Crowd last night

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Zeppelin Gopher

Zeppelin Gopher

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Haven't sifted through all the posts yet so feel free to merge this into another thread if it's already been discussed at length. But last night was one of the the more pathetic crowds I've experienced for a "big" game at the Barn. I know 6 PM games can be tough with the traffic etc but there were an alarming number of empty seats. I was sat row 9 upper deck and we had NOBODY behind us in our entire section.

And besides the poor attendance, the overall energy in the building was awful. There was similarly poor attendance at the Nebraska game, but the fans who were there that night really got into the game and made a huge difference. That simply didn't happen last night, and there were a few occasions late first half/early second half where the fans should've been able to get into the game.

School still being out is an issue, but student section was pathetic in both numbers and energy level as well.
 

Zeppelin Gopher said:
Haven't sifted through all the posts yet so feel free to merge this into another thread if it's already been discussed at length. But last night was one of the the more pathetic crowds I've experienced for a "big" game at the Barn. I know 6 PM games can be tough with the traffic etc but there were an alarming number of empty seats. I was sat row 9 upper deck and we had NOBODY behind us in our entire section.

And besides the poor attendance, the overall energy in the building was awful. There was similarly poor attendance at the Nebraska game, but the fans who were there that night really got into the game and made a huge difference. That simply didn't happen last night, and there were a few occasions late first half/early second half where the fans should've been able to get into the game.

School still being out is an issue, but student section was pathetic in both numbers and energy level as well.
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So the worst 7 rows of seats in a crappy seating area were empty?

I was there...114 row 5...and remember saying to myself that the crowd seemed pretty good for a 6pm game. And I distinctly remember looking up at the area under the flag during the anthem and thinking about the people that are standing in that last row having to look at the flag from behind.
 

1) the more people pay, the more they expect
2) Failure to convert on free throws killed everyone's energy
3) People were too discouraged by the flaws in the Wisconsin, didnt work up enough joy to last into this this game ;)
 

brucekaupa said:
So the worst 7 rows of seats in a crappy seating area were empty?

I was there...114 row 5...and remember saying to myself that the crowd seemed pretty good for a 6pm game. And I distinctly remember looking up at the area under the flag during the anthem and thinking about the people that are standing in that last row having to look at the flag from behind.
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How many were actually in attendance ? Seemed like close to 9000.
 

builtbadgers said:
How many were actually in attendance ? Seemed like close to 9000.
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Attendance issues at UMN basketball and football go deeper than not winning enough. Compare Minnesota's historical football attendance with other similarly middling teams (say, Kentucky) and the lack of support is plainly there. Of course it is related to the metropolitan location of the university and competition for the local sports dollar but my sense is that the average citizen of Minnesota is not as supportive of their flagship educational institution as say, the average citizens of Wisconsin or Iowa. This is sort of harsh to say but rings true for many of us who have lived in these states.
 


Block M said:
Attendance issues at UMN basketball and football go deeper than not winning enough. Compare Minnesota's historical football attendance with other similarly middling teams (say, Kentucky) and the lack of support is plainly there. Of course it is related to the metropolitan location of the university and competition for the local sports dollar but my sense is that the average citizen of Minnesota is not as supportive of their flagship educational institution as say, the average citizens of Wisconsin or Iowa. This is sort of harsh to say but rings true for many of us who have lived in these states.
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Iowa and Wisconsin fans haven't had to deal with our athletic department.
 

Was the crowd 9 of 23 from the line last night, with the best two players going a combined 6 of 17?
 


I was there also in Section114 row 23. I guess Bruce Kaupa's view and mine were about the same and I thought the crowd was pretty decent for a Tuesday 6:00 game. I do think the Free throw shooting did kill the buzz. We also had two guys behind us who did not seem too interested in the game but more interested in taking about work and religion. they did not shut up the whole game. The game was there for the Gophers to claim and keep the crowd into it but they shot themselves in the foot and Maryland could not miss it seemed.
 



I was at the game in Wisconsin last week and there were a lot of empty seats there too. I think attendance is a problem a lot of places.
 

I tried. My daughter said that, when I booed one of the terrible officials' calls in the first half, she could feel her chair vibrating.
 

gopher1more said:
I was there also in Section114 row 23. I guess Bruce Kaupa's view and mine were about the same and I thought the crowd was pretty decent for a Tuesday 6:00 game. I do think the Free throw shooting did kill the buzz. We also had two guys behind us who did not seem too interested in the game but more interested in taking about work and religion. they did not shut up the whole game. The game was there for the Gophers to claim and keep the crowd into it but they shot themselves in the foot and Maryland could not miss it seemed.
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Hmm, that's interesting.

My old seats were 114 row 24. I distinctly remember being there with a friend who had just returned from a vacation to Mexico, talking about it during the game and the crabby guy in front of us sitting there not talking to his wife the entire game and then attempting to berate us because we were talking about things other than basketball. Was that you??

BTW...it's possible to watch the game and talk about other things. For some people, Gopher games are the rare times in a busy winter that they have the opportunity to see each other in person.
 




GophersInIowa said:
I was at the game in Wisconsin last week and there were a lot of empty seats there too. I think attendance is a problem a lot of places.
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UW has far better attendance and it is related to winning. When programs win they draw more, when they start to lose they draw less, this is true everywhere.
 

We have one of the most incompetent athletic departments in the nation. Combine that with teams that are not great and you get empty stadiums and arenas.
 

gopher1more said:
I was there also in Section114 row 23. I guess Bruce Kaupa's view and mine were about the same and I thought the crowd was pretty decent for a Tuesday 6:00 game. I do think the Free throw shooting did kill the buzz. We also had two guys behind us who did not seem too interested in the game but more interested in taking about work and religion. they did not shut up the whole game. The game was there for the Gophers to claim and keep the crowd into it but they shot themselves in the foot and Maryland could not miss it seemed.
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We were in section 114 row 24. The game was alright but I had a chance to talk with our priest on his thoughts about the pope...
Hey wait a sec [emoji482]
 


I was there. The crowd as a force to help the squad was terrible. 3-4 times max we got loud when the Gophers were on D. Each time it resulted in a miss or turnover. Maybe we should be better and urge on the men more. My 2 cents


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

brucekaupa said:
Hmm, that's interesting.

My old seats were 114 row 24. I distinctly remember being there with a friend who had just returned from a vacation to Mexico, talking about it during the game and the crabby guy in front of us sitting there not talking to his wife the entire game and then attempting to berate us because we were talking about things other than basketball. Was that you??

BTW...it's possible to watch the game and talk about other things. For some people, Gopher games are the rare times in a busy winter that they have the opportunity to see each other in person.
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No Bruce, wasn't me. This is the first year for us in these seats. It wasn't just how much they were talking it was how loud and the lack of knowledge of the game. When they were reviewing the call on Gabe for possible flagrant elbow, one of them said if it was a flagrant foul then it would go against Maryland and we would get the ball. I tried to explain it to him but he did not grasp that Flagrant did not mean it was on the other team.

I don't mind the talking as the guy next to me and his wife and I would discuss the free throw woes and Maryland's near perfect shooting and would hope it did not disturb anyone.
 

WorkingMyTailOff said:
We were in section 114 row 24. The game was alright but I had a chance to talk with our priest on his thoughts about the pope...
Hey wait a sec [emoji482]
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Now that conversation I might have joined in on. I happen to like the pope.
 

There's only three things I hate in this world:
1. The people behind me having little knowledge of basketball rules,
2. People who are intolerant of other people's cultures,
3. The Dutch.
 

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This is astounding and depressing. I knew it wasn't great, but this is awful.
 

brucekaupa said:
There's only three things I hate in this world:
1. The people behind me having little knowledge of basketball rules,
2. People who are intolerant of other people's cultures,
3. The Dutch.
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My heritage is Dutch so not sure I can chime in, but it's the same problem at Gopher hockey games. You ALWAYS get the hockey geniuses right behind you that have no clue what they're talking about.
 

bonin21 said:
My heritage is Dutch so not sure I can chime in, but it's the same problem at Gopher hockey games. You ALWAYS get the hockey geniuses right behind you that have no clue what they're talking about.
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This appears to be hockey games everywhere. It always astounds me that people at hockey games have no idea of the goal of puck movement on a power play. Instead they want the puck holder, especially the defenseman, to SHOOT pretty much all the time.
 

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"I know I was still a youngster during Clem's days, and the records may not prove it, but seemed like the #Gophers never lost at home and The Barn was feared."

Never lost at home, never won on the road: The Clem years

​
 

dtrain19 said:
I was there. The crowd as a force to help the squad was terrible. 3-4 times max we got loud when the Gophers were on D. Each time it resulted in a miss or turnover. Maybe we should be better and urge on the men more. My 2 cents

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...


I'll bite with my 2 cents...

When we're trying to make a comeback, get fouled and fail to capitalize, it ruins the vibe.

Also...I will now rant

When I was a kid in the 70's and 80's, time outs were 100% taken up by the band and cheerleaders with the intent of getting and keeping the crowd going. Now play stops and we have to watch commercials, witness stupid student games (which are just commercials), watch someone win enough hot dogs to choke a horse (a commercial) and watch pre-determined emoji races. All of those things kill any kind of vibe that was going on.
 

builtbadgers said:
UW has far better attendance and it is related to winning. When programs win they draw more, when they start to lose they draw less, this is true everywhere.
Click to expand...

How'd that attendance work out for them last week?
 


brucekaupa said:
I'll bite with my 2 cents...

When we're trying to make a comeback, get fouled and fail to capitalize, it ruins the vibe.

Also...I will now rant

When I was a kid in the 70's and 80's, time outs were 100% taken up by the band and cheerleaders with the intent of getting and keeping the crowd going. Now play stops and we have to watch commercials, witness stupid student games (which are just commercials), watch someone win enough hot dogs to choke a horse (a commercial) and watch pre-determined emoji races. All of those things kill any kind of vibe that was going on.
Click to expand...

We had the lead for a large portion of the game. There was no vibe with the lead so there was nothing to kill. We get on the kids for getting down and showing bad body language when something goes wrong. But kids miss free throws and that’s justification for sitting on our hands? I will respectfully disagree that it’s up to the team to give us something to cheer about and get behind them. Tight games in conference and the head coach needs to urge the crowd to get loud and help the squad. To me that’s embarrassing. We should all take a look in the mirror and be better. Change our best if you will.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

builtbadgers said:
What, did they only draw 17,000. Perfect example, winning under Ryan and seats were full. Winning fills seats.
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They LOST. Why are you carrying on about winning? They lost at home in front of all their Trump-voting, bigoted, factory-working fans. Sorry that's so hard for you to swallow.
 

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