Attendance at games

[AdaSooner]

This link, especially the one at the bottom of the menu, should tell you everything you’ll want to know about attendance at college basketball games.

Well, there is still an unanswered question about the method OU uses to announce attendance at games, but it’s as complete as anything I have found. It should be noted that attendance has been generally down, although slightly, nearly everywhere in the last several years. Why? Opinions vary.

http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/m_basketball_RB/2020/Attendance.pdf

 

[sheepdogs1]

If most games were on radio you would think that attendance would pick up. Also, past traditions just don't stack up well as the years pass by. Circuses, parades, attending church are but a few of these examples. My neighborhood is large yet I had to answer the door but 2 times on Halloween.

 

[oudna]

OKC Thunder have hurt the state schools

 

[CoachTalk]

OKC Thunder have hurt the state schools

Okc not even full these days. Stop using that as an excuse.

Show up or don’t.

 

[oudna]

Okc not even full these days. Stop using that as an excuse.

Show up or don’t.

Don’t be so insecure.

I simply know several former season ticket holders, from both OU/OSU, that have opted for the pro experience instead.

They’re at the age where they have kids now interested in the games, and the kids want to go see the NBA superstars.

 

[scrybe]

Don’t be so insecure.

I simply know several former season ticket holders, from both OU/OSU, that have opted for the pro experience instead.

They’re at the age where they have kids now interested in the games, and the kids want to go see the NBA superstars.

Sadly true. And the NBA sucks greatly.

 

[OUSKINS]

Don’t be so insecure.

I simply know several former season ticket holders, from both OU/OSU, that have opted for the pro experience instead.

They’re at the age where they have kids now interested in the games, and the kids want to go see the NBA superstars.

I’m one of those people. I had OU season tickets and then stopped once Thunder arrived and now have Thunder tickets. Prefer the NBA game/experience, but obviously still like OU/college game. Now I go to maybe 4-5 OU games per year and just pick and choose. I do find the student attendance to be embarrassing though:

 

[vbdad]

I went last night and left midtown OKC at 3:55 and didn't get to the LNC until 5:00. I was meeting my parents in their handicap spot to take them to dinner. I was so delayed we were only able to go to Rudy's. Then when bringing them back to the LNC I had to beg to be able to drop them off at the ramp outside the arena. Of course it is still a great effort for them to get in the building.

I was told I couldn't park anywhere on the Southwest side of the building because I forgot my Sooner Club pass. I went ahead and parked near the rugby field. I was the only car in about 200 spaces. Why does OU have to make everything difficult for the fans. This game wasn't going to be well attended they could have let me park anywhere.

 

[Sooner Season]

I went last night and left midtown OKC at 3:55 and didn't get to the LNC until 5:00. I was meeting my parents in their handicap spot to take them to dinner. I was so delayed we were only able to go to Rudy's. Then when bringing them back to the LNC I had to beg to be able to drop them off at the ramp outside the arena. Of course it is still a great effort for them to get in the building.

I was told I couldn't park anywhere on the Southwest side of the building because I forgot my Sooner Club pass. I went ahead and parked near the rugby field. I was the only car in about 200 spaces. Why does OU have to make everything difficult for the fans. This game wasn't going to be well attended they could have let me park anywhere.

I didn't understand the Sooner Club parking limitation this early in the year. They never do it before conference play. Fortunately, I put my pass in my car when i receive it so I had mine, but it's crazy to block off the entire southwest quadrant of the parking lot for a couple of hundred cars (if that). Don't tell anybody, but all of the entrances on the street on the west side of the parking lot (in front of the tennis center) were unmanned and you could just do an end run and park where you wanted. But keep that between us!! Haha!!

 

[MJSooner]

They run the LNC like it is Ft Knox. The parking lot monitoring is a joke, and I haven't like the SoonerClub parking since they moved it from the east side. Access on the east side was so much better.

Between the parking lot monitors and the CSC people at the doors and in the arena, it is not fan friendly. They act like we should be thankful to be able to go where they direct us, not thankful just because we are there.

 

[WichitaSooner]

I'd normally not suggest this, but given how much Lon cares about the fans and how badly he wants them to have positive experiences with the program, I wonder whether it would be worth contacting the basketball office directly to express some of these concerns. 99% of the time, game day operations would be something that the coach and staff would have no interest in, but I have a feeling that if enough fans let them know about these negative experiences, they might look into them. I've always found Renee (Lon's assistant) to be extremely helpful when I have called or emailed with questions. If diehard OU basketball fans on this board are turned off by the experience of attending games at the LNC, I can only imagine how it comes across to the casual fan. Some of the specific issues that people have identified in this thread should be brought to the attention of the people who can actually do something about them!

 

[Darwin]

Lets face it TV and the dvr mean you watch the game on your time. I really have adjusted my opinion on this. It makes me wonder if a new arena wouldn't do enough to justify the expense, it would have 15 or 20 years ago.

 

[cowboysooner]

This issue has been discussed on this board many times through the years. JMO but the principal issues resulting in reduced attendance:

(1) the arena. It sucks in my opinion. It is not a basketball arena. I go to a few games a year just to show my support for Lon and the kids, but usually just watch on TV. Even with a crowd, there is little atmosphere and you are way way to far from the court. Unless I am low in the lower bowl, I don't see well enough to make out the kids numbers. I know -- there are those that disagree. This is my opinion. BTW, Michigan had our exact arena and couldn't pay people to go to the games for years, then got an arena made for basketball and routinely sell out now.

(2) The Thunder. I know several people that had OU mens and womens season tickets that no longer buy those tickets and instead buy Thunder season tickets.

(3) Indian gaming. Casino gaming has dramatically reduced many people's disposable income and given people a "thing" to do in their spare time. So, now instead of going to high school and college sporting events, if for no other reason that to have something to do, they go to the casinos. They can watch the games on TV for free.

Just my opinions.

 

[skyvue]

Tomorrow's game is the last one at home for a full month. As much as we might benefit from playing on the road and at neutral sites, that's kind of a shame. If I were a local fan, I'd be irritated having to go that long without attending a game.

 

[WaymanFan]

I simply cannot relate to these attendance issues. I've gone to several AWAY games dating back to 1984 when we played in Syracuse against the Orange. In all but one game attended (was in Columbia, SC for the NCAA Tournament this past March), OU has always been well-represented with lots of fans (usually more than expected). The only time I felt alone on the road was a 1992 game against UMass in Springfield, MA.

 

[NMSooner'80]

I've been back in Oklahoma for five years. I've never been to a Thunder game. It's hard for me to get to mid-week games, but I rarely miss a home weekend game at LNC.

Until the Thunder actually suits up an OU grad, I will barely care if they win or lose. I would still never pick the Thunder over OU if it came down to a choice. I'm an OU grad, not a Thunder "grad."

 

[Sooner Season]

This issue has been discussed on this board many times through the years. JMO but the principal issues resulting in reduced attendance:

(1) the arena. It sucks in my opinion. It is not a basketball arena. I go to a few games a year just to show my support for Lon and the kids, but usually just watch on TV. Even with a crowd, there is little atmosphere and you are way way to far from the court. Unless I am low in the lower bowl, I don't see well enough to make out the kids numbers. I know -- there are those that disagree. This is my opinion. BTW, Michigan had our exact arena and couldn't pay people to go to the games for years, then got an arena made for basketball and routinely sell out now.

(2) The Thunder. I know several people that had OU mens and womens season tickets that no longer buy those tickets and instead buy Thunder season tickets.

(3) Indian gaming. Casino gaming has dramatically reduced many people's disposable income and given people a "thing" to do in their spare time. So, now instead of going to high school and college sporting events, if for no other reason that to have something to do, they go to the casinos. They can watch the games on TV for free.

Just my opinions.

Those are all good points to consider. My comments to each would be:

1. Lloyd Noble Center has never really bothered me. I realize it's an all purpose facility charading as a basketball arena but i respectfully disagree, when it's full I think the atmosphere is great. Of course I'm old enough to remember standing room only 2 or 3 deep around the top level when Billy and the boys were rocking and I promise you it was LOUD during that time. With that being said, I think it would be great to do some of the non con games in McCasland. I think that might create some fan base excitement that would carry over to conference games at LNC.

2. I'm sure the Thunder has taken some away for the prestige of the NBA, but for me, I was a Sooner alumni and fan LONG before the Thunder so my allegiance and attendance will always be Sooners first. The next couple of years with the youth and fun of this current Sooner team and the total tear down of the Thunder maybe we will see the pendulum somewhat swing back to OU for a while.

3. This is an awesome point i hadn't considered and I think maybe very legitimate. Add to that the electronic culture we live in now where people prefer online communication to face to face and of course many now prefer watching electronically rather than in person.

4. I will add a fourth. The students lack of attendance is the key to me. Again, a sign of the times but when i was in school the entire northwest quadrant of the arena was student seating and if you arrived at game time you were sitting in the upper level corner or end. The students set the tone for everything if you ask me, and I don't think you are going to solve that issue as Lon has done and is doing everything possible to bring them in with little or no success.

Wish it was packed every night, but all I can control are my seats, and they will be occupied EVERY game.....and until the final buzzer I might add, but that's another discussion!

 

[Stikboy]

Good post.

What is the deal with OU students? Isn't the population, like, now in the 30Ks? It seems like even at football games most fans are older and drive from all around OK and surrounding areas. In the SEC and other places the crowds look like it's mostly students. Is this generation of OU student just indifferent to sports? Puzzling.

 

[CoachTalk]

Good post.

What is the deal with OU students? Isn't the population, like, now in the 30Ks? It seems like even at football games most fans are older and drive from all around OK and surrounding areas. In the SEC and other places the crowds look like it's mostly students. Is this generation of OU student just indifferent to sports? Puzzling.

Lack of students bother me. Its not lack of trying Boom Squad, LK and players have went around and around to get fans, Free pizza popcorn drinks...

They dont show up.

 

[AdaSooner]

Attendance at games (or a lack thereof) has been a topic of discussion on this board since it was launched eleven years ago last month.

Attendance improved some during the Capel era when Blake and Willie brought more excitement to the LNC, but not without a concerted effort from a group of dedicated student diehards, led by “BigTime,” a former former admin here and still a poster on this board. It declined again when Jeff Capel finished his OU career with two straight losing seasons.

It has never been easy to get OU students involved in basketball. We have all heard every excuse known to mankind over the years. BigTime and his group heard them, too. They attended various meetings on campus, went door to door in the dorms, passed out flyers and put up posters all over campus in an effort to create more interest. It worked, to some extent, but it didn’t last.

Having sad all of that, OU is not the only school with attendance problems. We might be worse than most, but we are definitely not alone. Okie State fans will tell you that the glory days of students setting up tents and camping out near the entrances to get seats in their arena are gone now.

I posted an article a few years ago about Duke, of all places, struggling to fill seats in the student sections in Cameron Indoor at the lesser games. Keep in mind, it’s easier to pack the house in an arena with a capacity of 9,314 than one with closer to 12,000. I’m not saying we don’t have a problem. I’m just pointing out that OU is not the only one.

Carry on. It never hurts to remind fans about an issue. But, I already know how this discussion will end.