New arena?

[sunny]

Any news on whether this will happen? Sure wish we could create an atmosphere where the crowd was right on the court. Lots of folks sure sit on their hands at Lloyd Noble and the students are not really close to the court. They try to be loud its just not intimidating like other places.

 

[SoonerSpock]

Don't forget against Tech the students were home for semester break. Makes little financial sense for OU to build a new arena. The arena in north Norman has some logic to it. It is 15-20 minutes closer to OKC/Edmond which is a positive but I would like to see the arena larger than 10K.

The last 3 games the Sooners sold 11,259, 11,390 and 10,043. The next two games against TCU and Kansas are sellout for the 11,528 seating capacity. Makes no sense to build a facility that is smaller than the number of tickets you are selling. You should build your facilities not to accommodate your worse teams but your better teams.

 

[soonerczech]

OU wants an off campus arena to sell the booze.

 

[bob the nailer]

The arena doesn't have to be off campus to sell booze. That's a dbo thing. Texas sells beer at their stadium/arena.

 

[JBaker]

Don't forget against Tech the students were home for semester break. Makes little financial sense for OU to build a new arena. The arena in north Norman has some logic to it. It is 15-20 minutes closer to OKC/Edmond which is a positive but I would like to see the arena larger than 10K.

The last 3 games the Sooners sold 11,259, 11,390 and 10,043. The next two games against TCU and Kansas are sellout for the 11,528 seating capacity. Makes no sense to build a facility that is smaller than the number of tickets you are selling. You should build your facilities not to accommodate your worse teams but your better teams.

We need a smaller arena. I know we sell 11,000 tickets to a few games most years, but that’s far from the norm. Plus, lower supply increases demand. LNC is much bigger than Cameron, for instance. You don’t think Duke knows that if they add 3,000 seats they could sell them at least a few times a year? But they don’t. With a smaller arena you can have a better layout/atmosphere.

If OU football was selling 55,000 4 or 5 times a year and 85,000 once or twice, we wouldn’t be saying we need a bigger stadium.

 

[SoonerSpock]

We need a smaller arena. I know we sell 11,000 tickets to a few games most years, but that’s far from the norm. Plus, lower supply increases demand. LNC is much bigger than Cameron, for instance. You don’t think Duke knows that if they add 3,000 seats they could sell them at least a few times a year? But they don’t. With a smaller arena you can have a better layout/atmosphere.

If OU football was selling 55,000 4 or 5 times a year and 85,000 once or twice, we wouldn’t be saying we need a bigger stadium.

Play winning basketball and you won't have 3,000 empty seats. Having had season tickets for 40+ years I have seen the LNC as a near sellout for entire seasons excluding non-conference weak sister games.

Oklahoma is not a true basketball school but they will support a team that consistently wins on a high level but the key is winning consistently.

 

[OUFtball]

I only get to a couple games a year because it's about a 4 1/2 hour round trip drive for me to the games.....I went last night to the Texas Tech game...The crowd was quiet at times.....There was a bad call and I stood up and was yelling at the refs....People were turning around and looking at me like I was crazy...I sat back down.....I watched the WV crowd affect the game with the officials.....You don't have to worry about that happening in Norman.....To the OU fans in my section....I am sorry for yelling at a basketball game.

 

[BoulderSooner]

We need a smaller arena. I know we sell 11,000 tickets to a few games most years, but that’s far from the norm. Plus, lower supply increases demand. LNC is much bigger than Cameron, for instance. You don’t think Duke knows that if they add 3,000 seats they could sell them at least a few times a year? But they don’t. With a smaller arena you can have a better layout/atmosphere.

If OU football was selling 55,000 4 or 5 times a year and 85,000 once or twice, we wouldn’t be saying we need a bigger stadium.

ou sells 10k tickets to almost every game every year

 

[tycat947]

Any news on whether this will happen? Sure wish we could create an atmosphere where the crowd was right on the court. Lots of folks sure sit on their hands at Lloyd Noble and the students are not really close to the court. They try to be loud its just not intimidating like other places.

What makes you think they won’t sit on their hands in a new arena? LNC was one of the toughest places to play in the 80s. It’s not the arena that is the problem.

 

[tycat947]

ou sells 10k tickets to almost every game every year

Exactly!

 

[BoulderSooner]

Exactly!

tickets sold to games the last 4 years we don't need a smaller arena .. half the games at home when we are good we sell 11k tickets

2017/2018 season
9045 omaha
7242 Ball St
8132 UNT
8793 UTSA
7945 NWST
11259 NW
11390 OSU
10043 Tech

average 9231 tickets sold and going up

2016/2017
8456 NWST
9303 Abilene
7579 Northern colorado
8034 ORU
9081 Memphis
10254 Baylor
9788 KU
8601 Tech
9673 ISU
10859 UF
10103 OSU
8608 WVU
7545 UT
10181 KSU
9526 TCU

in our worst year average 9172 tickets sold

2015/2016
7892 Washburn
7123 MidAmerican
8364 Mcneese
7332 Incarnate
8988 Wisconsin
7109 Central Ark
9421 ORU
9528 Creighton
11251 ISU
11113 KSU
11933 WVU
10682 TECH
7455 TCU
11547 UT
12247 KU
11470 OSU
11563 BU

9706 average tickets sold 7 times over 11k

2014/2015
9626 SELA
10056 NWST
11652 MIZZOU
9713 ORU
10645 Weber St
10597 George Mason
12322 BU
12426 KSU
12730 OSU
9857 Tech
10154 WVU
11099 ISU
11413 Texas
12408 TCU
12104 KU

11,120 average 8 times over 11k

 

[Darwin]

LNC is old but will never be a classy older arena because the design is not for basketball. Wherever the new one is, if it's still 11000 it needs to be taller with less seating behind the baskets.

 

[JBaker]

tickets sold to games the last 4 years we don't need a smaller arena .. half the games at home when we are good we sell 11k tickets

2017/2018 season
9045 omaha
7242 Ball St
8132 UNT
8793 UTSA
7945 NWST
11259 NW
11390 OSU
10043 Tech

average 9231 tickets sold and going up

2016/2017
8456 NWST
9303 Abilene
7579 Northern colorado
8034 ORU
9081 Memphis
10254 Baylor
9788 KU
8601 Tech
9673 ISU
10859 UF
10103 OSU
8608 WVU
7545 UT
10181 KSU
9526 TCU

in our worst year average 9172 tickets sold

2015/2016
7892 Washburn
7123 MidAmerican
8364 Mcneese
7332 Incarnate
8988 Wisconsin
7109 Central Ark
9421 ORU
9528 Creighton
11251 ISU
11113 KSU
11933 WVU
10682 TECH
7455 TCU
11547 UT
12247 KU
11470 OSU
11563 BU

9706 average tickets sold 7 times over 11k

2014/2015
9626 SELA
10056 NWST
11652 MIZZOU
9713 ORU
10645 Weber St
10597 George Mason
12322 BU
12426 KSU
12730 OSU
9857 Tech
10154 WVU
11099 ISU
11413 Texas
12408 TCU
12104 KU

11,120 average 8 times over 11k

And nearly every single game has a promotion selling tickets for $5 or $10 to try and get tickets sold. There is not super high demand for OU basketball tickets. You could cap a new stadium at 10,000 seats and still make the exact same amount of money on ticket sales - if not more because it would be closer to a great population base.

 

[SoonerSpock]

LNC is old but will never be a classy older arena because the design is not for basketball. Wherever the new one is, if it's still 11000 it needs to be taller with less seating behind the baskets.

My understanding is that the new proposed facility in north Norman like the LNC will again be a multipurpose facility but more accommodating to basketball. This definitely implies that it will be less than optimum for basketball like many fans want.


http://www.normantranscript.com/new...cle_12cce910-9d7d-11e7-8fb2-0376c571a12c.html

 

[Swans]

If you think it’s hard getting students to games now.....just build that arena where they’d have to get in a car to get there.

 

[thebigabd]

This comes up every year... OU probably needs a 9,000 seat arena designed for basketball. GIA in Stillwater can be 60% full and insanely loud because of how it is designed.

That being said, I went to a graduation for a family member in Stillwater last year and, my goodness, that arena is insanely steep. Once you get into the upper sections it feels like you are walking directly uphill.

 

[JBaker]

If you think it’s hard getting students to games now.....just build that arena where they’d have to get in a car to get there.

They already have to get in a car to get there. The LNC is over a mile from the dorms. When I was there 15 years ago, almost every freshman that went drove. And that doesn’t account for every other class of student who lives significantly further than that.

 

[pnkranger]

If you think it’s hard getting students to games now.....just build that arena where they’d have to get in a car to get there.

Most students have cars. And CART would run buses to the stadium. When was the last time you've seen students waking in droves from the dorms to Lloyd Noble. I haven't seen it in 25 years of attending basketball games.

 

[BoulderSooner]

This comes up every year... OU probably needs a 9,000 seat arena designed for basketball. GIA in Stillwater can be 60% full and insanely loud because of how it is designed.

That being said, I went to a graduation for a family member in Stillwater last year and, my goodness, that arena is insanely steep. Once you get into the upper sections it feels like you are walking directly uphill.

no ou needs a 10k plus sized arena like what they are looking at

 

[CobraKai]

I lived on or around campus for 5 years and rarely missed a game (Tubbs era). I don’t recall ever walking. I’m sure some people do, but I would guess 95% or more drive to the games currently.