College Football Attendance

[wood 11227]

11 hours ago, utee94 said:

This isn't entirely true.  A lot of people don't know, or don't trust, the secondary market.  Also, in order to make plans, some people want tickets-in-hand well before the game.  To do that, they're usually paying face value or close, which ends up costing too much for them to make that decision.

For sure, early season 100-degree games against crappy opponents are often only partially full, but that doesn't mean that Texas' ticket prices aren't also a problem.

I guarantee lots of unused tickets are going unsold because of the limitations of the digital ticketing era in terms of reselling tickets. Too many hoops to jump through vs having paper ticket in hand that you can advertise for sale on the web or even just hold it up when you're walking into the stadium because someone in your group couldn't make it at the last minute. I'm sure it's possible to sell at the last minute, but it's a lot harder now.

[The_highest_of_fives 609]

4 hours ago, Deej said:

How the fuck are you supposed to get drunk enough for Texas Football at 8 bucks a pop?

The woman who threw up behind and on me at the game last night found a way. Brutal…

[bullet 1597]

11 hours ago, utee94 said:

I think the pandemic is definitely affecting it, but college football attendance had been declining for many years before 2020.

In many places, including UT, they're pricing existing fans out of the market, and they're not creating new fans to replace them.  Part of it is the competition with television, streaming, and other entertainment options that the younger generations tend toward.  But some of it is the simple fact that middle-classed parents can't take their family of four to a football game for a reasonable price, and so children aren't learning to love the game at an early age.  Without that passion from childhood, as those kids grow into adults, they're less likely to care about attending a game in person.

This all started a couple of decades ago, and now we're starting to see the results of that fanship erosion taking effect.

Yeah.  I have a $17 ticket for a 1994 UT game.  Its been going on for a while.

But the biggest issue this year is the pandemic.  The average college football fan is over 50.  And I know a number of people who renewed their season tickets at various schools, but are not going to games.  Its a big crowd and its a huge mass of people crowding in at the security checkpoint.  The vaccines aren't working as well as originally advertised.

[JimmyJames 12271]

4 hours ago, Deej said:

How the fuck are you supposed to get drunk enough for Texas Football at 8 bucks a pop?

Bring in a flask?

[Deej 76830]

There's not a flask big enough.

[Lat22 4015]

I know most on this board are too refined to ever watch NASCAR, but they’ve been going through the same thing for years. They’ve priced out Joe Sixpack. 

[yoladu 4094]

5 hours ago, Buzzrock said:

The games are too long. I enjoy the gameday experience of a 2-hour MLS game more than football these days.

I am with you. Maybe it is having kids who play soccer and then finding my way to premier league fandom, but I have become a bit conditioned to a 2 hour game experience with no commercials, no stoppage of play, and a 15 min halftime. 
 

I sit at DKR and find myself groaning when a player goes down on the field or one of the teams calls a time out in the middle of the first quarter. It’s time for TV commercials now of course - looking over at the TV referee with his 3:30 board up. The games just grind. 
 

My game day experience shouldn’t partly be finding enjoyment in that 1 in 5 times when a change in possession didn’t result in a 4 min commercial break. 
 

Fewer TV commercial breaks = less opportunities for the stadium to bombarded me with noise, fan cams, 15 second jams, etc. with the goal to keep me ”entertained and engaged” during the substantial periods of inactivity on the football field. 

Edited September 20, 2021 by yoladu

[cochamps 1879]

Each to his own,  but 2 hrs of soccer sounds like a massive beating to me.  But then, I’m more like Army Brat than most posters.😃

[wood 11227]

5 minutes ago, cochamps said:

Each to his own,  but 2 hrs of soccer sounds like a massive beating to me.  But then, I’m more like Army Brat than most posters.😃

Me, too, but I can definitely relate re: the amount of 'stoppage time' (to use a soccer term) we have to endure at games now. It really is a bit of a beating.

[jinx 2635]

13 hours ago, Francisco 2.0 said:

Fresh off of beating OSU in Columbus:

 

 

 

 

 

11 hours ago, Underdog said:

At UW yesterday... 

 

And people wanted to join the PAC…

[cochamps 1879]

10 minutes ago, jinx said:

 

And people wanted to join the PAC…

Yeah, I was at UW for a quarter before the rain started.  Since we only had $22 invested (including fees), we left.  Sparse is the only adjective that applies...

Nice view of Puget Sound though.

 

Edited September 20, 2021 by cochamps

[Hornius Emeritus 12471]

8 hours ago, Vic Mackey said:

And being around a bunch of yelling drunks is less appealing as time goes on.

And yet you're on Surly all the time.

[Vic Mackey 47081]

3 minutes ago, Hornius Emeritus said:

And yet you're on Surly all the time.

Touche.

[Vic Mackey 47081]

1 hour ago, yoladu said:

I am with you. Maybe it is having kids who play soccer and then finding my way to premier league fandom, but I have become a bit conditioned to a 2 hour game experience with no commercials, no stoppage of play, and a 15 min halftime. 
 

I sit at DKR and find myself groaning when a player goes down on the field or one of the teams calls a time out in the middle of the first quarter. It’s time for TV commercials now of course - looking over at the TV referee with his 3:30 board up. The games just grind. 
 

My game day experience shouldn’t partly be finding enjoyment in that 1 in 5 times when a change in possession didn’t result in a 4 min commercial break. 
 

Fewer TV commercial breaks = less opportunities for the stadium to bombarded me with noise, fan cams, 15 second jams, etc. with the goal to keep me ”entertained and engaged” during the substantial periods of inactivity on the football field. 

When did the 3.5-4 hour games become normal for college? I guess when the replay system came into play. These games are fucking ridiculous at times. Literally any play can be reviewed in college. Unlike in the NFL. And the clock stops much more in college than the NFL. The NFL's pace is night and day better than college. 

[Horn Dogg 3911]

8 hours ago, Disco Strangler said:

I’m surprised by the middle finger reactions to this post (clearly I’m naive - I’m sure this comment will draw similar negatives). With a COVID death toll of 660K+ in the last 18 months, it is surprising to me to see the stadiums as packed as they have been.  

The games may or may not drive spikes, but I would expect that by the end of the season a bunch of college football fans (more than 1K?) will have contracted a fatal case of the virus from game attendance.  Even if I’m wrong, I’m sure that others have taken a similar cautious position.  I might take on extra risk in my life to see a Texas/OU game in person, but not to see us play an exposition game against Rice or Kansas.  
 

 

Well, to each his own.  But , NOBODY is going to change my mind when I’m doing what I think is best for my kids.  In this case, even if I’m wrong at least I didn’t take any risk with what’s most important to me.  

[WhatTheBuck 28788]

12 hours ago, ChiTownDoc said:

It's all about TV money - also not gonna lie...half the reason I was watching Pedo St vs Aub was because that crowd was fucking rocking.  I guarantee millions tune in to OU/Texas to watch the crowd and atmosphere surrounding the game...as much as the game itself.  Lots of casual fans with the TV on these days.  Pack the stadium with the rabid fans and fuck the blue hair money.  

I guess I’m in the other half because I’ve literally never tuned into a football game to watch the crowd. Do you think viewership would’ve been increased if Penn State had a white out for a 3:30 game against Ball State?

[WhatTheBuck 28788]

6 hours ago, Lat22 said:

I know most on this board are too refined to ever watch NASCAR, but they’ve been going through the same thing for years. They’ve priced out Joe Sixpack. 

So you’re saying the stands are empty?

[BurntOrange&White 39934]

I'm interested to see DKR when we play a SEC schedule next year with the teams that we will be seeing rotated through the schedule. 

[utee94 15832]

1 hour ago, BurntOrange&White said:

I'm interested to see DKR when we play a SEC schedule next year with the teams that we will be seeing rotated through the schedule. 

Joke's gonna be on all of us when we replace Kansas, Baylor, TCU, and KSU with Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Miss State, and South Carolina. 

 

[Nice Guy Eddie 13515]

22 hours ago, troph said:

I haven’t had season tickets since 2015 and prior to that had them going back to my sophomore year as a student. It was the first thing I spent extra money on after I graduated. But now, the idea of giving an entire Saturday to 1 game in that heat is really unappealing to me.  Texas OU or a big game that’s possibly different.  right now we can wake up enjoy our coffee, handle whatever business needs doing early, grab some lunch, hit the lake and make it back for grill by the pool and watch a full slate of evening games with Texas as the center piece. The beer is cheaper the food is better and if you boys knew what you were doing the half time sexy time would be better.  

Over the past 20+ years I’ve noticed that all sports teams, college and pro, want to deploy a longer game day experience. I suppose it helps to justify the event cost. But many people don’t want to put in 8+ hours for a game. Sure you can always show up close to kickoff but you feel obligated to arrive earlier either due to the ticket cost or to support your friend that set up the tailgate 7 hours before kick.

When it comes to the NFL, the best game is if you are named for a Thursday night game. You have a short pregame with friends and right into the stadium, since everyone worked that day. 

100k stadiums are unnecessary for almost every game. 

[Steamboat1874 4069]

17 hours ago, Deej said:

Look him up. Total badass.

Middle school coach?

Where?

He was my high school coach at Lanier.

[Deej 76830]

Just now, Steamboat1874 said:

Middle school coach?

Where?

He was my high school coach at Lanier.

St. Louis Catholic School on Burnet Road. 

[Cajun 11714]

On 9/19/2021 at 7:47 AM, StruggleBus said:

I haven’t been to a college football game since the 2009 Big 12 championship vs Nebraska. And I don’t think I’ll ever go to another one. Even though I love college football I have zero interest in attending the game. Watching at home is superior in almost every way. 

1000 percent this.  After all the hassles, the money, the lines, Bob Cole, the fact that first downs are "brought to you by Taco Bell", Bob Cole, Bevo being hidden, Bob Cole, Austin bullshit, Bob Cole, whistler-type morons, etc, coupled w/the fact that I have an 86 inch 4K flat screen, there's just zero reason to attend in person.

[Huckleberry 32997]

22 hours ago, Vic Mackey said:

On 9/19/2021 at 7:47 AM, StruggleBus said:

I haven’t been to a college football game since the 2009 Big 12 championship vs Nebraska. And I don’t think I’ll ever go to another one. Even though I love college football I have zero interest in attending the game. Watching at home is superior in almost every way. 

This is how I feel about football in general. It's superior on tv in every way. You miss so much at the game compared to the tv. I haven't attended a game since 2012 and really never plan on going back. Well in terms of college and pro. I still go to high school games here and there.

Do you wear a blindfold to the games? You don't miss anything at the game if you're actually watching the game, quite the opposite. You miss a lot of stuff that happens off camera if you watch on TV.

[Cajun 11714]

12 hours ago, Lat22 said:

I know most on this board are too refined to ever watch NASCAR, but they’ve been going through the same thing for years. They’ve priced out Joe Sixpack. 

If only they were more awoke to this?

[Steamboat1874 4069]

11 minutes ago, Deej said:

St. Louis Catholic School on Burnet Road. 

I forgot he went there after Lanier.

Man he drove this old car forever that the Lions gave him as a bonus when he was in the NFL.

He was great.

This is the way I remember him....

[BurntOrange&White 39934]

12 minutes ago, Huckleberry said:

Do you wear a blindfold to the games? You don't miss anything at the game if you're actually watching the game, quite the opposite. You miss a lot of stuff that happens off camera if you watch on TV.

Yup, you can’t truly see how bad Card was on tv until you see end zone angles or sky cam footage of what was happening in that game. 

[ChiTownDoc 21154]

5 hours ago, WhatTheBuck said:

I guess I’m in the other half because I’ve literally never tuned into a football game to watch the crowd. Do you think viewership would’ve been increased if Penn State had a white out for a 3:30 game against Ball State?

I think if the Fresno ‘upset’ of UCLA had that Penn St crowd viewership would have been higher.  People on here are hardcore.  There’s a lot of casual barely fans that have a TV on.  That’s the point.  So yes - I think how something looks on TV affects viewership - crazy right?

[27-25 2047]

1 hour ago, utee94 said:

Joke's gonna be on all of us when we replace Kansas, Baylor, TCU, and KSU with Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Miss State, and South Carolina. 

 

Well, we really owe Vanderbilt.  3-8 (IIRC) record against them needs to be addressed.

[utee94 15832]

2 minutes ago, 27-25 said:

Well, we really owe Vanderbilt.  3-8 (IIRC) record against them needs to be addressed.

Yup and out last game against them was something like 1926 I think?

 

Chigariggaree, chiggariggastilt

All to hell with Vanderbilt!

 

[Vic Mackey 47081]

Do you wear a blindfold to the games? You don't miss anything at the game if you're actually watching the game, quite the opposite. You miss a lot of stuff that happens off camera if you watch on TV.

Not for me. I'll take being able to rewind, see tons of replays from all angles, all the stats coming in, injury reports over being there in person. That's what I mean when I say missing stuff.

[WhatTheBuck 28788]

26 minutes ago, ChiTownDoc said:

I think if the Fresno ‘upset’ of UCLA had that Penn St crowd viewership would have been higher.  People on here are hardcore.  There’s a lot of casual barely fans that have a TV on.  That’s the point.  So yes - I think how something looks on TV affects viewership - crazy right?

Then why does anyone watch Miami U games? I watched the Michigan State vs. Miami game because I was interested in the game. That was played in front of a half empty stadium, at best (which is often the case at “The U”).

Most of the white out games I’ve watched at PSU have been when the Buckeyes are playing there. (And then when PSU plays in Columbus it’s an afternoon game but that’s a subject for a different thread.) I watch Texas vs. OU because it’s a meeting between top brands, not because of the crowd. Sure, the colors and the bands and the atmosphere are part of what make college football great. And PSU only schedules a white out when it’s a night game against a name brand opponent. But are there really that many viewers who wouldn’t tune into the game if it wasn’t a white out? ‘Oh, Penn State is playing Auburn. Who cares? Wait, what? Oh, it’s a white out? Now I’ve got to see it!’ I don’t think that happens.

 

[WhatTheBuck 28788]

30 minutes ago, Vic Mackey said:

1 hour ago, Huckleberry said:

Do you wear a blindfold to the games? You don't miss anything at the game if you're actually watching the game, quite the opposite. You miss a lot of stuff that happens off camera if you watch on TV.

Not for me. I'll take being able to rewind, see tons of replays from all angles, all the stats coming in, injury reports over being there in person. That's what I mean when I say missing stuff.

Have you ever actually been to a game?

[ImissWallyPryor 9046]

19 hours ago, ChiTownDoc said:

Pack the stadium with the rabid fans and fuck the blue hair money.

I agree with your sentiments, but while the blue hairs aren’t the rabid fans making the stadiums rock, they also aren’t the ones who need constant stimuli to keep their faces out of their smart phones. I think colleges are pandering too much to the latter because a good stadium atmosphere will take care of that. Texas-OU in the Cotton Bowl is an example, albeit beyond that which can be recreated week after week. We need a balance of younger, rabid fans and older, richer alums, but if they don’t create future fanatics, all they will be left with is TV money, Jumbotron ads, and corporate season ticket buyers, but fewer and fewer blue hair donors. 

Edited September 20, 2021 by ImissWallyPryor

[BurntOrange&White 39934]

1 minute ago, ImissWallyPryor said:

I agree with your sentiments, but while the blue hairs aren’t the rabid fans making the stadiums rock, they also aren’t the ones who need constant stimuli to keep their faces out of their smart phones. I think colleges are pandering too much to that last part because a good stadium atmosphere will take care of that itself. Colleges need a balance of younger, rabid fans and older, richer alums, but if they don’t create future fanatics, all they will be left with is TV money, Jumbotron ads, and corporate season ticket buyers, but fewer and fewer blue hair donors. 

How out of touch are you to think blue hairs just like millennials/gen z don’t bury their heads into phone screens?

[Vertigo 20290]

55 minutes ago, 27-25 said:

Well, we really owe Vanderbilt.  3-8 (IIRC) record against them needs to be addressed.

That will be an orange out game. Night game. Storm the field. 

[ImissWallyPryor 9046]

18 minutes ago, BurntOrange&White said:

How out of touch are you to think blue hairs just like millennials/gen z don’t bury their heads into phone screens?

Like we are now? Lol

It’s all about extremes. I can go an entire game along with pregame and post game without looking at my phone. I see many others (mostly blue hairs) doing the same.

It’s more of a female thing, because I see plenty of younger males paying attention to the game on the field. My thoughts as I composed my post above is that colleges THINK they have to create a constant, artificially stimulating atmosphere. Maybe having crappy cell service in the stadium has an upside. 

Edited September 20, 2021 by ImissWallyPryor

[Valmy77 13243]

I fucking love going to games but the cost and time commitment compared to everything else I have going on just means some years I can't. Sucks.

The baseball games are just so much easier and cheaper and less bullshit. I am usually out in three hours with a lot of my day left to go...though yes I did attend that Boston College seven hour marathon in 2009. 

[WhatTheBuck 28788]

7 minutes ago, ImissWallyPryor said:

I agree with your sentiments, but while the blue hairs aren’t the rabid fans making the stadiums rock, they also aren’t the ones who need constant stimuli to keep their faces out of their smart phones. I think colleges are pandering too much to the latter because a good stadium atmosphere will take care of that. Colleges need a balance of younger, rabid fans and older, richer alums, but if they don’t create future fanatics, all they will be left with is TV money, Jumbotron ads, and corporate season ticket buyers, but fewer and fewer blue hair donors. 

You can’t pack a large stadium without a whole lot of “fans” who couldn’t name the head coach or QB. Or maybe who could only name those two at best. 

[ImissWallyPryor 9046]

15 minutes ago, WhatTheBuck said:

You can’t pack a large stadium without a whole lot of “fans” who couldn’t name the head coach or QB. Or maybe who could only name those two at best. 

If you are referring to potential future fanatics who are being introduced to the stadium games for the first time, I agree. Some will never get the bug, but some will, and that’s who you’re after.

I have three daughters. One who couldn’t care less, one who could pose as a Surly expert, and one somewhere in between because she can at least name the head coach and key players. 

Edited September 20, 2021 by ImissWallyPryor

[Ghost of LL 15539]

12 hours ago, Vic Mackey said:

When did the 3.5-4 hour games become normal for college? I guess when the replay system came into play. These games are fucking ridiculous at times. Literally any play can be reviewed in college. Unlike in the NFL. And the clock stops much more in college than the NFL. The NFL's pace is night and day better than college. 

I definitely agree that the NFL's pacing is better.  But damned if it isn't seeing the same issue.  The average NFL game used to come in at just under three hours.  Now it is so common that the game will last well more than three hours that the NFL has had to push the 3:00 kickoff to 3:25.

[ImissWallyPryor 9046]

15 minutes ago, Valmy77 said:

The baseball games are just so much easier and cheaper and less bullshit. I am usually out in three hours with a lot of my day left to go...though yes I did attend that Boston College seven hour marathon in 2009.

Remember the days (not that terribly long ago) when baseball games used to last two hours, give or take? TV and increased pitching changes are to blame. 

[Valmy77 13243]

5 minutes ago, ImissWallyPryor said:

Remember the days (not that terribly long ago) when baseball games used to last two hours, give or take? TV and increased pitching changes are to blame. 

Vaguely. There was a time when they would just rush on by but now we have to pause for ads between innings. I have gotten used to them though, at least you know it is coming every inning and won't last too long. Every once in a while a game will really drag over the three hour mark and start approaching four, and that is when I start to get annoyed. Get on with it guys!

[GTX Horn 1708]

If I remember correctly the short-lived XFL 2.0 had a constantly running game clock regardless of first downs, incompletions, or players going out of bounds except within 2 minutes left in the half. That really helped the pacing of those games. Not saying that is something NFL and College should adopt but something needs to be done to liven up the pace of some of these games. Constant tv commercial timeouts and replay reviews are definitely big culprits too.

Attendance has been trending this way for a while. I think I’m our specific case just fielding competitive, exciting teams with a better home schedule once we joint the SEC will do wonders. Winning will bring a lot of fans in.

[ImissWallyPryor 9046]

9 minutes ago, Valmy77 said:

Vaguely. There was a time when they would just rush on by but now we have to pause for ads between innings. I have gotten used to them though, at least you know it is coming every inning and won't last too long. Every once in a while a game will really drag over the three hour mark and start approaching four, and that is when I start to get annoyed. Get on with it guys!

Roger Clemens was part of that last generation of complete game pitchers. I remember some games earlier in his career that only lasted 1:45. and he wasn’t the only one.

[CHIEF 5093]

18 hours ago, David Dennison said:

College football games are a beat down. They last nearly four hours and include way too many stoppages of play. Why put up with that and the expense of overpriced seats and concessions when you can watch multiple games on a 4K big screen in the comfort of your own house (or dorm room, fraternity house, etc.)?

This is what is killing the in-person game experience for me. After a year of not driving 180 miles to Austin, tailgating in the heat, sitting in the stands in the heat, sitting through five minutes of TV timeouts (which the TV providers take advantage of, way too much). Then driving the 180 miles back home. It's just getting to be too much.

I can pause the game when it comes on, stay off Surly, and go do something else. I start the game about an hour to an hour and a half later, fast forward through all of the commercials, watch five minutes of the half time report, fast forward through all of the commercials in the second half, and usually end up live in the last three or so minutes of the fourth quarter. Games are now about 65/35 commercials to play.

CHIEF

[heso 2813]

On 9/19/2021 at 8:01 AM, hookem48 said:

High ticket prices, shitty opponents and overbuilt stadiums, Kyle Field shouldn't be over 90,000.

Penn State seemed pretty damn full to me.

It was full because it was a night game against a ranked sec team. This weekend is Villanova at noon. I expect it will be closer to 90k than 110k. 

[ImissWallyPryor 9046]

I have tickets to ISU in Ames. This will be my 5th or 6th time. I have really enjoyed the atmosphere of that game in past years because of the far fewer bells and whistles. The TV timeouts don’t go away, but the rest of the game was more like game days gone by. But we’ll see because they keep “upgrading.”

Edited September 20, 2021 by ImissWallyPryor

[heso 2813]

18 hours ago, Disco Strangler said:

I’m surprised by the middle finger reactions to this post (clearly I’m naive - I’m sure this comment will draw similar negatives). With a COVID death toll of 660K+ in the last 18 months, it is surprising to me to see the stadiums as packed as they have been.  

The games may or may not drive spikes, but I would expect that by the end of the season a bunch of college football fans (more than 1K?) will have contracted a fatal case of the virus from game attendance.  Even if I’m wrong, I’m sure that others have taken a similar cautious position.  I might take on extra risk in my life to see a Texas/OU game in person, but not to see us play an exposition game against Rice or Kansas.  
 

 

All of this. This past weekend was the first time I wasn’t in the stands for a white out at penn state and it was 100% because sitting shoulder to shoulder and then packed like sardines to get to the ramps seemed to pose an unnecessary risk with an unvaccinated 5 year old at home. 

For auburn there were plenty of people happy to take the seats of people making that same decision. For Villanova or Rutgers, not so much. 

[utee94 15832]

4 minutes ago, ImissWallyPryor said:

I have tickets to ISU in Ames. I really enjoyed the atmosphere of that game in past years because of the far fewer bells and whistles. The TV timeouts don’t go away, but the rest of the game was more like game days gone by. 

Every year I go to TX-OU in the Cotton Bowl, I'm reminded of what games were like 20+ years ago.  It's so refreshing.

There's still some advertising but not anywhere close to what we get in Austin.  A lot more of the bands, and fans, participating in the game.  It's fantastic and then every time I come back to a game in Austin, I just shake my head at the difference in experience.