Average Men's Attendance

[LTsatch]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

No one said that phenomenon was limited to current undergraduates. (And if you had made it past the first sentence, you would have seen explicit acknowledgement of that in Split-N's post.) The thing is that 40/50-year-old people weren't on their phones when they were undergrads. Because that was 20-30 years ago. And it's whichever cohort is currently undergraduates that drives college sports attendance.


Powers &8^]

From one fprmer LT to another, I beg to differ at least in the Yale situation. The reserved student section at Ingalls may be a little less than 10% of the 3,500 seats. I would say Yale averages about 3K per game, most being older townie hockey fans and alumni. Unfortunately hockey is not the forst thing on the mind of a college student on the weekend around here . Of course the only students that probably played hockey at Yale are already on the team lol.

 

[LtPowers]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

Well I'm sure it varies place-to-place, but alumni are former students, most of whom I suspect attended games as undergrads. Lower undergrad attendance today means lower alumni attendance tomorrow.


Powers &8^]

 

[Rhett Hot]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

Well I'm sure it varies place-to-place, but alumni are former students, most of whom I suspect attended games as undergrads. Lower undergrad attendance today means lower alumni attendance tomorrow.


Powers &8^]

Now this is a great point.


To add to the discussion, fan bases also are not traveling as much anymore to their away games.
I'll use BU as an example.
As recently as five or six years ago, BU was considered the best traveling fan base in Hockey East. Students would usually pack into 5 or so cars, and more alumni would make the effort to go to away games.
I'm sure there are several reasons (higher ticket costs, lack of access to transportation, etc) for the lack of travel today, but the lack of opposing fans, or fewer than in the past, also leads to decline in attendance.

That being said, my friends and I are crazy people so we still travel to most away games, but it is pretty obvious that there are fewer of us traveling.
We are also losing 2 of 3 cars next season, so at least 10 fewer of my group to add to that

 

[Split-N]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

... (And if you had made it past the first sentence, you would have seen explicit acknowledgement of that in Split-N's post.)...

I think I also said something about attention spans.

 

[Drew S.]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

Now this is a great point.


To add to the discussion, fan bases also are not traveling as much anymore to their away games.
I'll use BU as an example.
As recently as five or six years ago, BU was considered the best traveling fan base in Hockey East. Students would usually pack into 5 or so cars, and more alumni would make the effort to go to away games.
I'm sure there are several reasons (higher ticket costs, lack of access to transportation, etc) for the lack of travel today, but the lack of opposing fans, or fewer than in the past, also leads to decline in attendance.

That being said, my friends and I are crazy people so we still travel to most away games, but it is pretty obvious that there are fewer of us traveling.
We are also losing 2 of 3 cars next season, so at least 10 fewer of my group to add to that

No way BU ever travelled better than Maine.

 

[chickod]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

No way BU ever travelled better than Maine.

I have to grudgingly agree. Even recently at the Centrum (now the DCU Center) when they beat us in the regionals and they skated around the ice with the flag honoring Shawn Walsh they had about 4,000 fans there. And the Garden used to be packed. In the (unfortunate) Championship Game against Denver (when they got [a fastening device with threads] out of that first goal because the guy's skate was one inch inside the crease) there were probably 8,000 Maine fans there (or at least they were cheering for Maine). When we got there in 2015 there were more Providence fans (and don't anybody try to cite revisionist history because that's true - and, embarrassing, given that the school is a few miles down the street). We were outnumbered by Wisconsin fans in Providence in 1978 and North Dakota fans in Worcester. It is what it is...the only defense is that the big state schools have a much large following (and more people that tend to stay and live in the area) than do the private schools.

 

[burd]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

Can Hockey East even claim to have traveling fans? Wouldn't a better descriptor be "stopping by" fans? I mean, I'm sure BU fans stop by games at BC, Northeastern, even UMass Lowell sometimes when they go out for dinner at a nearby McDonalds, but it ain't traveling unless you have a friend feed the pets while you are gone.

 

[northeastern]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

Can Hockey East even claim to have traveling fans? Wouldn't a better descriptor be "stopping by" fans? I mean, I'm sure BU fans stop by games at BC, Northeastern, even UMass Lowell sometimes when they go out for dinner at a nearby McDonalds, but it ain't traveling unless you have a friend feed the pets while you are gone.

we'll take 'stopping by' fans.. the sport will take all fans.
Can't blame us for the dearth of programs in the area. Heck if Wisco fans want to come to Matthews .. most welcome.
Let's get this thing rolling (again)!

ps: fwiw.. best traveling fans i have seen.. North Dakota. Kudos to them.

 

[Crimson on the Glass]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

Of course the only students that probably played hockey at Yale are already on the team lol.

At Bright-Landry last weekend for the opener vs. Dartmouth, the largest group of spectators I saw when we moved to the glass in the student section for the 2nd period was the half dozen plus roster players in suits, who did not dress for the game.

 

[AKSWF]

No one said that phenomenon was limited to current undergraduates. (And if you had made it past the first sentence, you would have seen explicit acknowledgement of that in Split-N's post.) The thing is that 40/50-year-old people weren't on their phones when they were undergrads. Because that was 20-30 years ago. And it's whichever cohort is currently undergraduates that drives college sports attendance.


Powers &8^]

The cow jumped over the moon, and added onto the post.

La la laa

 

[Ralph Baer]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

At Bright-Landry last weekend for the opener vs. Dartmouth, the largest group of spectators I saw when we moved to the glass in the student section for the 2nd period was the half dozen plus roster players in suits, who did not dress for the game.

So that explains why there are so many Harvard recruits on Heisenberg's list. They want to fill the stands.

 

[ericredaxe]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

Not sure if this is valid, but I wonder if a good percentage of people who went to games when overall attendance was “better” are now in the age group where their lives have become so busy with their own kids activities etc? Thus preventing them from going to as many games.

I know it applies to me and to my group.

In our block of season tickets, attendance is under 50% usually related to one of our own kids activities (even the game does not directly conflict, kids nigh have an early morning meet game or practice, so not staying out late at a game the night before)

 

[Kepler]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

So that explains why there are so many Harvard recruits on Heisenberg's list. They want to fill the stands.

Hat tip. Very nice.

 

[Drew S.]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

Not sure if this is valid, but I wonder if a good percentage of people who went to games when overall attendance was “better” are now in the age group where their lives have become so busy with their own kids activities etc? Thus preventing them from going to as many games.

I know it applies to me and to my group.

In our block of season tickets, attendance is under 50% usually related to one of our own kids activities (even the game does not directly conflict, kids nigh have an early morning meet game or practice, so not staying out late at a game the night before)

I think that might be one of those things you use as a reason, but isn't the real reason. There were plenty of people who had kids who made it to games back when attendance was better. Even for people who don't have kids it seems its easy to convince yourself to stay home.

Last night looked pretty bad for Hockey East. Tsongas was as empty for the Maine-UML game as I have seen it in a number of years. Also watched a bit of BC-Merrimack and Conte was empty. Saw a pic of BU-Providence on twitter and it didn't exactly look packed.

 

[ericredaxe]

I think that might be one of those things you use as a reason, but isn't the real reason. There were plenty of people who had kids who made it to games back when attendance was better. Even for people who don't have kids it seems its easy to convince yourself to stay home.

Last night looked pretty bad for Hockey East. Tsongas was as empty for the Maine-UML game as I have seen it in a number of years. Also watched a bit of BC-Merrimack and Conte was empty. Saw a pic of BU-Providence on twitter and it didn't exactly look packed.

Box score listing attendance at BU of 3293... so a tad over 50% full... not good at all.

Not to mention, candidly, I think Agganis pads the attendance numbers sometimes as compared to what your eyes tell you when you are at the game. Maybe they count all the consession workers, visiting team and cleanup crew towards the attendance.

 

[chickod]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

Box score listing attendance at BU of 3293... so a tad over 50% full... not good at all.

Not to mention, candidly, I think Agganis pads the attendance numbers sometimes as compared to what your eyes tell you when you are at the game.

My theory is they count the "sold" season tickets. So, if 50% don't show they are counted anyway. See my post on the BU thread, but no way were there more than 2,200 there last night.

 

[chickod]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

I think that might be one of those things you use as a reason, but isn't the real reason.

And that's not the point. The question is not people that "used to [make] it to the games," the question is why don't the people who are "that age" NOW go? Why aren't younger people replacing those people? Those people can't go forever. For any business to be sustainable, they need to cultivate new customers. From what I saw last night, just about everyone there was over 40 (except for 108 and 118 - the "end zone" student sections - one of which was basically empty).

 

[Drew S.]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

And that's not the point. The question is not people that "used to [make] it to the games," the question is why don't the people who are "that age" NOW go? Why aren't younger people replacing those people? Those people can't go forever. For any business to be sustainable, they need to cultivate new customers. From what I saw last night, just about everyone there was over 40 (except for 108 and 118 - the "end zone" student sections - one of which was basically empty).

I think there are a variety of reasons why. The first and most obvious is they have a lot more options. I'm sure there was a time when a lot of people came sports fans by default because of lack of other options.

One thing I would be interested to know is how much a person's experience playing and watching sports as a kid effects how much they like sports as an adult. I was ridiculously lucky that I had great experiences at every level with both playing and watching when I was a kid and now as an adult I'm still sports mad. For kids now there isn't as much opportunity for the kids who don't have a lot of promise when they're young and at the other end sports are taken way too serious for the kids who are good. The specialization is horrible too, and I think it takes a lot of joy out of sports for most kids.

As far as attending games, the experience for kids now must be completely different than when I was a kid. I remember when I was a kid how beautiful Fenway was(there wasn't an advertisement on every square inch) and how much fun it was to go to games. They didn't have loud music, flashing lights, and non stop advertising. Phones have obviously taken a lot of the excitement out of games and there is nothing teams can do about that. Maybe if you made it so phones wouldn't work everyone would be better off.

The last thing is financial considerations. Housing and student loans really hurt the under 40 crowd and I'm sure that rules out going for a lot of people. Aren't tickets at BU $30 or so then you have to pay $20 for parking? You can take the T but that isn't exactly a bargain anymore if you don't have a pass.

There is obviously a lot of things athletic departments can't control, but if they make it affordable and fun I'm sure it would make a difference. Momentum can go a long way too.

 

[WeAreNDHockey]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

I think there are a variety of reasons why. The first and most obvious is they have a lot more options. I'm sure there was a time when a lot of people came sports fans by default because of lack of other options.

I'm curious as to what the options now for younger people are? Are there new and exciting things teens (or slightly older or slightly younger people) are doing that had not been invented when I was a young high school lad looking for fun? Being a year or two beyond my teens I'm not sure what they are doing now that I didn't have the opportunity to do.

 

[Drew S.]

Re: Average Men's Attendance

I'm curious as to what the options now for younger people are? Are there new and exciting things teens (or slightly older or slightly younger people) are doing that had not been invented when I was a young high school lad looking for fun? Being a year or two beyond my teens I'm not sure what they are doing now that I didn't have the opportunity to do.

I don't think its a case of the options today necessarily being more exciting than playing or watching sports. It's more a case of them begin easier and cheaper. It doesn't take much effort to sit at home and play on your phone/tablet/computer and also doesn't really cost any money. Human beings by nature are fairly lazy creatures.

I thought of something else that maybe hurts attendance. Are there people who want to go but can't find someone else who wants to go? I know there are times I've asked around for various games and haven't been able to find anymore who wants to go. I honestly don't mind going by myself but know I'm probably in the minority.