Enhancing Student Engagement and Fan Support for University Athletics.

[ULvictory]

Petty = unimportant

They don't want an embarrassing situation where mega-donors have to sit there and listen to people complain about concession or parking prices

I have always said that the $10,000 donors build the seats, but the $100 to $500 donors fill the seats.

We can be like Rice and have all the money in the world, but then we would have a stadium with 500 people in it.

[jaxmc1023]

We can be like Rice and have all the money in the world, but then we would have a stadium with 500 people in it.

If you're in a loge/luxury box with 10 people in it, do you concern yourself with how many people are sitting in the cheap seats ?

[cajun4life]

All great ideas, but we know it will fall on deaf ears. THEY DO NOT CARE.

[Turbine]

Good stuff Ragin9221

[Ragin9221]

Thankyou! I personally think if they implement these ideas they would increase attendance 50%. Thats what i honestly believe

Could of wrote 10 more pages if i really sat down and thought about what we can do different to increase fan support and fan engagement.

I was actually trying to shorten it up. My assessment is 10 pages long.

[CajunVic]

. . . right now the only enhancement that would work on here is “WIN BABY WIN”

[Esqueleto]

Thankyou! I personally think if they implement these ideas they would increase attendance 50%. Thats what i honestly believe

Could of wrote 10 more pages if i really sat down and thought about what we can do different to increase fan support and fan engagement.

I was actually trying to shorten it up.

These people are not gonna do the work required to implement your plans, which are all spot on (btw). Just take a look at the last 3-4 years. Their idea of work is sending out tweets. It's sad

[Ragin9221]

. . . right now the only enhancement that would work on here is “WIN BABY WIN”

Winning only takes you so far. It takes years and years even decades to increase support like that.

Problem is like i pointed out we have not made a real effort outside the city of Lafayette to make them feel welcome enough, or make them feel apart enough to truly have them keep coming back.

Just like in football, and basketball we are starting to alienate fans that are Cajun fans that do go to games and we are losing the little support we have left. They have not done anything to be able to bring in new supporters, or keep the ones they already have.

[Ragin9221]

These people are not gonna do the work required to implement your plans, which are all spot on (btw). Just take a look at the last 3-4 years. Their idea of work is sending out tweets. It's sad

I know and we could do so much better if we gave it the old college try.

[CajunVic]

Winning only takes you so far. It takes years and years even decades to increase support like that.

Problem is like i pointed out we have not made a real effort outside the city of Lafayette to make them feel welcome enough, or make them feel apart enough to truly have them keep coming back.

Just like in football, and basketball we are starting to alienate fans that are Cajun fans that do go to games and we are losing the little support we have left. They have not done anything to be able to bring in new supporters, or keep the ones they already have.

I truly admire your efforts and your ideas.

But go visit the last in game threads for softball and baseball. These are fans that proclaim to be diehards in the sports that have been successful.

There were hundreds of want to be fans following those threads. Do you think what you saw in there made any of those that are not signed up members of RP want to donate, go buy tickets, etc.?

Much of todays attendance issues also surround the fact that otherwise diehard fans who would have never even thought about missing a sporting event live and in person experienced the patio/game room/home viewing option because of Covid and they liked it so much, they never went back. Even the strongest of programs are being hit by this same concept.

So, your untapped audience are those that surface after Covid. I know you have to start somewhere, but that’s a very small audience.

Finally, I agree that you can’t just win to get them in. See Napier years, it was arguably better, but even in the two great season, it’s not like he knocked it out the park with butts in the stands.

Now, let’s look at where football, baseball and softball stsnd:

Football

1. Louisiana has about 5,000 fans that will actually attend no matter what

2. Louisiana has about an additional 3,000 fans that will buy tickets no matter what but may or may not attend

3. Louisiana has about another 7,000 fans that attend pretty regularly, but any chink in the armor, they may or may not go. This includes losing, weather, kid’s conflicting event, hunting season, fishing opportunity, wedding, LSU home game, LSU game at same time . . .

4. the rest are a pot luck of casual fans that may or may not attend a couple games a year, but religiously watch most of the games on TV

Baseball

1. Louisiana has about 2,000 fans that will attend 75% of the games no matter what

2. Louisiana has about another 1500 fans that will buy tickets no matter what but may or may not attend.

3. Louisiana has about another 1,000 fans that attend pretty regularly, but any chink in the armor, they may or may not go. This includes losing, weather, kid’s conflicting event, hunting season, fishing opportunity, LSU game at same time . . .

4. the rest are a pot luck of casual fans that may or may not attend 10 or so games a year, but religiously watch most of the games on TV

Softball, about same ratio’s as baseball but I am not familiar with the specific numbers.

That’s our fan base. All of the things you propose combined with winning will make a difference. How much of a difference, all things considered (including particularly the home 65” flat screen TV side by side with the 50” tv, IPad and cell phone, access to almost every game real time, patio and entertainment rooms with cold beer, hard liquor, restrooms, freat food of choice, no lines, no parking issues, no traffic, no designated driver) can we really increase butts in the seats.

And then there is “the perception that they really don’t care and the financial realities that every single program like Louisiana face.

To be honest, I am surprised with the buy in surrounding the new football stadium and hope and pray that it will be a resounding success, then I see what is posted here and reality sets in.

Finally, I truly hope that the powers that be find the courage really shortly to jump on the bandwagon of somebody with the vision and courage which you have displayed here and allows “the ole college try” an opportunity to succeed.

Otherwise, we will continue us to experience a few bumps of success surrounding things like a new stadium, or a very successful season, etc. then things will again settle back down to the actual mean described above . . .

. . . this is my POV . . .

[Turbine]

Bump

[Duckster]

I truly admire your efforts and your ideas.

But go visit the last in game threads for softball and baseball. These are fans that proclaim to be diehards in the sports that have been successful.

There were hundreds of want to be fans following those threads. Do you think what you saw in there made any of those that are not signed up members of RP want to donate, go buy tickets, etc.?

Much of todays attendance issues also surround the fact that otherwise diehard fans who would have never even thought about missing a sporting event live and in person experienced the patio/game room/home viewing option because of Covid and they liked it so much, they never went back. Even the strongest of programs are being hit by this same concept.

So, your untapped audience are those that surface after Covid. I know you have to start somewhere, but that’s a very small audience.

Finally, I agree that you can’t just win to get them in. See Napier years, it was arguably better, but even in the two great season, it’s not like he knocked it out the park with butts in the stands.

Now, let’s look at where football, baseball and softball stsnd:

Football

1. Louisiana has about 5,000 fans that will actually attend no matter what

2. Louisiana has about an additional 3,000 fans that will buy tickets no matter what but may or may not attend

3. Louisiana has about another 7,000 fans that attend pretty regularly, but any chink in the armor, they may or may not go. This includes losing, weather, kid’s conflicting event, hunting season, fishing opportunity, wedding, LSU home game, LSU game at same time . . .

4. the rest are a pot luck of casual fans that may or may not attend a couple games a year, but religiously watch most of the games on TV

Baseball

1. Louisiana has about 2,000 fans that will attend 75% of the games no matter what

2. Louisiana has about another 1500 fans that will buy tickets no matter what but may or may not attend.

3. Louisiana has about another 1,000 fans that attend pretty regularly, but any chink in the armor, they may or may not go. This includes losing, weather, kid’s conflicting event, hunting season, fishing opportunity, LSU game at same time . . .

4. the rest are a pot luck of casual fans that may or may not attend 10 or so games a year, but religiously watch most of the games on TV

Softball, about same ratio’s as baseball but I am not familiar with the specific numbers.

That’s our fan base. All of the things you propose combined with winning will make a difference. How much of a difference, all things considered (including particularly the home 65” flat screen TV side by side with the 50” tv, IPad and cell phone, access to almost every game real time, patio and entertainment rooms with cold beer, hard liquor, restrooms, freat food of choice, no lines, no parking issues, no traffic, no designated driver) can we really increase butts in the seats.

And then there is “the perception that they really don’t care and the financial realities that every single program like Louisiana face.

To be honest, I am surprised with the buy in surrounding the new football stadium and hope and pray that it will be a resounding success, then I see what is posted here and reality sets in.

Finally, I truly hope that the powers that be find the courage really shortly to jump on the bandwagon of somebody with the vision and courage which you have displayed here and allows “the ole college try” an opportunity to succeed.

Otherwise, we will continue us to experience a few bumps of success surrounding things like a new stadium, or a very successful season, etc. then things will again settle back down to the actual mean described above . . .

. . . this is my POV . . .

Thoughtful analysis. . . will say we were unlucky with COVID pandemic spreads flaring up during the 20-21 seasons, our most successful football seasons. The December 2021 home conference championship game against App St demonstrates our potential. Reversing the downtrend of football & basketball attendance will take some bold moves by university leaders with things they can control.