Another Half-Empty Stadium
- Thread starter CBlackwellRN
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I think the poor attendance was a combination of the schedule getting jumbled around, the forecasted weather, and the actual weather.
Maine wasn't the sexiest opponent so many may have opted to do something else this weekend prior to Memphis getting rescheduled. The forecast predicted thunderstorms all day yesterday (although us Floridians should know that means nothing). Plus the beginning of the game was raining, possibly deterring those who were debating coming into the game.
I have to admit I left a game early for the first time in years because a few of the people I were with were absolutely soaked/freezing from the steady rain that was coming down.
What is concerning to me through two home games is the premium seating under roth tower has been nearly 50% empty both games. That seems to be a sign that the pricing was just too high and we end up pricing out fans that would otherwise have filled those seats.
Maine wasn't the sexiest opponent so many may have opted to do something else this weekend prior to Memphis getting rescheduled. The forecast predicted thunderstorms all day yesterday (although us Floridians should know that means nothing). Plus the beginning of the game was raining, possibly deterring those who were debating coming into the game.
I have to admit I left a game early for the first time in years because a few of the people I were with were absolutely soaked/freezing from the steady rain that was coming down.
What is concerning to me through two home games is the premium seating under roth tower has been nearly 50% empty both games. That seems to be a sign that the pricing was just too high and we end up pricing out fans that would otherwise have filled those seats.
I've posted this before so I might be beating a dead horse but I don't think it's just the pricing.
After last year's homecoming crowd in a perfect time slot I knew something is up. A portion of the fanbase left and never came back a few years ago.
It doesn't make any sense to me how boring ball control 7-8 win seasons had a much easier time getting 40K in the stadium yet last night we couldn't get close to that
It's more crucial than ever bc Frost is going to be wanted and if the fans don't show appreciation it's going to make his decision to leave much easier then UCF will get stuck in G5 purgatory. The UCF fanbase is making the same mistake USF did with Taggart, better be fixed before it's too late
After last year's homecoming crowd in a perfect time slot I knew something is up. A portion of the fanbase left and never came back a few years ago.
It doesn't make any sense to me how boring ball control 7-8 win seasons had a much easier time getting 40K in the stadium yet last night we couldn't get close to that
It's more crucial than ever bc Frost is going to be wanted and if the fans don't show appreciation it's going to make his decision to leave much easier then UCF will get stuck in G5 purgatory. The UCF fanbase is making the same mistake USF did with Taggart, better be fixed before it's too late
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The 40k came out to watch GOL ball at the beginning of the season (minus USF games) after a championship season. Then GOL would disappoint and the numbers would decrease. Taggert was complaining before they got to 10-2. Attendance will reflect your prior work (season) at the G5 level, neither Taggert or Frost had/have that yet.
It's not the season ticket prices. They are great prices. It's the single game tickets at $45.
It should be scalpers paradise. But the sticker shock is keeping people away.
HERE IS THE Biggest THING.
We would sell out every game if there was a legit NCAA sanctioned championship we had access to.
We would sell out every game if there was a legit NCAA sanctioned championship we had access to.
Good point. Orlando's a poor city in a poor state. College grads make half what they get elsewhere. Rents and home prices very high for a low-wage region. The P5 schools are mostly flagship residential colleges, so their alums had upper-middle class parents paid their way, got them set up in jobs, paid the the down payment for their homes, and left them nice inheritance. It's a different world even for so many UF grads whose alumni network places them into high paying careers they don't merit. Tickets at $500 are chicken feed for them.
It's definitely a combination of things. Fans not having enough money is definitely a factor
Those are behind the home bench. You can hear the unit huddles when they come off the field. Yes, it is a different experience than 15 rows up (my preference) or our 2nd level (top of bottom in most stadiums) but the seats are far from awful. My regular seats we higher but I hav sat in row 2. Biggest issue was ppl walking in front. That's not a concern with 112 as it's inside the ropes. 113 2nd row has been made worse by all the idiots arguing to walk through.
First few rows are not great sight lines in any stadium but they don't get a discount anywhere I ever seen. College, Pro, anywhere. That makes it a ridiculous complaint. The same seats at FL are probably thousands of dollars with donation.
You don't like parting with your money. That's fine. No need to disparage the program constantly.
You really believe this? Flagship school kids all get stuff paid by mommy and daddy....you're nuts. This echo chamber nonsense is what is ruing work ethic in our county.
I hope you don't actually instruct anyone. I did. Didn't insert ridiculous politically motivated slanted garbage.
P5 Maryland didn't attract a big crowd either but at least drew a large and vocal UCF contingent. Back to the drawing board.
I'm a recent UCF Grad (spring 2017). I went to every game, except maybe 2 or 3, in the 4 years I was there. I was at every 0-12 game as well. It's hard for people like me to get to the games because I'm going to professional school in a different state. However, I'll be there for the ECU game (get a week off) and USF! Wish I could've been there to support, but it was a great game on T.V nonetheless!
at least he is starting to realize the pricing structure is too high
Whoa whoa. We've got problems but we don't have USF attendance problems.
Of course they do but nobody's going to splash $50 ea. to sit in section 214 (check Ticketmaster). $200 plus fees for a family of four to see UCF from the upper bowl corner? The casuals will say hell naw.
If that price point provided value for money they wouldn't be for sale online and empty on Saturdays.
See, I use data, and readily accept change when the world changes. And of course I made sure I didn't use the "all" crutch like you did to dispute anything. Thousands of lower income students have attended UF. But the numbers don't lie: the median household income of UF students are nearly $120K (way higher than UCF's students). In addition, UF is located beyond commuting distance for nearly all the state's population, just like most flagship universities in America (and unlike those in the rest of the world). UF's tuition is between half and a quarter that of what most U.S. college students pay, so it must be heavily subsidized by taxpayers. Florida taxes are highly regressive because we and Texas are the only populated states without an income tax. The result is reverse Robin Hood: the poor pay to subsidize the education of the well-off. Because Florida is 50th in per capita support for higher ed, the quality of metro area public colleges for the non-wealthy suffer (UCF has had by far the highest student-faculty ratio in the U.S. for over 20 years). A friend here is teaching a class of over 2000 students each term.
I pay more than that per game for season tickets one section over. People have to understand that part of the price is a built in donation. Do people care about keeping good coaches or not? And I guess I understand not paying $1400 for four season tix there but the best home game of the season for $200 is a steal
I don't think we will sellout the stadium until we get a P5 invite. Not many want to come watch ECU, SMU, Temple, UConn, etc. When we have a conference schedule including teams like Oklahoma, PennState, Florida State, Clemson consistently from any of the P5 conferences, than it will be a draw. I don't know anyone eager to watch an AAC game.
Winner! Georgia Tech would have been a sell out. I’m sorry but ECU, UConn, etc aren’t exciting draws for fair weather fans. The diehards will be there, but 10,000 casual fans aren’t going to come see ECU for $45 a ticket.
It doesn’t help that these teams bring almost no opposing fans either. I hate to say it, but almost every sellout we had was with visiting fan help.
USF will be a sellout if we are both ranked. But that will be the only one.
Exactly. You can bet Danny White is praying for a home conference championship game and New Years Bowl game for financial reason alone
People do realize we may NEVER get into a power conference? If you really care about the school just enjoy watching the team play, whether it's against ECU or Clemson.
All you have to do is look at games like Boston College, S. Carolina etc to see thats the truth too. Those games were packed.
One thing's for sure. Whoever doesn't get invited will file suit and contact the Congressional reps.
LOL--- You have absolutely no idea how much money I "part with" for UCF every year. lol It's A LOT. And I am not disparaging the program whatsoever. In fact, I am praising the program but pointing out an obvious etiology for the empty seats that you seem to be oblivious to. Make all the excuses you want. But, the fact is, I have been a fervent supporter of UCF Athletics for years, gladly give thousands of dollars to the GKC/UCF Athletics yearly, and have helped establish tens of thousands of dollars in nursing scholarships through my family's foundation to the UCF College of Nursing for quite some time. So, make all the excuses you want about all the empty chairs throughout the stadium and what a great deal $450 is for essentially end zone seats in the bottom tier of the stadium. But, don't make personal attacks against me when you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.
In addition to just lower-than-hoped attendance, after living in several football cities, UCF fans seem to have the lowest tolerance for variable weather conditions (hot, warm, sunny, rainy). It barely starts misting, and people leave? Who cares if it's pouring even? The team is not quitting because it's misting or raining. Stay there and support the team.
I have to agree with you. We're just not used to making UCF games a priority no matter what. Now that we're top 25, I see a bump in attendance similar to 2013, but it shouldn't have to be that way. Is what it is though. No ticket sale gimmick in the world will get this fan base to be all in and dedicated to UCF no matter our schedule/record. That's the reality. No more excuses. We are who we are.
cost for good seats, plus weather, plus Orlando Sat night, plus it's only Memphis, plus no P-5, plus HD National TV, plus the terrible loss to Ark. State,........ (Combo effect)
Chris, with so many seats open, UCF Athletics should have given you better seats but I don't think $112 is expensive for club seats since the season ticket is $800 for that section. However, by now UCF may look into giving season ticket holders the option to buy single tickets (up to 2?) in their section (except the sections with free food/drinks without the prorated donation) but that may piss off STH trying to sell their tickets.
North and South end zones should be $15 and $20 respectively.
There is an easy solution to fix the empty stadium... use all the increased revenue from raising our ticket prices, start whining and dining with the decision-makers from the P5 conferences. Our biggest focus right now is to sell UCF and all the benefits of adding us to a P5 conference .
I'm positive Danny's folks have been doing that in every way possible from day one. In under 2 years on the job, he's altered UCF's national image beyond recognition.
EXACTLY! I go to see UCF no matter who they play. Once a Knight, always (and all ways) a Knight!
Yeah the mindset has to be to support UCF as a University and stop worrying about that.
It doesn't help that UCF fans heard for years by University officials and local media that the 'geography will be changing' and having Stansbury flat out saying an invite was imminent. There was a let down when the Invite never came for some fans.
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As much as I fully agree, im not happy with attendance, if you watch anywhere in college football minus maybe Alabama and a few other 100+ year old programs, attendance is suffering. I watched USC vs Wash State, Wash States lower bowls were packed but you look upper sides, pretty empty/patchy.
UF's stadium looked pretty pathetic too even tho it was vandy. Tennessees upper levels looked horrible for most of the game (even before the blowout took place) vs Georgia.
As much as it is a problem with our fans, its college football in general. People are lazy, why pay for a seat when TV is free (i dont have this mindset at all, id pay twice what i paid to go to every game). People would rather go to a bar etc. Doesnt help florida has one of the most fairweather fan bases in the world. Even video games have florida teams coded as "fair weather".
I agree with Prof, its a momentum thing just as much as a ticket pricing thing.
The other thing ive noticed is since our entire stadium is metal, its extremely easy to spot open areas and the stairs enhance the empty look.
Other schools i.e. Georgia, Florida etc have seat the same color as their main colors, so on tv, you never notice empty seats because they blend in with the other fans in wearing the same color as the seats. I tried to really study other games to make sure it wasnt just us.
Those are the kinda steps itll take. Its still not an overnight thing to get hype around a program.
We are only a season and 3 games out of something that would destroy most programs, so confidence may take a while to build like we should have. We just have to keep winning, keep the positive hype to the point where you cant do anything but be excited for this team.
Heck even on this board til last week you had people doubting and saying the old "ive been around long enough" etc, so hopefully thats breaking soon and we can see better attendance as the games go on.
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