If we beat Charlotte this week (as we should) How big is the FIU game, possible (probable) win and you're in game for the CUSA Championship. Should be nice an loud weather providing.
FIU Marshall
- Thread starter WhoDeyHerd90
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Historically no matter what's on the line we do not draw crowds late in the season. As weather dips so does the attendance average. Shoot the game vs LaTech in 2014 for the Championship was a pathetic crowd considering it was the first conference championship game we played in 10 years and we were hosting. Colder weather and FIU being a team not a single person cares about will leave us lucky to draw 20-22k people.
He said it should and loud weather providing. I simply pointed it that it won't be.
Hell, give tickets away. Just get butts in the seats for FIU. Sadly I can’t be there. ACDF on the 25th. Ugh!
If we only officially drew 19k (we all know there were actually less than 15k there) in a HUGE game like La Tech, there is no way we approach 20k vs FIU
I think we will see 20-22k. LaTech was on a Friday night and High School games going on around the state. No to mention it was a 7pm kick in November.
I agree. Unless the bottom falls out with the weather and we have 5 inches of snow and 20 degree temp I think people will show up for a conference championship game.
the championship game still puzzles me. It also shows me we have a lot of fans that are all talk and don’t put their money where their mouth is. Yes the weather was miserable but like you said it was the first championship in forever. We should have had near 30,000 there but that is how some of our fans are. I was there and had a blast. I am thankful I was there to experience another championship.
That will make people mad.
We should do something to get as many as possible there. I get tired from driving from Lexington but I love being in the stadium. It is nice to be “home”.
LA Tech in 2014 was also frigid cold rain all day. It was one of the coldest games I had been to.
I agree. I froze in that frigid rain that day but I was there from start to finish and downed whatever liquor bottles in my pockets I had left just before I stumbled onto the field storming it with everyone else.
For people who seem to only demand championships as a measure of success, they don't seem too keen on taking part in said success when it happens.
23,711 via wikipedia as the crowd size at MU for that one. While I do think rain was a big factor, it shouldn't have kept as many away as it did.
Funny thing is, despite that miserable crowd and weather, Rice had no rain the year prior, and drew less people just over 20,000.
WKU has a tiny stadium but didn't fill it, either time...maybe over 16,000 for a 22,000 person stadium. I guess thats not bad. Again, minus cold weather, they had no rain both times I believe.
FAU I think had just under 50% filled...in Florida.
MTSU had 15,000+ to watch them blunder in better weather as well.
I think one of the reasons is the die hards are getting smaller either through moving away or throug death. The new generation in Cabell and Wayne Counties are just as likely to be fans of WVU or other schools like UK or Ohio State or and this is one that makes me really sad they aren’t fans of football at all.
I remember the FCS championship game in 1993 the weather was AWFUL cold rain the whole game but it was a sell out. I agree that the 2014 game was played in bad weather but I was there and had a blast, but unfortunately and I don’t think it has anything to do with Doc or Snyder or Pruett or Cam Henderson people just aren’t going to games as much live anymore especially if the weather isn’t perfect.
I remember the FCS championship game in 1993 the weather was AWFUL cold rain the whole game but it was a sell out. I agree that the 2014 game was played in bad weather but I was there and had a blast, but unfortunately and I don’t think it has anything to do with Doc or Snyder or Pruett or Cam Henderson people just aren’t going to games as much live anymore especially if the weather isn’t perfect.
The die hards are getting older, moving and dying off. The school hasn’t made a concerted effort to build the fam base and the students aren’t engaged as they were many years ago - too many other activities and things they value more.
Add in the shitty economy of the area and you have the recipe for declining attendance.
Only good weather and more established programs will bring the fans out.
I was at the title game in 2014. Overall the most miserable weather I experienced at a Marshall game in 4 decades. The Weber St playoff game may have been colder at Fairfield and the UCF game at the Joan several years ago had more rain. But the combination of cold, wind and drizzle made the 2014 game freaking miserable.
Add in the shitty economy of the area and you have the recipe for declining attendance.
Only good weather and more established programs will bring the fans out.
I was at the title game in 2014. Overall the most miserable weather I experienced at a Marshall game in 4 decades. The Weber St playoff game may have been colder at Fairfield and the UCF game at the Joan several years ago had more rain. But the combination of cold, wind and drizzle made the 2014 game freaking miserable.
WET BLANKET ALERT: FIU game is the Saturday of Thanksgiving break, when all of the students are gone. Exceeding 20,000 in attendance will be a challenge.
Usually the last games of the season, even conference championships, are the poorest attended. Our gameday fanbase is about 40% over the age of 50, and arthritis hurts something awful in the cold.
Not trying to be dour, just saying don't see all those empty seats and think its a bad thing, or some evidence of new decline. It's just the way things are, and it's totally cool once you realize that.
Usually the last games of the season, even conference championships, are the poorest attended. Our gameday fanbase is about 40% over the age of 50, and arthritis hurts something awful in the cold.
Not trying to be dour, just saying don't see all those empty seats and think its a bad thing, or some evidence of new decline. It's just the way things are, and it's totally cool once you realize that.
I do not think it is WVU or UK or OSU at all. The proportion of fans between the four has not changed in decades in this region. Actually the number of MU students who attend Marshall but follow WVU, always mostly coalfielders and Charlestonians, seems to have declined in recent years. Never understood that combo anyway. If you like WVU, go to WVU, it not like its hard to get into.
The issue, IMHO, is a thing called TV. If you count the internet there were like 4 Division I-A games not televised this year. Nearly a third of I-AA games are. In basketball, there are dozens of games every night on TV. Every MU basketball game is on some kind of TV, and the basketball team is awful.
Back in the day, in the late 90s or even the early 00s TV wasn’t HD, and maybe there were a third of games on TV. Maybe. I wonder if anybody has an old TV listing or something from, say, our second championship in 96, let alone 92. I bet there were not 12 games on TV channels locally available on any Saturday.
Buddy of mine, Spamite, graduated up there in the late 70s. Told me they were on TV once and he and his buddies actually went down and took pictures of themselves with the ABC trucks, because this was “big time”. Back then there was one TV game per day.
But today, the decision to pay $$ to sit and devote yourself to one game for at least half of the day (if you live really close) or the whole day or more if you live away, contrasted to sitting at home or in a bar and watching any game you want in HD you already paid for skews towards staying home more each year.
It is not just us. It is happening all over the sport, save for the really big programs. Notre Dame broke its 30 year sell out streak last week.
I agree with you that attendance has been impacted with the advent of all of the choices available today. I almost stayed home on Friday because I was still sore from a medical procedure but decided to drive on in (2 hours) to be at the game. I would add that I really think the core of fans at Marshall has slowly shrunk some as many of the faithful have died or moved away.It appears that we are having a hard time replacing that group with the next generation. An example ,my inlaws always went to games but my wife and her sister never go to games. One of my sons will go to some the other played soccer and doesn't go to any except on a rare occasion. That is the millennial generation. I don't know of any of my nephews or nieces who go to games and several went to Marshall and still live in the area.I know several people my age group- mid 50"s-who went to Marshall but will only g to WVU games ! So ,maybe our situation is a little bit of a lot of things affecting attendance. Not saying I have it figured out but just my perspective.
It was rainy (more of a misty rain most of the day) and cold for the 2014 La Tech game, but it wasn't frigid cold.
Even back in the I-AA playoff days, the crowds were more on the low end for the games scheduled for the Thanksgiving weekend. There have been a games with decent to good attendance, even some not too long ago. Here are the attendance numbers for the games played at home on Thanksgiving weekend:
1991-16,840
1992-16,598
1993-13,554
1994-17,349
1995-13,035
1996-15,429
1999-26,053
2002-23,824
2003-19,113
2007-26,762
2008-21,571
2010-19,302
2011-22,456
2013-25,117
2014-23,576
2016-17,397
2017-18,361
Given the way attendance has been lower this season, I'm not holding out much hope that the actual attendance for the FIU game to be more than 14k.
It seems too many keep forgetting how many residents have left the area in the last 20 years. Even if someone only moved say 3 hours away, that's still a 6 hour round trip. It's easy to see that after the first few years that many people will make fewer and fewer trips back every season.
1991-16,840
1992-16,598
1993-13,554
1994-17,349
1995-13,035
1996-15,429
1999-26,053
2002-23,824
2003-19,113
2007-26,762
2008-21,571
2010-19,302
2011-22,456
2013-25,117
2014-23,576
2016-17,397
2017-18,361
Given the way attendance has been lower this season, I'm not holding out much hope that the actual attendance for the FIU game to be more than 14k.
It seems too many keep forgetting how many residents have left the area in the last 20 years. Even if someone only moved say 3 hours away, that's still a 6 hour round trip. It's easy to see that after the first few years that many people will make fewer and fewer trips back every season.
Here’s a novel thought. For the FIU game sell general admission seats at $10 dollars each and contact all the area high schools and let HS students (with their ID) in at $7 dollars. It’s the last game and you want fannies in the seats than make this one game an affordable experience. Advertise it outside the Tri-State.
Why not just let the high school kids in for FREE with an ID. Its not gonna kill the athletic dept for a one time event. If you want people in the stadium and the students will be gone ( thanksgiving or not unless Marshall has lost its Suitcase U status) it would be something to consider , want to make even better let any veteran , reserve or active duty personnel in as well.
Looking at the last game on CBS Sports..as embarrassing as that was , at least make an attempt to have some additional folks there.
Looking at the last game on CBS Sports..as embarrassing as that was , at least make an attempt to have some additional folks there.
How many students would you guess attended the La Tech game? Probably could count them on my fingers and toes.
They usually come in with a strong showing and leave at halftime.
Drinking isn't exactly legal for most of them and sonthey have to re-fuel at their house parties or tailgates and I imagine usually just end up staying.
They should do something, for sure. As we all know, we always have terrible crowds on Thanksgiving weekend. As someone else mentioned. in watching the replay of last week's game with La Tech, the crowd looked terrible on TV
The MAC Championship game against Western Michigan felt cold AF after sitting on those freaking aluminum bleachers the whole time. Well, slight correction, my buddy and I ran down 3rd avenue at halftime to reload our coats with another 12 pack cans each. That's the only good thing about going in the winter is sneaking in copious amounts of beer.
So far we are only averaging about 107 fewer fans this year compared to last year. Last year's average: 24,063. This year's average: 23,596.
So we would need to have 25,000 fans to match last years gate.
Probably not going to happen unless the weather is great and certainly won't happen if we lose at Charlotte.
So we would need to have 25,000 fans to match last years gate.
Probably not going to happen unless the weather is great and certainly won't happen if we lose at Charlotte.
I know tickets sold is how they calculate attendance. But there hasn’t been remotely close to 20K people attending the games since the Cincinnati game.
The word from an athletic department rep is that all tickets circulated, that's sold and giveaways, are used to calculate attendance.
Sounds like we have conflicting information being circulated.
Arguably, our worst season in 40 years yielded the largest Thanksgiving crowd, wow.
