Big Reason to attend the Home Opener, Elon

[E.T.]

...

I am aware it takes some money to schedule but not for legit 1 and 1, other teams can do it why can't USF? ...

As stated earlier, many of these lower 1A teams get paid $500-750K to play teams ... these larger 1A teams have large fan bases and make money even paying this much. USF would lose money.

Some 1AA teams even ask for $250K and get it from some 1A teams.

MONEY is the reason we schedule these lower 1AA teams ...

[highlight]... and the whole reason for this thread is to help explain WHY we need to attend these games[/highlight] ... when we have more fans and more fans donating, we can afford to bring in more lower 1A teams on a regular basis AND have 7-8 Home schedules.

You are not alone in "complaints" of player 1AA teams, but there is a major reason for it, please help EDUCATE our fan base and asked them to "sacrifice". I would rather be in RayJat watching USF play ANYONE, than the game of the century -again. And we have about 25K fans(being generous) that would also. We just need to double that number.

:GoBulls

[crambone]

Everyone should be at this game.

Period.

[Triple B]

I am in no way saying that Brad, Normal, or ET are not avid fans, my point is that you were not at the game for valid reasons so you do not know how bad the atmosphere was last year.

The atmosphere was horrible because we were only up by freaking 4 points going into the 4th quarter!!  

I am aware I am outnumbered and outgunned on this one but I have many friends who go to games but do not post here and the div 1AA openers is their number 1 complaint as it is mine. [highlight]I guess if that is all we have to complain about then things are not that bad[/highlight].

Exactly .....

[WoolyBully]

Since I have season tickets, I exhaust them. We attend every home game - regardless of opponent, and yes, regardless of interest - and I give away the tickets I don't use. If that person shows up, fine, if not fine as well also...the revenue stream was maintained regardless of butts-in-the-seat.

We'll be there, as will most season ticket holders and the die-hard fans.

[Bullpride08]

I am college football fan and will be at game, but I know no one will take the extra tickets I have had since day 1. I went through this last year, many people would rather stay home and watch a game that counts on TV.

Put the bs games at homecoming when people will come no matter what and want to see an easy win.

First, at most of even the major BCS schools they don't sell out, or at least actual attendance wise, for most of the mighty mites they bring in to slaughter either.  I believe it was S. Piss that had like 12k unused tixs for Gainesville...it's all relative when you have a 92k seat stadium and it really only means attendance was like 75k instead of 92k, hey 75k can get just as loud.  But the point is that 72-75k that actually attended are the actual fans, the internet guys, the real hardcores.

Right now USF's hardcore group is somewhere in the neighborhood of 20-25k and slowly, ever so slowly building.  And it will continue to grow with more students graduating with football, more players graduating and their families, more fans watching a winner.  True enough to get over the 40k we need more casuals and to get the casuals we need good games, but the point is that's no different than anyone else it's just the difference for us is more profound because we're selling 17-18k season tickets not 36-50k like most of the big BCS schools, and our student attendance hovers from 5-10k not 12-20k like most of the big BCS schools.    Those numbers will slowly improve as will our attendance but it won't come just because we played one more BCS school in lieu of Elon.  It's a slow build.  But also don't kid yourself into believing the casual fan is so interested, or intune that one extra BCS opponent in lieu of Elon would make a difference.

I look at casual fans in two styles.  I have the casual fans I know that are actually interested and legitimately seek you out or buying a ticket when a big game is in town (and they clasify even the mundane of BCS opponents as big games), and there are the casual fans that might go once in a blue moon, maybe when Miami or WVU comes to town but that's about it...PERIOD.  Here's the reality, that first group is what gets the stadium swelling, the 2nd group don't do much but add to hype.  The problem with USF is there are more of the 2nd type in Tampa then the first.  The idea is to slowly transform them and that's how you build attendance and grow season tixs.  They're not going to the Elon game probably even if you begged them, the first group would make time for UNC, UL, UCF, and maybe Cinci, the 2nd for MAYBE WVU ONLY!!!   We've got to grow that 1st group bigger, and slowly convert a few of those each year as rabid fans.

The misnomer I read on this board and from others is that the casual fan is a bunch of interested people just waiting and begging USF to do one thing and they'd hop on board and start going to every game, and buying season tickets and suddenly our ticket ranks would jump dramatically....like they'd say something asinine like 'if USF would just play another BCS instead of Elon then I'd buy season tixs'.  The reality is most casual fans are so casual they blend in, and they need more than a fancy ad, or give away to get them to go.  They need a large rabid fan base like the ones on this board to spread the word, give free tickets, talk up USF, and slowly get them to love USF.  USF has 17k season tickets, say for example that every seat just counts the rabid fans, go at any cost kind (I know it doesn't but just say it does), and say UF has 55k season ticket holders....which group has a better chance to get another 5-10k casual observers to come to the game and buy tickets....the percentage likeliness is on the UF side and not the USF side, throwing out the long standing history, and pageantry that is UF versus USF.

For now Elon is a game that helps the coaching staff, and when you realize that even if we played a bigger opponent in lieu of it wouldn't jump our ticket sales much higher it's easy to rationalize the game.  Particularly when the on-field value right now far outweighs the off-field value, and that is a true fact because one top notch reason that casual fans convert to season ticket holders and rabid fans is winning.  Pure and simple that's the top reason they'll join the ranks to hang with a winner- the reason:  crowds and fans are more excited when their team win.  They're happy, they party more...casual fans see this and it's infectious.  They want to be part of the party, the excitement, the winning, the pageantry that comes with winning.

[E.T.]

Great points ... it was just a few years ago that our schedule improved.

This season we will have 2 (most likely) Top 10 teams visiting ... and does anyone expect that much of an increase ?

We had a Top 10 Louisville & WVU in 2005, no record attendance.

Proof that it takes time, not just an amped up schedule.

[Joe]

We had a Top 10 Louisville & WVU in 2005, no record attendance.

Proof that it takes time, not just an amped up schedule.

Not really exact proof, because those 2005 Louisville and WVU teams weren't exactly household top 10 teams.

Hard to create a buzz around the no teams unlike a Miami.

[E.T.]

Always excuses  

Sriously, if Miami isn't a Top 25 team when they visit in 2009 ... some will use this as an excuse also.

Or since they are "household" names, they should increase sales.

It comes down to USF doesn't have enough fans ... not the opponent - to a degree.

L'ville & WVU were ranked Top 10 ... look how excited some were with #23 Bowling Green visiting. And I am sure many would use the same line that IF we could get ranked teams every year . . . blah blah blah.

Okay, we're getting off the subject again . . .

BOTTOM LINE: When we have more fans, we'll have more attending these 1AA openers ... then we will have more money to bring in bigger "names" or 1A openers ... some will still use an excuse, but we CAN get 7-8 Home games a year WHEN we get more fans to . . .

SUPPORT this program !

Go BULLS !!!

[Mission9]

We seem to have too many "fans" that do not want to come to this game because of the opponent.

Remember, HOME Games make us more money ... so we need to come out in force.

But, we just don't seem to have that many fans  

But as we build a bigger fan base, it will be a step closer to an OCS [highlight](and please don't start the OCS talk)[/highlight] and seeing our Beloved BULLS more often.

Having more fans will also give the Athletic Department more money to BUY bigger name teams to visit Tamplona.

Hopefully, more will "sacrifice" and come see OUR BULLS play, not just the game featuring two great teams like L'ville and WVU visiting.

And furthermore, we can get 2 for 1 deals and have more home games ... remember having 7 Home games back in the beginning ? And with the Big East at 8 teams, there would easily be seasons when we have 8 Home Games !

Just imagine the money our program would make having 8 Home Games !

Get your season tix if you don't already and remember larger donations can be paid quarterly. Help give our program the funds needed to be in the Big 3.

:GoBulls Go BULLS !!!  :GoBulls

Man ET, I thought you were going to tell us they were giving away free beer!

[JoeB]

There should be no excuses.  Go to the game because its there.

Why do you climb a mountain?