The student section should never be split up unless we have such an overflow it leaves ISU with no other options. I do not believe we have reached that point yet.
Average Attendance
- Thread starter jwa123
- Start date
The student section should never be split up unless we have such an overflow it leaves ISU with no other options. I do not believe we have reached that point yet.
Yes there will be 2 student sections. Not sure I have seen much from Red Alert trying to draw students to this game. In 2019, I know the student section had a big draw to the Belmont and Bradley that filled both sections pretty well.
Redbird222
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 18, 2017
- Messages
- 5,349
The student section will be fuller tonight vs last year's opener
Bird Friend
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2017
- Messages
- 12,547
You’re talking about football, right?
The attendance for tonight was reported at 2,642. Being at the game thought it was at least 3,500 (3,800-4,200 would have been my estimate). Is this really how many people that were there tonight? I know a good amount of students filled in after the game started so maybe they were not counted? This would be lower attendance than the typical exhibition and I am not buying it. Any thoughts?
Also, we need leadership from Red Alert or someone to get the students on their feet and loud. That type of stuff can provide a spark when the team is struggling like they were tonight. It also creates a better atmosphere for the players and any potential recruits on a visit. Don't know what we can do to improve that, but I hope something changes
Redbird222
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 18, 2017
- Messages
- 5,349
The student sections were decent ... the lower bowl on both sides were scarce. We were trying to guess the attendance when we were leaving. We thought we might hit 3k tops so the number seems reasonable to me.
I would say that 2642 felt right. Looking around the stadium from where I was sitting there were a lot of empty seats. I might have guessed around 3k, but wouldn't have gone any higher than that honestly.
That's been the problem for a few years now. Whatever students come to games, they sit and dick around on their phones. Granted, the last couple years haven't exactly been exciting, but we haven't had a fully engaged, loud student section since 2018.
As for the attendance overall, not particularly surprising. That's what apathy does, unfortunately. Plus some people probably don't want to deal with the mask mandate. String some wins together, more people will show up. But the atmosphere HAS to start with the students. When they're excited, the rest of the crowd is too. That's how games become fun to attend for everyone. The last couple years there's been more enthusiasm from the students reading in Milner.
I'd say 2016-17 but that could be bias. I wasn't at the game, but on TV, I was pleasantly surprised with the student turnout. Definitely didn't expect that, but it could've been framing by the cameras. As the game came down to the wire, it seemed like they were a lot more engaged, but I wasn't there.
I do miss the days of an energetic student section. Sure, winning will help bring some more kids in but you need those people who are college hoops fans and as weird as this sounds, understand how to cheer at a basketball game. Loud on defense. Talk to the opposing teams on the FT line and throughout the game. If a player fouls out, air balls, gets his ankles broken, he should be reminded of it frequently. Counting down the shot clock (early, late, right on time-gotta change it up) works about 70% of the time and has a direct impact on the game.
I was never vulgar with the opponent but I can't tell you the number of times I got them to interact with me in some ways. Gotta be creative. Look up their bio, check out some articles from their high school days. I can't remember who ISU was playing but we were talking to some walk-on the whole game. Birds were up big with a couple minutes left, we started chanting his name and he got in. I like to think the opposing coach wouldn't have done that without the students interaction.
Today's students don't know the level of impact they can have on a game.
Precisely all this. It takes just a tiny bit of effort on their part, but it's not difficult.
Trey_Guidry4three
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jan 28, 2018
- Messages
- 1,929
3500 and that's including the Bradley game that is an outlier every year.
Redbird60451
Active member
- Joined
- Mar 14, 2018
- Messages
- 449
I think your wrong, it takes a ton of effort. The kids you see on TV, they are into college basketball because their parents were into it, the fans there are into it. They choose to go to that school because they watched them on TV (or parents watched on TV) and for years have seen these nuts paint them selves, or dress up head to toe in colors or overalls ect.... ISU is not 'basketball' school. It is a SCHOOL that has a basketball program.
Truthfully I think the energy has to come from the non-students. They are paying to be there, they are the 'Fans'. The students aren't 'Fans', there's nothing behind them yet, there's no tradition to them going. It's something to do because they are avoiding homework. ISU is not a destination school, especially for revenue generating sports. If the non-students were into it, then the students would get into it. 30 something or 40 somethings with butts in seats that are paid for, ragging on 20 somethings for missing free throws or throwing up air balls, the students pick up on it and then they rag on even more. They need to be taught, just like it's another class.
MadBird
Well-known member
Couple thoughts I'll tag onto Phantom's comments, including some comments on Wisconsin games.
Too many people, of all ages, sit and dick around on their phones. At games. In their cars. In the restaurant. Blah blah blah. Young people especially, for sure. Gonna take some revolution to turn that around, altho I'm all for it. Rarely carry my phone to a game. At Wisconsin games (and I hate this and refuse to look at the big screen) the phone-obsessed take pictures and send them somewhere and then during time-outs the pictures are shown on the big screen (maybe ISU does this). First Badger game. Joe's birthday at the Badger game tonight. Whatever the situation. So its a way to get folks engaged, if seeing your mug on the big screen is your thing.
And of course the usual line-up of contests and games, usually featuring students - one shooting contest has a student representing each of 4 student sections, and the winner of the contest wins Culver's or pizza or something for everyone in that section. Two folks facing off in tic-tac-toe at center court. Fan of the game contest - camera goes around showing people carrying on, applause for your favorite. Etc. Sign of the game contest - students draw up signs before the game in the lobby and then they go around and show them on the big screen and someone picks the winner.
At the Wisconsin game last night, announced attendance was 15K+, in a 17K+ arena. I would think there couldn't have been more than 4-5K there. We noticed parking was remarkably unused on the walk over from our bar. No crowds, refreshment stands closed, etc. Masks required indoors. I suspect there'll be sparse crowds at a lot of venues with the virus, the masks, the crappy opponents (Wisconsin played St. Francis of Brooklyn last night).
BUT, the student section was pretty full, well the main floor sections, empty in the 2 balconies, and they were in full throat with "DEE-FENSE, DEE-FENSE", and "Air Ball" and so forth. I was surprised.
But I agree with the basic philosophy -- winning is a great place to start. And good rivalries.
Valid points there, though I personally viewed it as the opposite. Yes, I grew up following ISU and going to games so I definitely have that bias, BUT...I also paid to go there. I went in big debt to get my degree (and even more from the Pub, Daddios, and Micheleos,), so I took that as a reason to absolutely support "my" teams - it's okay to take some ownership in it. It's my dime, why not participate to the maximum? Why not help have an effect on games? Why not use gameday as another excuse, as if college kids need one, to tip a few - or a lot - back and go have fun with your friends? That's what college is, in part, about.
Sure it takes effort. But I felt, and still feel, that such effort is justified when you're paying to be there. But no matter what, it almost ALWAYS comes down to one thing: Winning. When you win, there's buzz. When there's buzz, people get curious. When people get curious, they show up. When they show up, they witness the excitement first hand. And then tell their friends. And so on. It's a self-sustaining machine at that point.
Redbird60451
Active member
- Joined
- Mar 14, 2018
- Messages
- 449
I also don't disagree with your point. You were kind of raised in the culture. It took me my freshman year to figure it out, because my HS sucked and I had pro basketball all the time on TV. I got lucky that I was there the 4 years Stallings was there, and they won a lot. Had they lost a bunch, I'd probably not have give'd a damn and spent more time at the Pub.
And for most of the student population, sports were probably not something they gave a crap about in High School. So to them, they don't even know it's going on, they are not going to participate, sitting in their room watching Tik Tok, that's them participating in college to the fullest. Most people on this board are sports centric, we all think it's gameday planning my evening around the game. Planning my Sunday around the Bears Game. Planning my TV watching around the Sox/Bulls/Hawks/Redbirds game. Gonna watch the pre/post game shows. Most people aren't like us, and I'm thinking more and more this next generation, don't follow sports, or more than the 2 min snip it they need to feel like they've seen the highlights. Yes you have your groups of kids, but percentage wise it goes down every day, the sports are a way of life group, the group we kind of belong to, otherwise why would we be bitchin in the middle of the day about it, right?
So would better marketing. The MSA has 170k people. ISU athletics should give out tickets all the time to fill Redbird Arena.
Last night was a little bit better, but the bar was set pretty low against UNC-W. The North end student section has more of the students that care and some of them do stand for the whole time. At this point, if students want to have fun and be involved in the game they should go to the North side. The South side can remain the funeral zone for the time being. There won't be much of a student section against Bucknell or Purdue Northwest, but hopefully there is more improvement for the first conference game against Missouri State on December 1st.
Attendance was 2,904. Bringing the season average up to 2,773.