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Post by Coast2CoastHoya on Feb 5, 2010 10:43:43 GMT -5
I posted a version of this in a comment on the Casual Hoya site: The solution to student attendance for non-marquee matchups is really quite simple. Designate three home games as “priority” games. This year it would be Duke (1/30), Villanova (2/6), and Syracuse (2/18). There are two ways you can go about it, or you can combine my two ideas. But the key is having a points system, to give the kids incentive to show up to the "lesser" games, by tying in rewards to the big games. Over the course of the season, give students points for showing up to all the other games – non-conference, the McDonough game, the less “sexy” Big East matchups. Maybe bonus points for games over break. The week before a "big" game, set certain thresholds of high, medium, and low point earners among certain season ticketholders. Option 1: Hold tickets to the priority games back, so that students don’t immediately get them in their season ticket packages, as GU did for the Duke game this year. Make them earn it. Then the week before the game, the high threshold of points earners get first dibs at picking tickets for the marquee game. After that, the middle group gets next dibs, until all the tickets are taken, including the overflow levels. Option 2 (which I think could really excite the students): Treshold 1, the high point earners, are allowed into Verizon Center an hour before everybody else, so they get the best seats. Theshold 2, the middle point earners, are allowed into Verizon Center a half hour before everybody else, they get the next best seats. The rest have to fight it out with the rest of the crowd, and may have to go in the overflow 400 level. Athletic Department, I’d actually volunteer my time and do this pro bono for you if anyone's listening. This is a really great idea! In addition, you could award bonus points for attending women's games---might be kinda like extra credit, and increase attendance for the Lady Hoyas (who deserve it!) too. The band does (or at least used to do) something similar to determine who gets to travel in the post-season. It worked really well.
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H2Oya 05
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Post by H2Oya 05 on Feb 5, 2010 10:58:04 GMT -5
And... UVA again beats us there. You get Saber points not just for mens basketball but also for other sporting events.
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PhillyHoya
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Post by PhillyHoya on Feb 5, 2010 11:10:13 GMT -5
A lot of schools do something similar with ticket sales. WVU (one I know off the top of my head) has priority games which require you to buy tickets to at least one other game in order to attend (the Ewing Jr. block game was one of these which is why GU attendance was sparse). Showing up is a different matter but what the heck else is there to do in Morgantown besides riding the monorail and burning couches?
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SFHoya99
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Post by SFHoya99 on Feb 5, 2010 11:26:54 GMT -5
You also get Sabre points for Dave Matthews concerts and J. Crew purchases. It's a finely tailored system.
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lurkerhoya
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Post by lurkerhoya on Feb 5, 2010 11:34:56 GMT -5
You also get Sabre points for Dave Matthews concerts and J. Crew purchases. It's a finely tailored system. Last night's redneck yacht club party drew about a 50/50 crowd of rednecks and people who didn't want to get in costume and claimed they were 'yacht club'....
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Post by hoya10 on Feb 5, 2010 14:00:52 GMT -5
The problem is Hoya Blue/ The Athletic Department would make this work out so that you had to attend women's basketball and other sports to get points as well. Not to knock those at all, but the two should not be related.
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Big Dog
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Post by Big Dog on Feb 5, 2010 15:28:33 GMT -5
I can't believe that they don't run buses for students anymore, and I can't believe that people think its soft to ask that buses be made available for students to get there. If you want students to make the inconvenient hike for a mid-week game against a no-name opponent, you need to make it as convenient as possible. The idea that no schools go to any greater lengths is ridiculous. Marquette sent buses 90 miles down to various park-and-rides in the Chicago area to pick up students on winter break for the Villanova game on January 2.
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Post by hoya10 on Feb 5, 2010 15:30:52 GMT -5
With GUTS busses and above-ground transport out, and of course the snow, I'm expecting tomorrow's student section to rival Wednesday's.
It's unfortunate, but I'm hearing bad things around campus right now. And yes, I'm trying.
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3xhoya
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Post by 3xhoya on Feb 5, 2010 15:52:43 GMT -5
With GUTS busses and above-ground transport out, and of course the snow, I'm expecting tomorrow's student section to rival Wednesday's. It's unfortunate, but I'm hearing bad things around campus right now. And yes, I'm trying. This is pathetic. I am not knocking you at all Hoya10, but we are a top 10 team playing the number two team in the country. The Verizon Center is only about 2 miles away. The students should make an adventure of getting there if there is a game. It could be one of the most fun and memorable experiences you have on the Hilltop.
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Elvado
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Post by Elvado on Feb 5, 2010 16:10:08 GMT -5
With GUTS busses and above-ground transport out, and of course the snow, I'm expecting tomorrow's student section to rival Wednesday's. It's unfortunate, but I'm hearing bad things around campus right now. And yes, I'm trying. This is pathetic. I am not knocking you at all Hoya10, but we are a top 10 team playing the number two team in the country. The Verizon Center is only about 2 miles away. The students should make an adventure of getting there if there is a game. It could be one of the most fun and memorable experiences you have on the Hilltop. Amen. Other than legitimate health reasons (not a cold by the way) there is no excuse for any undergrad who purports to love this team not to make an adventure of this. This is a fantastic excuse to bond with classmates, get ripped, berate Nova (Gary Mclain and snow offer such possibilities) and cheer on your Hoyas. Don't be the kid who hears about how much fun it was.
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Post by strummer8526 on Feb 5, 2010 16:21:00 GMT -5
It would also be a fun trip through the city. There aren't many good reasons to walk from campus to 7th and H, but this would make for a really wild morning for any kids fun enough to try it.
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Post by williambraskyiii on Feb 5, 2010 16:28:25 GMT -5
With GUTS busses and above-ground transport out, and of course the snow, I'm expecting tomorrow's student section to rival Wednesday's. It's unfortunate, but I'm hearing bad things around campus right now. And yes, I'm trying. you are hanging out with the wrong people fella.
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CAHoya07
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Post by CAHoya07 on Feb 5, 2010 16:31:51 GMT -5
I walked back to Georgetown from Verizon Center after the Notre Dame game in 2005 (Roy's dunk for the win at the buzzer). It's really not that bad of a walk. Granted, I was running on adrenaline at the time.
Google Maps says it's about an hour walk from the front gates. For some reason, I feel like I did the walk in 45 minutes. Anyway, it's definitely doable, though I can imagine the more casual fan would think it crazy. Then again, come on. We're playing the #2 team in the country. It's a matchup of two top ten teams. Bring a flask along for the walk, or a strong mix drink, and let the good times roll.
That said, below ground Metro will be running. A walk to Rosslyn or Dupont isn't bad. Back when I worked at Tombs full-time, I used to walk from Rosslyn to 36th and Prospect at least once every day. 15, 20 minute walk tops. Sometimes better to walk than getting stuck in traffic in a GUTS bus on the Key Bridge.
Point is, I know it's tough, but I'm sure there will be some good stories to tell from before, during, and after the game. I can't wait.
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miamihoya
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Post by miamihoya on Feb 5, 2010 16:46:58 GMT -5
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GUJook97
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Post by GUJook97 on Feb 5, 2010 16:57:06 GMT -5
I can't believe that they don't run buses for students anymore, and I can't believe that people think its soft to ask that buses be made available for students to get there. If you want students to make the inconvenient hike for a mid-week game against a no-name opponent, you need to make it as convenient as possible. The idea that no schools go to any greater lengths is ridiculous. Marquette sent buses 90 miles down to various park-and-rides in the Chicago area to pick up students on winter break for the Villanova game on January 2. Oh, come on, the Verizon center is like 3 miles from campus. You can walk to Foggy Bottom and get on one of the best metro rail systems in the country. If you cant hack walking a mile, get on a bus to a metro, or take one of the shuttle, or take the circulator. Dont come to school in one of the biggest metropolitan areas in America if you want your school to do this stuff for you. I am not talking about tomorrow, but the idea that they have to bus students from Georgetown to Chinatown to assure good attendance is ludicrous. The criticism is exactly that. You cant come to a game because the school doesnt literally pick you up and drive you 3 miles door to door? Why dont we just pay the students to be there? That would make it convenient too
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Big Dog
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Post by Big Dog on Feb 5, 2010 17:29:38 GMT -5
Oh, come on, the Verizon center is like 3 miles from campus. You can walk to Foggy Bottom and get on one of the best metro rail systems in the country. If you cant hack walking a mile, get on a bus to a metro, or take one of the shuttle, or take the circulator. Dont come to school in one of the biggest metropolitan areas in America if you want your school to do this stuff for you. I am not talking about tomorrow, but the idea that they have to bus students from Georgetown to Chinatown to assure good attendance is ludicrous. The criticism is exactly that. You cant come to a game because the school doesnt literally pick you up and drive you 3 miles door to door? Why dont we just pay the students to be there? That would make it convenient too You aren't making a substantive critique of the argument that having buses would improve attendance--probably because there isn't one. I don't think there's any doubt that attendance would be higher if people could just walk over to McDonough and catch a bus to/from the arena--the question is just how many more people you'd get. Your argument is just that "real fans" should be willing to find their own way. Fine. That's the system we have. But if you don't like the results, you can just "yell" at the student body more via the message board (ineffective) or you can take the step of offering the students a free and convenient ride (effective). If you aren't willing to endorse an obvious and effective step, then I'm not sure the point of talking about the issue.
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gujake
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Post by gujake on Feb 5, 2010 17:46:53 GMT -5
choorah -
I personally think you are right that it doesn't really do any good to ridicule students for not going. But I again think the question should be, why aren't students going now as much as they did in previous years?
The women's games have never had good attendance. The men's team DID have good attendance even for games like USF in the past few years. SOMETHING is surely different, right?
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Buckets
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Post by Buckets on Feb 5, 2010 18:56:57 GMT -5
I was pretty surprised when I showed up at how empty the student section was for USF, but after thinking about it for a little, USF is perhaps the least interesting Big East game for the casual fan. PC, Seton Hall, DePaul, and USF are probably the bottom four, and Seton Hall and Providence have at least been in the Big East for a while. Throw in the fact that it was sandwiched between Villanova and Duke, and the casual fan probably doesn't really feel like going to three games in eight days.
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Post by strummer8526 on Feb 6, 2010 0:04:42 GMT -5
Let me preface this by saying that I am a student who has attended virtually every home men's and women's basketball game over the past 4 years, has been to the Men's BET every year and the Women's BET last year, went to Atlanta for the Final Four, and has been on a number of HoyaBlue road trips. While I'd never miss a home game, I think that the conversation on this board ridiculing students for not going to a weekday game against USF is absolutely absurd. For me, attending games as a student has been a top priority because it's a lot of fun and I realize I won't have an opportunity like this again. But if other students don't have as much fun at basketball games as I do unless we're playing a top-tier opponent, then I don't fault them one bit for not going. Students don't owe the basketball team anything. You can't fault the fans for not showing up to a game against a mediocre opponent when the players on the court don't show up either. On another note, I think it's a real shame that people will complain endlessly about the low attendance at one men's basketball game, without saying anything about how our women's team is currently #16 in the nation and, other than the band and cheerleaders, we're lucky to get 50 students to come to ANY home game. Just to reiterate, I wasn't bashing students for not coming. I was bashing students for not coming but then acting like the they're serious fans. Look, until my junior year, I wasn't really into the team. I wouldn't have gone to the USF Wednesday night game. But that also means I wouldn't have bitched about it when we lost. And I wouldn't have chanted "This is our house" during a win. Once I started getting into the team, I got into the team. But I can't stand people who want all the fun of being a "fan" without any of the commitment.
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