Attendance

[monte]

At the start of the Duke-Notre Dame game at ND, I was surprise to hear the announcers mention that it's the first time in either 3 or 4 years that ND has played in front of a packed house. Last year doesn't count, but that's still a long time for them to not sell out an on campus arena at a sports crazy school. Even if BB plays 2nd fiddle to FB.  Granted the arena seats 9K+ so it's a lot bigger then CA, but the reality is that when ND wasn't winning, fans were not showing up nearly as much. Sound familiar??? Another thing; the fans at most of these on campus arenas seem to be predominantly comprised of students and other younger fans(alums?). Why is it that at CA our students make up such a small percentage of the attendance? I mean, younger fans tend to be a lot more vocal and give the home team much more of a home court advantage. When I was a student there was no on-campus housing, so I understood there not being as many students at the games, but that's no excuse now. All I can say is that it seems to be that if the students made up anywhere near the same % of fans as at most other on campus arenas, then we'd have no problem selling out and we'd have a lot more of a home court advantage. IMO that's the demographic that the marketing campaign needs to focus on, not on us old, lazy ass, apathetic fans who've been jaded by the last 20+ years. I suspect that the school is aware of this, it seems like they are taking steps to address it, time will tell it they are successful, 

 

 

[ohiofan]

Give them free beer, they will come.

 

[Anthony Mattia]

Get them court side down the entire length of the court opposite the benches and at least 3-5 rows deep and give them those seats for free.

 

[beast of the east]

At the start of the Duke-Notre Dame game at ND, I was surprise to hear the announcers mention that it's the first time in either 3 or 4 years that ND has played in front of a packed house. Last year doesn't count, but that's still a long time for them to not sell out an on campus arena at a sports crazy school. Even if BB plays 2nd fiddle to FB.  Granted the arena seats 9K+ so it's a lot bigger then CA, but the reality is that when ND wasn't winning, fans were not showing up nearly as much. Sound familiar??? Another thing; the fans at most of these on campus arenas seem to be predominantly comprised of students and other younger fans(alums?). Why is it that at CA our students make up such a small percentage of the attendance? I mean, younger fans tend to be a lot more vocal and give the home team much more of a home court advantage. When I was a student there was no on-campus housing, so I understood there not being as many students at the games, but that's no excuse now. All I can say is that it seems to be that if the students made up anywhere near the same % of fans as at most other on campus arenas, then we'd have no problem selling out and we'd have a lot more of a home court advantage. IMO that's the demographic that the marketing campaign needs to focus on, not on us old, lazy ass, apathetic fans who've been jaded by the last 20+ years. I suspect that the school is aware of this, it seems like they are taking steps to address it, time will tell it they are successful, 


 

Students have a million things they can do socially, and at most school unless going to games becomes a thing, they stay away.

Lots in going on to try to engage students in all ways. It's just one component of marketing our basketball team.

At UBS, we drew a lot of younger, non-student fans, way more than the few who are active on redmen.com. They forked over $65-85 per ticket, bought $14 soft drinks, paid $35 to park, and appeared to know our team pretty well. Thanks to electronic purchases, we can identify and focus on those fans.

Pretty much you nailed it. The older fans who passionately follow the games on TV, but don't buy tickets are basically a lost cause in growing the program. They may or may not buy tickets or support the program when the team wins, and if so, are not a large enough number to reclaim as season ticket holders.

It's pretty hard to find on line, but I think Notre Dame basketball still averages a decent number for home games. The big difference is that SJU has 170,000 alumni, and many live in the NYC metro area. I'm certain Notre Dame has more alums living in NYC Metro than within 50 miles of the school.

I would think recruits look at these things when they consider a school. How visible is the program, how much do they win, do they play in the NCAAs on a big stage, attendance at games and how well funded the program is to provide superior athletic facilities and housing. On the last note, we are 11th in the Big East in those things.

As fans, other than ranting on here, the only real things fans can do is to buy tickets and support the program's initiatives to make us more competitive. If we simply buy tickets when we win, we are simply consumers of a good product, which any winning sports team has in abundance,

 

[room112]

How many students actually stay on campus? I always thought St. John's had the reputation as a commuter school, so it made it more of a challenge to garner student support on campus. 

I also wonder how the basketball team is marketed to students on campus. I hope the answer isn't that the administration hopes kids will show up simply because there is a basketball team. 

I still think free tickets are all students is the answer, at least until there is significant demand for tickets. 

 

[beast of the east]

Get them court side down the entire length of the court opposite the benches and at least 3-5 rows deep and give them those seats for free.

Student tickets are already free to my knowledge at CA at least.   The problem with displacing season ticket holders and moving students courtside is that the last time that was done there were massive cancellations in season tickets by those long term season ticket holders, and we have not recovered from that to this day.

For any product whatsoever, there has to be a value proposition.   Unless the consumer see value in a product, giving it away for free can even degrade the value proposition.   Students will pay a resaonable amount for what they perceive hold high value to them.

 

[RM86]

My daughter goes to Providence, I think her season tickets were $75. Student support at The Dunk is fantastic. Lots of their students actually walked to the Marquette game Sunday because they had no student buses to the game. St.Johns can't get students to walk across campus to go to games. 

 

[monte]

At the start of the Duke-Notre Dame game at ND, I was surprise to hear the announcers mention that it's the first time in either 3 or 4 years that ND has played in front of a packed house. Last year doesn't count, but that's still a long time for them to not sell out an on campus arena at a sports crazy school. Even if BB plays 2nd fiddle to FB.  Granted the arena seats 9K+ so it's a lot bigger then CA, but the reality is that when ND wasn't winning, fans were not showing up nearly as much. Sound familiar??? Another thing; the fans at most of these on campus arenas seem to be predominantly comprised of students and other younger fans(alums?). Why is it that at CA our students make up such a small percentage of the attendance? I mean, younger fans tend to be a lot more vocal and give the home team much more of a home court advantage. When I was a student there was no on-campus housing, so I understood there not being as many students at the games, but that's no excuse now. All I can say is that it seems to be that if the students made up anywhere near the same % of fans as at most other on campus arenas, then we'd have no problem selling out and we'd have a lot more of a home court advantage. IMO that's the demographic that the marketing campaign needs to focus on, not on us old, lazy ass, apathetic fans who've been jaded by the last 20+ years. I suspect that the school is aware of this, it seems like they are taking steps to address it, time will tell it they are successful, 



 

Students have a million things they can do socially, and at most school unless going to games becomes a thing, they stay away.

Lots in going on to try to engage students in all ways. It's just one component of marketing our basketball team.

At UBS, we drew a lot of younger, non-student fans, way more than the few who are active on redmen.com. They forked over $65-85 per ticket, bought $14 soft drinks, paid $35 to park, and appeared to know our team pretty well. Thanks to electronic purchases, we can identify and focus on those fans.

Pretty much you nailed it. The older fans who passionately follow the games on TV, but don't buy tickets are basically a lost cause in growing the program. They may or may not buy tickets or support the program when the team wins, and if so, are not a large enough number to reclaim as season ticket holders.

It's pretty hard to find on line, but I think Notre Dame basketball still averages a decent number for home games. The big difference is that SJU has 170,000 alumni, and many live in the NYC metro area. I'm certain Notre Dame has more alums living in NYC Metro than within 50 miles of the school.

I would think recruits look at these things when they consider a school. How visible is the program, how much do they win, do they play in the NCAAs on a big stage, attendance at games and how well funded the program is to provide superior athletic facilities and housing. On the last note, we are 11th in the Big East in those things.

As fans, other than ranting on here, the only real things fans can do is to buy tickets and support the program's initiatives to make us more competitive. If we simply buy tickets when we win, we are simply consumers of a good product, which any winning sports team has in abundance,

Its not nearly  as simplistic as you would like to make it, no matter how many times you repeat it. I had season tickets on and off since Louie, and not just when we were winning. Even those years when I didn't have tickets, I purchased tickets and attended many individual games. I drew the line when the prices were raised based on the notion of us having made a "home run hire". That took some real balls on the school's part, I gotta tell ya. Maybe that makes be a fair weather fan in your eyes and that of others, but I'm at the age now where I don't personally give a flying F what anyone thinks. You will not see me buying season tickets ever again unless I feel that the school has made a commitment to sustained success, not with words and promises, with actions and with results. 

 

[beast of the east]

At the start of the Duke-Notre Dame game at ND, I was surprise to hear the announcers mention that it's the first time in either 3 or 4 years that ND has played in front of a packed house. Last year doesn't count, but that's still a long time for them to not sell out an on campus arena at a sports crazy school. Even if BB plays 2nd fiddle to FB.  Granted the arena seats 9K+ so it's a lot bigger then CA, but the reality is that when ND wasn't winning, fans were not showing up nearly as much. Sound familiar??? Another thing; the fans at most of these on campus arenas seem to be predominantly comprised of students and other younger fans(alums?). Why is it that at CA our students make up such a small percentage of the attendance? I mean, younger fans tend to be a lot more vocal and give the home team much more of a home court advantage. When I was a student there was no on-campus housing, so I understood there not being as many students at the games, but that's no excuse now. All I can say is that it seems to be that if the students made up anywhere near the same % of fans as at most other on campus arenas, then we'd have no problem selling out and we'd have a lot more of a home court advantage. IMO that's the demographic that the marketing campaign needs to focus on, not on us old, lazy ass, apathetic fans who've been jaded by the last 20+ years. I suspect that the school is aware of this, it seems like they are taking steps to address it, time will tell it they are successful, 




 

Students have a million things they can do socially, and at most school unless going to games becomes a thing, they stay away.

Lots in going on to try to engage students in all ways. It's just one component of marketing our basketball team.

At UBS, we drew a lot of younger, non-student fans, way more than the few who are active on redmen.com. They forked over $65-85 per ticket, bought $14 soft drinks, paid $35 to park, and appeared to know our team pretty well. Thanks to electronic purchases, we can identify and focus on those fans.

Pretty much you nailed it. The older fans who passionately follow the games on TV, but don't buy tickets are basically a lost cause in growing the program. They may or may not buy tickets or support the program when the team wins, and if so, are not a large enough number to reclaim as season ticket holders.

It's pretty hard to find on line, but I think Notre Dame basketball still averages a decent number for home games. The big difference is that SJU has 170,000 alumni, and many live in the NYC metro area. I'm certain Notre Dame has more alums living in NYC Metro than within 50 miles of the school.

I would think recruits look at these things when they consider a school. How visible is the program, how much do they win, do they play in the NCAAs on a big stage, attendance at games and how well funded the program is to provide superior athletic facilities and housing. On the last note, we are 11th in the Big East in those things.

As fans, other than ranting on here, the only real things fans can do is to buy tickets and support the program's initiatives to make us more competitive. If we simply buy tickets when we win, we are simply consumers of a good product, which any winning sports team has in abundance,

Its not nearly  as simplistic as you would like to make it, no matter how many times you repeat it. I had season tickets on and off since Louie, and not just when we were winning. Even those years when I didn't have tickets, I purchased tickets and attended many individual games. I drew the line when the prices were raised based on the notion of us having made a "home run hire". That took some real balls on the school's part, I gotta tell ya. Maybe that makes be a fair weather fan in your eyes and that of others, but I'm at the age now where I don't personally give a flying F what anyone thinks. You will not see me buying season tickets ever again unless I feel that the school has made a commitment to sustained success, not with words and promises, with actions and with results. 

I think I concisely articulated where you are at.   You will opt to purchase tickets when we start winning.   It's a discretionary purchase for sure.    I don't know any winning professional or big conference sports teams in major markets that have trouble selling tickets when the team wins.   So you are in the majority.   I have no opinion on your decisions, so there is nothing to "give a flying F" about.   My post agreed with yours.

 

[IDRAFT]

At UBS, we drew a lot of younger, non-student fans, way more than the few who are active on redmen.com. They forked over $65-85 per ticket, bought $14 soft drinks, paid $35 to park, and appeared to know our team pretty well. Thanks to electronic purchases, we can identify and focus on those fans.

Absolutely, and hallelujah. Three million people live in Nassau and Suffolk, and close to another two and a half million in Queens. And there are a ton of basketball fans within that area.  

A quick personal story. Two years ago we got new neighbors across the street, they have two grade level children who are constantly in the driveway playing hoops. One of the SJU home games this year they gave away ski hats and my wife gave them to the kids the next day.  The Dad said to me "that's right they play games out here" and I told him yes and the tickets at Carnesecca are very reasonable. He has now brought the boys to four games on campus. He's not a grad.

The SJU campus is surrounded by families that want things to do with the kids that does not involve a trip into Manhattan. I'm not knocking Manhattan myself, but that is a reality of the suburbs and an advantage SJU has and needs to leverage. 


 

 

[room112]

I don't remember this really being discussed too much on this board, but one thing I've always found troubling about attending games at CA, is that there is no direct subway stop at campus. Most people living in NYC don't have a car. So the prospect of having to take a lengthy subway train and then get off and wait for a bus and ride that, may not be appealing to all. 

Beast, I'm not making an excuse, I'm just mentioning something that may figure into people's decision making. Sure, when the team is good and when there is a ton of buzz around the program, you easily make that sacrifice. When the team is not doing so great, might make some question if the ride is worth the hassle. Just saying. 

 

[beast of the east]

At UBS, we drew a lot of younger, non-student fans, way more than the few who are active on redmen.com. They forked over $65-85 per ticket, bought $14 soft drinks, paid $35 to park, and appeared to know our team pretty well. Thanks to electronic purchases, we can identify and focus on those fans.

Absolutely, and hallelujah. Three million people live in Nassau and Suffolk, and close to another two and a half million in Queens. And there are a ton of basketball fans within that area.  

A quick personal story. Two years ago we got new neighbors across the street, they have two grade level children who are constantly in the driveway playing hoops. One of the SJU home games this year they gave away ski hats and my wife gave them to the kids the next day.  The Dad said to me "that's right they play games out here" and I told him yes and the tickets at Carnesecca are very reasonable. He has now brought the boys to four games on campus. He's not a grad.

The SJU campus is surrounded by families that want things to do with the kids that does not involve a trip into Manhattan. I'm not knocking Manhattan myself, but that is a reality of the suburbs and an advantage SJU has and needs to leverage. 



 

 Great story.   When I brought my kids when they were small, they cared little about whether we were ranked, won, or lost.  They were precious times, way less expensive than the Knicks, who I've seen in person a handful of times in my life.  Tonight I am bringing two friends who once had season tix, and a neighbor who is a fan and SJU alum.   should be a fun night.

 

[beast of the east]

I don't remember this really being discussed too much on this board, but one thing I've always found troubling about attending games at CA, is that there is no direct subway stop at campus. Most people living in NYC don't have a car. So the prospect of having to take a lengthy subway train and then get off and wait for a bus and ride that, may not be appealing to all. 

Beast, I'm not making an excuse, I'm just mentioning something that may figure into people's decision making. Sure, when the team is good and when there is a ton of buzz around the program, you easily make that sacrifice. When the team is not doing so great, might make some question if the ride is worth the hassle. Just saying. 

Absolutely true and makes sense.  There is a 169th St subway stop on the E or F, but then a bus.   I have a vague recollection of SJU running a shuttle to Kew Gardens for students, but I'm not sure if that's still around.    Getting to SJU by mass transit stinks.   I did it from Queens by first two years at SJU - two buses, more than an hour, waiting in all kinds of weather.   It is unfortunate, but that's where we are.

 

[jerseyshorejohnny]

At the start of the Duke-Notre Dame game at ND, I was surprise to hear the announcers mention that it's the first time in either 3 or 4 years that ND has played in front of a packed house. Last year doesn't count, but that's still a long time for them to not sell out an on campus arena at a sports crazy school. Even if BB plays 2nd fiddle to FB.  Granted the arena seats 9K+ so it's a lot bigger then CA, but the reality is that when ND wasn't winning, fans were not showing up nearly as much. Sound familiar??? Another thing; the fans at most of these on campus arenas seem to be predominantly comprised of students and other younger fans(alums?). Why is it that at CA our students make up such a small percentage of the attendance? I mean, younger fans tend to be a lot more vocal and give the home team much more of a home court advantage. When I was a student there was no on-campus housing, so I understood there not being as many students at the games, but that's no excuse now. All I can say is that it seems to be that if the students made up anywhere near the same % of fans as at most other on campus arenas, then we'd have no problem selling out and we'd have a lot more of a home court advantage. IMO that's the demographic that the marketing campaign needs to focus on, not on us old, lazy ass, apathetic fans who've been jaded by the last 20+ years. I suspect that the school is aware of this, it seems like they are taking steps to address it, time will tell it they are successful, 


Fwiw.......... ND also draws additional students to their games from St. Mary's College and Holy Cross College (Not to be confused with The College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts) both located across the "the street" from ND






 

 

[bamafan]

Its not nearly  as simplistic as you would like to make it, no matter how many times you repeat it. I had season tickets on and off since Louie, and not just when we were winning. Even those years when I didn't have tickets, I purchased tickets and attended many individual games. I drew the line when the prices were raised based on the notion of us having made a "home run hire". That took some real balls on the school's part, I gotta tell ya. Maybe that makes be a fair weather fan in your eyes and that of others, but I'm at the age now where I don't personally give a flying F what anyone thinks. You will not see me buying season tickets ever again unless I feel that the school has made a commitment to sustained success, not with words and promises, with actions and with results. 

Had season tickets for over 40 years gave them up recently. Still go to select games though. At this point no longer willing to suffer the discomfort of CA for a mediocre team. Give me a real winner (don't mean 17-14 type teams) and I'll put up with lack of modern amenities at CA or give me a modern facility and I'll put up with a slightly lesser product that most of us are still hoping for but not for what we have been for 20 plus years now.

 

[fuchsia]

I don't remember this really being discussed too much on this board, but one thing I've always found troubling about attending games at CA, is that there is no direct subway stop at campus. Most people living in NYC don't have a car. So the prospect of having to take a lengthy subway train and then get off and wait for a bus and ride that, may not be appealing to all. 

Beast, I'm not making an excuse, I'm just mentioning something that may figure into people's decision making. Sure, when the team is good and when there is a ton of buzz around the program, you easily make that sacrifice. When the team is not doing so great, might make some question if the ride is worth the hassle. Just saying. 

Absolutely true and makes sense.  There is a 169th St subway stop on the E or F, but then a bus.   I have a vague recollection of SJU running a shuttle to Kew Gardens for students, but I'm not sure if that's still around.    Getting to SJU by mass transit stinks.   I did it from Queens by first two years at SJU - two buses, more than an hour, waiting in all kinds of weather.   It is unfortunate, but that's where we are.

Does this mean that there could be more pay-off from setting up a shuttle service from subway to campus and charging regular bus fare but then giving discount coupons for basketball tickets to all passengers?  Sounds relatively cheap and might create so much demand that Carnesecca upgrade starts to appear more feasible.

 

[beast of the east]

We are looking at high side 4500 tonight, depending on students.

Some friends had to cancel late, so if you would like to go to game tonight, please PM me, no charge.

 

[monte]

At UBS, we drew a lot of younger, non-student fans, way more than the few who are active on redmen.com. They forked over $65-85 per ticket, bought $14 soft drinks, paid $35 to park, and appeared to know our team pretty well. Thanks to electronic purchases, we can identify and focus on those fans.

Absolutely, and hallelujah. Three million people live in Nassau and Suffolk, and close to another two and a half million in Queens. And there are a ton of basketball fans within that area.  

A quick personal story. Two years ago we got new neighbors across the street, they have two grade level children who are constantly in the driveway playing hoops. One of the SJU home games this year they gave away ski hats and my wife gave them to the kids the next day.  The Dad said to me "that's right they play games out here" and I told him yes and the tickets at Carnesecca are very reasonable. He has now brought the boys to four games on campus. He's not a grad.

The SJU campus is surrounded by families that want things to do with the kids that does not involve a trip into Manhattan. I'm not knocking Manhattan myself, but that is a reality of the suburbs and an advantage SJU has and needs to leverage. 


 

Nice story about your neighbors.
Glad to see a younger generation of potential SJU supporters developing. Having said that, CA has always drawn it's fair share of old folk and families. Old folk and families do not create the same kind of atmosphere as college students and 20 somethings. You can half full CA with students and young people, and they'd create a better atmosphere than a sold out CA with old folk and families. The atmosphere would be even better if there was a place like the Sly Foxx to meet up at before and after the games. Oh yeah,
let me add the lack of bars and restaurants around the school as yet another reason that our games are not a popular destination. I can even get drunk before and after the games to help alleviate my pain. 

 

[ras]

nm

 

 

[ras]

At UBS, we drew a lot of younger, non-student fans, way more than the few who are active on redmen.com. They forked over $65-85 per ticket, bought $14 soft drinks, paid $35 to park, and appeared to know our team pretty well. Thanks to electronic purchases, we can identify and focus on those fans.

Absolutely, and hallelujah. Three million people live in Nassau and Suffolk, and close to another two and a half million in Queens. And there are a ton of basketball fans within that area.  

A quick personal story. Two years ago we got new neighbors across the street, they have two grade level children who are constantly in the driveway playing hoops. One of the SJU home games this year they gave away ski hats and my wife gave them to the kids the next day.  The Dad said to me "that's right they play games out here" and I told him yes and the tickets at Carnesecca are very reasonable. He has now brought the boys to four games on campus. He's not a grad.

The SJU campus is surrounded by families that want things to do with the kids that does not involve a trip into Manhattan. I'm not knocking Manhattan myself, but that is a reality of the suburbs and an advantage SJU has and needs to leverage. 
----
Carneseca arena gives a good bang for the buck. I would have to think a family of 4 might think twice about shelling out
the money for UBS arena game. thats almost $400 , tough for a middle class family.