PreGame 2011 New Orleans Bowl - Walking To New Orleans

[03cajunalum]

I'm extremely excited to see the Cajuns play on turf, does anyone know if SDSU plays on natural grass or turf?

[Just1More]

The important thing is... Which uniform color combination we wear. All else is trivial.

We were down to programs that have to fly in anyway. What's the difference? I actually like it being SDSU. We win and we've seriously accomplished something. We are going to bring some fans and it will be a NO Bowl record. Get fired up Cajuns!

[zephyr]

Good Job ESPN and the New Orleans Bowl, you go and get a team all the way from California to play a team that is basically playing a home game in the Supedome. The attendance and ratings for this game will suck. I am just saying what many will not say!

It was possibly going to be Toledo, Temple, Marshall or even Illinois with some other teams like Tulsa being tossed around. Do you suspect a MAC team will travel better after we've had several years of poor attendance from those fanbases? How does attendance suffer with us essentially playing a home game against a solid 8-4 team? Isn't that better than FIU and Ohio?

[CajunRed]

It was possibly going to be Toledo, Temple, Marshall or even Illinois with some other teams like Tulsa being tossed around. Do you suspect a MAC team will travel better after we've had several years of poor attendance from those fanbases? How does attendance suffer with us essentially playing a home game against a solid 8-4 team? Isn't that better than FIU and Ohio?

Yep

[zephyr]

I actually think that SDSU will bring more people than most cross country non-AQ teams. plane tickets from SD to NO are decent, and they averaged over 30k a game this year, so I could see them bring a few thousand to the dome. Even all the way across the country, and I really believe that they will bring more fans than WMU, Ohio, or Toledo would have brought. Add to that, that this is a good team, we are in for an exciting atmosphere.

I agree. Great challenge and a team and fanbase that are in a similar position as we are. From their boards, their fans are pretty happy to be playing as they remember recent years with 1-2 wins and the bottom of the MWC. They haven't been to a bowl in a while and I think their fanbase will jump at the chance to travel to one of the funnest and most unique cities around.

[Geaux]

I don't feel like the New Orleans bowl took advantage of their unique situation of having a local team in the bowl game. A regional team or a team from an AQ conference would have created a better atmosphere that both teams would enjoy. Now, it will just be 20k Cajus in a 70K seat stadium. I doubt SDSU sells 10K tickets. A non-AQ team within the region or evan a AQ team would have been better than SDSU. All of their fans have to fly in. The product may not be worth the price to them. SDSU does not have a fan base that travels like an AQ. A regional non-AQ teams fans could at least drive in for the game. I just feel like the Cajuns got the short end of the stick here. Geaux Cajuns!

[cajun_civil]

I don't feel like the New Orleans bowl took advantage of their unique situation of having a local team in the bowl game. A regional team or a team from an AQ conference would have created a better atmosphere that both teams would enjoy. Now, it will just be 20k Cajus in a 70K seat stadium. I doubt SDSU sells 10K tickets. A non-AQ teams within the region or evan a AQ team would have been better than SDSU. All of their fans have to fly in. The product may not be worth the price to them. SDSU does not have a fan base that travels like an AQ. A regional non-AQ teams fans could at least drive in for the game. I just feel like the Cajuns got the short end of the stick here. Geaux Cajuns!

Except that new orleans is a hell of a place to visit. I have read that sdsu travels well....lets hope so.

[CajunRed]

Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't think there were a ton of the teams you speak of available to be picked. Please list some.

[Geaux]

Maybe in the Mountian West Conference.

[locoguano]

Ouch. That can't help attendance. Time to start mass-mailing "Visit New Orleans" fliers to the San Diego metro area.