http://lehighfootballnation.blogspot...games-and.html
Certainly germane to Lehigh fans and Patriot League fans, but maybe there's some application as well to raising attendance at other FCS schools as well. A longform piece that attempts to cover it all.
You got most of it - noon or 12:30 games draw the least. Play a night game, play somebody & play up the tailgating.
Delaware Football in the Dumpster and Henzone reads all my posting here
I personally like the 12:30 PM games at Lehigh because it allows me to attend another event in the evening (4 of the last 5 years that other event was a Lafayette game at Fisher Stadium, while the other year it was a Somerset Patriots minor league baseball game in central New Jersey), but I'm probably in the minority. Also, as a non-alumnus of Lehigh, I like the fact I have plenty of room to park at Goodman Stadium and I really like the bucolic setting.
I really think Lehigh would benefit from installing a video board and upgrading the audio system.
Looking at the broader picture, I think one of the things that hurts college football attendance is the uncomfortable seating at most college stadiums. Most stadiums, including a number of major college stadiums (like Penn State's Beaver Stadium) have entirely or mostly bleachers without backs seating. In today's day and age, that kind of seating often doesn't cut it.
Though I like the fact I can watch many of the games for the college football teams I follow in one form or another, even though I'm located at least 125 miles from any of those teams, I think college football has oversaturated itself TV-wise. The NFL has always been smart - they limit the number of games available (mind you, that's in part because there are only 32 teams) and make certain games, particularly the late Sunday afternoon doubleheader game, the NBC Sunday night game, and to a lesser degree the ESPN Monday night games, events. Unless you live in a local market for your favorite team, not every game is televised, and that encourages people to attend some of the games that aren't televised. With so many games available on national and local TV and also via internet streaming, most college football games are, in contrast to the NFL, non-events. The sheer number of games also plays into our culture's increasingly limited attention spans - if one game isn't entertaining, you find another game that is. And that also becomes an issue with live games - people have become so accustomed to seeing the amazing by flipping the TV channel that unless a game is very entertaining, an increasing number of people don't have the attention span to watch a live game, or enjoy the band, or enjoy the relatively quaint pageantry associated with many college football games.
Redo current tailgate rules; video scoreboard ;more flexible transportation and some early seasom late afternoon games.
Back in the dawn of time,frosh were required to attend football home games.
Opponents are a big reason for attendance. Lafayette didn't draw 3,207 versus Robert Morris because it was a 6:00 pm start, it drew 3,207 because it was Robert Morris.
Advance tickets are a given for the Lafayette game, a given. Penn will draw, too. But no one is buying advanced tickets for Georgetown and Holy Cross. Conversely, road crowds are vital to attendance numbers. Unless the Engineers can draw Old Dominion-styled local crowds, it will rely on road seating (as evidenced by the photo on the article) to fill the seats after the core 7,000 Lehigh fans buy tickets. But other than Lafayette, what are the traveling crowds of the other schools?
Georgetown: "We play where we do not compete, and compete where we do not play."
IIRC, that game was also played on a day as hot as Hades and some severe thunderstorms came through during the day; I think Robert Morris/Lafayette may have been delayed a bit by the weather. (I attended a concert in DC that night that was over around 9:15 PM, and I remember being surprised that the game was still going on. I watched part of it on the bus going home.)Originally Posted by DFW HOYA
The Fordham/Villanova game at Villanova that was suspended by lightning was played the same day as Robert Morris/Lafayette.
What tailgating rules are you talking about? I can walk with a beer right up to the main gate trashcans and throw it away. Lehigh has one of the most relaxed systems in progress. If you are worried about the students...... 70% are under age and can ride the many flexible buses over the mountain. Most students that attend a game drink early at the frats ,ride free bus over to the game,leave at halftime when the buzz wears off,and ride another flexible free bus to campus Video board is a must in the future and ol' tradition has Lehigh locked at 12:30. One of the best game day atmospheres around,but you want a later start? LIGHTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Redo current tailgate rules; video scoreboard ;more flexible transportation and some early seasom late afternoon games.
Back in the dawn of time,frosh were required to attend football home games.
The most recent comment on your post is rather brutal...
IMO the only way you're getting people to attend these games is if Lehigh were to join the P5. i cant even get recent alumni to watch lehigh football and basketball games when they're nationally televised on cbs sports. people just dont really care about anything outside of the P5.
Beware of night games. Princeton is doing them and the actual attendance is pretty limited. The "Old Guard" wants their early afternoon tailgates in the sunshine and the ability to drive home in daylight.
Ironically, Colgate seems to have had some success with night games.
P.S. I think Goodman is a great place to watch a football game and always a great road trip. The ball park is nice and the game-day experience is family-friendly.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks