we are not leaving the Dome. Long term a new arena we control is something the great majority agree is needed. Not possible today or likely in next decade however. Those of you who have moved on to other things you enjoy more in life probably will never come back on a regular basis. Therefore suggestions should be geared to people who may come back regardless of who the coach is or where we play. Some listed previously have merit. I would include the bus pickup for students on campus amongst those. I have a few other ideas which I hope are considered.

1) Partial season tickets-Could be for only conference games or only weekend games
2) Have players/coaches visit the union on game days or on Fridays before Saturday games to promote the upcoming game. Tough in between semesters
3) Signs on campus announcing game tonight or tomorrow night for Saturday games. Game announcements to the rolling billboards in town.
4) Purchase spots on conventional radio/TV stations to promote games, not only season tickets but games on a particular week.
5) Find some way to have a regular radio sports talk show on our flagship station hosted by a knowledgeable person which will heavily feature Cajuns talk. This will probably reguire our folks to sell advertising on their own. Station obviously won't do it.
6) Insure there is some type of band present at all games. Games in between semesters often lack a band. In the past, an alumni band played in these situations.

Of course some of these are applicable for all sports. One encouraging thing I learned from Dr. Maggard's interview is that we now have a dedicated ticket sales force which will go out into the community to push tickets. Good luck to them. What other REALISTIC ideas do people have to help the issue.

Just let students be students again. And by this I mean let them be like up until the time of very early 2k.

[CajunJeaux]

Different company. Nothing like the $5 Dome Foams in the old days. Student section was wild, BBoyd was draining threes, Southall backing down & dunking on guys in the paint, all high flying excitement.

We always talk about memories of BBoyd, Dwayne Mitchell, the Easter Bunny, Chris Manuel, Byron Starks, Sydney Grider, Shawn Long, etc. All of those guys played above the rim. The games were EXCITING.

We haven’t had an above the rim presence since Shawn Long. There are no alley-oops, high flying dunks. THAT is what makes the game exciting and used to lure me in.

[ZoomZoom]

We always talk about memories of BBoyd, Dwayne Mitchell, the Easter Bunny, Chris Manuel, Byron Starks, Sydney Grider, Shawn Long, etc. All of those guys played above the rim. The games were EXCITING.

We haven’t had an above the rim presence since Shawn Long. There are no alley-oops, high flying dunks. THAT is what makes the game exciting and used to lure me in.

This is true, in the Blackham days I came to the game for 100 points (free food) and expecting at least three dunks, one of highlight reel quality. Expected to have one guy literally and figuratively that was heads and shoulders above the rest…a sky walker. 100 was tough, but had dunkers, including the UL benchmark dunker, AA.

They tried last night with Joe but the timing was off and the pass was too hot. It may be the game today, don’t hear much of guys with that kind of reputation.

But we need a guy that can, like the old saying, “grab a dollar bill off the top of the backboard and leave 4 quarters behind”.

[Scott Malkinson]

https://twitter.com/bigdonkey47/stat...1W9q-CkQw&s=19


Why not a shoot around with students.

[RaginReview]

Let's go back to the original premise of the thread called Basketball attendance. That one experienced thread drift which is understandable. Therefore let's focus on what can be done to improve the situation. Let's be realistic in suggestions. The coach is not being fired and we are not leaving the Dome. Long term a new arena we control is something the great majority agree is needed. Not possible today or likely in next decade however. Those of you who have moved on to other things you enjoy more in life probably will never come back on a regular basis. Therefore suggestions should be geared to people who may come back regardless of who the coach is or where we play. Some listed previously have merit. I would include the bus pickup for students on campus amongst those. I have a few other ideas which I hope are considered.

Unfortunately in this case, who the coach is plays a role in attendance. There's a lot of people in the fanbase who have publicly admitted on social media and on here that they will only step foot in the Cajundome with new leadership in basketball. The only way that attitude will change is if we win and win BIG (beating ranked/well-known teams, making the NCAA tournament more than just once every 9 years, making a run in the NCAA tournament, etc.).

[Scott Malkinson]

Unfortunately in this case, who the coach is plays a role in attendance. There's a lot of people in the fanbase who have publicly admitted on social media and on here that they will only step foot in the Cajundome with new leadership in basketball. The only way that attitude will change is if we win and win BIG (beating ranked/well-known teams, making the NCAA tournament more than just once every 9 years, making a run in the NCAA tournament, etc.).

Bob could win a Natty and I would still never set foot in the CD. His last tweet is 100% proof why... Even in defeat he is a pompous ass.

[RaginScotsman]

Can we stop the "Pack the Dome" stuff. Hashtags, whatever they are doing. It's a bit embarrassing now.

There's a month left of the regular season, and nothing is going to change now. We'll likely finish in the bottom 4 in attendance. Very sad. Same with football. The 2 money makers.

Baseball and Softball should be in the top 25 or 30 nationally which will continue the sense of satisfaction with the admin that we still have a fan base. And we do. But it needs to transcend all major sports plus some. Hell, volleyball feels like it is averaging just about the same number of actual butts in seats as Men's basketball.

Sorry for the negativity.

I agree that the Maggard's optimism with the staff additions (tickets and fundraising) that he talked about on Cajun Connections is promising. I really hope it works out. Having bodies is one thing. Them being effective is another. I'm rooting for them, though.

[zeppelincajun]

https://twitter.com/bigdonkey47/stat...1W9q-CkQw&s=19


Why not a shoot around with students.

Well some of the students might have a good time, and we can’t be having that kind of liability on our hands. If it sounds fun, just say no.

[CajunEXPRESS]

Let's go back to the original premise of the thread called Basketball attendance. That one experienced thread drift which is understandable. Therefore let's focus on what can be done to improve the situation. Let's be realistic in suggestions. The coach is not being fired and we are not leaving the Dome. Long term a new arena we control is something the great majority agree is needed. Not possible today or likely in next decade however. Those of you who have moved on to other things you enjoy more in life probably will never come back on a regular basis. Therefore suggestions should be geared to people who may come back regardless of who the coach is or where we play. Some listed previously have merit. I would include the bus pickup for students on campus amongst those. I have a few other ideas which I hope are considered.

1) Partial season tickets-Could be for only conference games or only weekend games
2) Have players/coaches visit the union on game days or on Fridays before Saturday games to promote the upcoming game. Tough in between semesters
3) Signs on campus announcing game tonight or tomorrow night for Saturday games. Game announcements to the rolling billboards in town.
4) Purchase spots on conventional radio/TV stations to promote games, not only season tickets but games on a particular week.
5) Find some way to have a regular radio sports talk show on our flagship station hosted by a knowledgeable person which will heavily feature Cajuns talk. This will probably reguire our folks to sell advertising on their own. Station obviously won't do it.
6) Insure there is some type of band present at all games. Games in between semesters often lack a band. In the past, an alumni band played in these situations.

Of course some of these are applicable for all sports. One encouraging thing I learned from Dr. Maggard's interview is that we now have a dedicated ticket sales force which will go out into the community to push tickets. Good luck to them. What other REALISTIC ideas do people have to help the issue.

I can only speak to my college days. I started following the basketball team when Lamar was a sophomore. My first game was in semester break. The crowd was not great, but Lamar lit up the scoreboard. The crowds grew with each win as we were hitting the century mark more often than not. The student crowds became so intense you had to get there 90 minutes prior to tip-off to get a seat. I imagine that there were only about 300 seats for the students. As Shipley gathered more talent the whole arena became a standing room only.

We just don’t have that star power anymore. There was never a game I didn’t expect to win, or score a hundred.

[Scott Malkinson]

Well some of the students might have a good time, and we can’t be having that kind of liability on our hands. If it sounds fun, just say no.

10k drunks around an active construction site this weekend and UL is fine by it. Parking without a pass or letting students participate with the team is where they draw the line...lmao

[Cajunsmike]

Can we stop the "Pack the Dome" stuff. Hashtags, whatever they are doing. It's a bit embarrassing now.

There's a month left of the regular season, and nothing is going to change now. We'll likely finish in the bottom 4 in attendance. Very sad. Same with football. The 2 money makers.

Baseball and Softball should be in the top 25 or 30 nationally which will continue the sense of satisfaction with the admin that we still have a fan base. And we do. But it needs to transcend all major sports plus some. Hell, volleyball feels like it is averaging just about the same number of actual butts in seats as Men's basketball.

Sorry for the negativity.

I agree that the Maggard's optimism with the staff additions (tickets and fundraising) that he talked about on Cajun Connections is promising. I really hope it works out. Having bodies is one thing. Them being effective is another. I'm rooting for them, though.

Good suggestions in this thread overall despite a few being "unrealistic" at this time. Hopefully someone in the administration takes note of the ideas presented. As far as last night goes, the team simply did not make enough open shots and the Panthers did. People make basketball too complicated. They say the NBA is a make or miss league. In many ways college basketball is very similar. Craig and I will go into more detail on the other factors that caused the result in next week's podcast. Those factors pale in comparison to shot making however.

[ZoomZoom]

Pack the dome is complete bs…part of the agenda for some. We could have the second coming of John Wooden and the dome still would not sell out.

Point is spot on about a star. There hasn’t been a sure fire solid star since Toney. 40+ years.