Game Day Experince-TCF

Donate To GopherHole
I

Indi1006

Banned
Joined
Sep 1, 2011
Messages
791
Reaction score
0
Points
16
Love the stadium, not a bad seat in the house and a great place to watch a game. That said, every game seems to be managed like it's the first football game they have had in there and no lessons have been learned. They always run out of food and drink and everything else early; last night my son lost about five minutes of game time because he was searching for a stand that had mustard and ketchup for his hot dog and had to go about half way around the stadium to find some. Just once, I'd like to go to a game and think to myself "wow, this place is run great and everything was done professionally; nice job U of M". It seems like a fire drill to me game after game and I don't have Maturi to blame anymore which kind of takes some of the fun out of it.
 

Indi1006 said:
Love the stadium, not a bad seat in the house and a great place to watch a game. That said, every game seems to be managed like it's the first football game they have had in there and no lessons have been learned. They always run out of food and drink and everything else early; last night my son lost about five minutes of game time because he was searching for a stand that had mustard and ketchup for his hot dog and had to go about half way around the stadium to find some. Just once, I'd like to go to a game and think to myself "wow, this place is run great and everything was done professionally; nice job U of M". It seems like a fire drill to me game after game and I don't have Maturi to blame anymore which kind of takes some of the fun out of it.
Click to expand...


I couldn't agree more!! The stadium is awesome and the potential winning atmosphere could be something special. With that said, Concessions are absolutely atrocious! I waited in line for 35 minutes to get cheese curds and chicken tenders. Right after watching Marcus Jones' return TD on the TV above the concessions, I'm told that they're out of the following (keep in mind this is 1 minute into halftime): Brats, Hot Dogs, Chicken Tenders, Fries and they were about out of Cheese Curds. This is year # 5 at the bank and this is still going on?

In the Bank's defense, it's getting annoying that fans B*tch and Moan about having to go downstairs for a beer.. First of all, we're one of few fortunate college fan bases that can enjoy a beer. Secondly, you can buy two at a time. Problem solved.. Or problem diverted for another 30 minutes or..




In the grand scheme of world problems, I know I sound like an idiot..
 


GophersInIowa said:
Who runs the concession stand?
Click to expand...
Aramark- the same people that ripped off the U with the beer contract to the point that they felt sorry for us and sent a charity check to keep up appearances.
 



I completely agree as well. For example, this is the fourth year I've watched the words to Hail Minnesota come up on the screen after the words are sung.

"Hey fans, here are the words you should have sung 5 seconds ago!"

How hard is that? Re-write the darn software if it doesn't work. Hit enter everytime it's time for a new line.

And sorry, but the in-stadium announcer is awful. A total square. "Student's, you ROCK." (said in middle aged smarmy local TV newsanchor voice with faux excitement. You can even tell he's got smarmy TV newsanchor smile on his face as he says it even though he's not on the screen!)

Someone should lock him in a room and make him watch wrestling ring announcers until he gets how to pump up a crowd. He's a total buzz kill.

Another example: informing everyone it's time to 'start a new tradition at TCF'. Just freaking DO IT. Traditions should become that way because they evolve and grow and people want to do it. Not with the express notion that 'here's our new tradition!" Just do a bunch of original unique stuff and the traditions will work themselves out. How well do you think it would have played out if the first time they did 'Woo Pig Sooie' at Arkansas the announcer had informed everyone, "here's our new TRADITION!" Eyes would roll and people would boo!
 

Noticed that they now have cash registers. Read many times how that would solve all problems. Famous Dave's was out of sandwiches and even Goldy's Grill didn't have any burgers, but they had cash registers.

Hoping that the shortages were because the demand was way beyond what the expected, not that the concessioners were more worried about throwing away food then ticking-off customers. Amateurs like us would have thought that a 6:00 kick-off, on a weekday night might have led to way more people than usual having "dinner" at TCF rather than at home, a tailgate or Elsie's, Mannings, Jax, The Bulldog, Whitey's etc., etc.

The professionals running concessions thought differently.:rolleyes:

Or maybe much like the Gopher Offense , it was just a case of opening game jitters. Maybe that was the reason the ballyhooed Offensive Line couldn't protect Nelson, even with 7 or 8 guys trying to protect him. The "D" and the Special Teams certainly bailed them out and made for a damn nice 2nd Half of football!

Much like a great brat made us forget about that pulled pork sandwich. :drink:
 

Was the game day experience THAT bad that 75 percent of the stadium was empty in the 4th quarter? Were the people in the stand THAT hungry that they had to leave early to stuff their face?

While I was watching the game last night, enjoying the win and victory from Denver, the TV pans out to show a stadium shot and the place is damn near empty! One would think that after all of the struggles the program has been through, the fans would've loved to have stayed the whole time and watch the boys win handily. I'm proud of the few that stayed the whole game to watch us win in this fashion.

Cheers to the 25 percent!
 

5280Gopher said:
Was the game day experience THAT bad that 75 percent of the stadium was empty in the 4th quarter? Were the people in the stand THAT hungry that they had to leave early to stuff their face?

While I was watching the game last night, enjoying the win and victory from Denver, the TV pans out to show a stadium shot and the place is damn near empty! One would think that after all of the struggles the program has been through, the fans would've loved to have stayed the whole time and watch the boys win handily. I'm proud of the few that stayed the whole game to watch us win in this fashion.

Cheers to the 25 percent!
Click to expand...

I almost never leave early. Last night I left with 3 minutes to go. Not ashamed to admit the heat got to me.
 



5280Gopher said:
Was the game day experience THAT bad that 75 percent of the stadium was empty in the 4th quarter? Were the people in the stand THAT hungry that they had to leave early to stuff their face?

While I was watching the game last night, enjoying the win and victory from Denver, the TV pans out to show a stadium shot and the place is damn near empty! One would think that after all of the struggles the program has been through, the fans would've loved to have stayed the whole time and watch the boys win handily. I'm proud of the few that stayed the whole game to watch us win in this fashion.

Cheers to the 25 percent!
Click to expand...

Yeah, because no other place in the country has people - leaving early in the 4th - during a blowout - of a weekday game. You must watch a lot of football! :eek:

We stayed until the end but had no problem with people leaving early. Now a guy sitting at home, watching the game in air conditioning, where he could get his ass off the coach at any time to get a beer, head to the bathroom or even "change the channel" Now that guy whining about people "leaving early"? Now that guy ought to examine things at little closer.

Or maybe quite bragging about his ability (and stamina) - to watch the game all the way through, to what about 8:30?

Must have been quite the drive home. :D
 


narrating Kiss Cam is really not necessary. neither is it necessary to fill EVERY game break with LOUD, piped in music. Ok, I get you have ads to run, a kid with cancer to feature, an athlete to regognize, etc. But even after that, they crank up the THUMP THUMP THUMP. Part of the game experience is talking to the people around you--the constant dj party makes this very hard to do.
 

saintpaulguy said:
narrating Kiss Cam is really not necessary. neither is it necessary to fill EVERY game break with LOUD, piped in music. Ok, I get you have ads to run, a kid with cancer to feature, an athlete to regognize, etc. But even after that, they crank up the THUMP THUMP THUMP. Part of the game experience is talking to the people around you--the constant dj party makes this very hard to do.
Click to expand...
They seemed to be better about this in the dome. They let the band do their thing most of the time, but would occasionally pump up the volume once or twice a game for a big third down/fourth down music stinger. You don't get the goose bumps if they've been blasting the music all day.
 



Famous Dave's and Dino's at 113 and 213 were both out of meat by halftime.
 

I packed a dinner for the kid thinking I could grab a panino during the game. I nearly canceled my season tickets. I was so mad. Then the announcer started talking, and I couldn't take it anymore. I refused to stand up just so I could piss of the we need to stand on third down crowd to make me feel better.
 

monk10 said:
I packed a dinner for the kid thinking I could grab a panino during the game. I nearly canceled my season tickets. I was so mad. Then the announcer started talking, and I couldn't take it anymore. I refused to stand up just so I could piss of the we need to stand on third down crowd to make me feel better.
Click to expand...

Huh?????
 

monk10 said:
I packed a dinner for the kid thinking I could grab a panino during the game. I nearly canceled my season tickets. I was so mad. Then the announcer started talking, and I couldn't take it anymore. I refused to stand up just so I could piss of the we need to stand on third down crowd to make me feel better.
Click to expand...

Any game these days is filled with CRAP anytime there's a break in the action. It's even trickled down to the high schools. What ever happened to the game itself providing the entertainment? Baseball stadiums in particular are like carnivals now.
 


monk10 said:
I packed a dinner for the kid thinking I could grab a panino during the game. I nearly canceled my season tickets. I was so mad. Then the announcer started talking, and I couldn't take it anymore. I refused to stand up just so I could piss of the we need to stand on third down crowd to make me feel better.
Click to expand...

What in the h are you talking about?
 


The Gopher Ticket office asked me my opinion--"Thank you again for your patience and understanding and please provide us with any feedback you may have to help us make your experience better."

I provided them with one.

Perhaps we should start a puppies and bunnies thread for those who find everything to be 100%. That would be an OK opinion too.
 

No excuse running out of food before half time. I suspect (do not know) that the food is cooked offsite and trucked in? Aramark is real big in Philly and I know several people that work for them and they all say Aramark is a cheap company and that they ride their employees constantly about waste...wonder if we have dbag local manager over the Bank that just goes overboard. Again, I know nothing for certain but this is my suspicion.

If they do cook on site, they may lack storage facilities of their is an issue in design that doesn't allow mass cooking during the game. This isn't a billion dollar NFL stadium, these could have been some of the concessions made to keep the price down.

Regardless of the why, they need to fix it. If Aramark and the vendors can't keep stocked until the end of the third quarter then find new vendors or new stadium managers...that is why the U has a bunch of lawyers on staff, to resolve these kinds of failures in delivering services that we paid for.
 

I had a cheesesteak sandwich. I wound up eating the meat and tossing away the bun. Should have stuck with a hot dog.
 

And can we get the scoreboard to actually work 2 weeks from now? I was getting sick of looking up and having it read 4th and 37 every 5th minute.
 

I stood in line for the St. Paul shuttle for hours and never got anywhere. Same old same old.
 

Scoreboard issues are a tradition from the Metrodome. I don't think we can give that up.

1st and Goal. Spike the ball. Now, it is 2nd and 12.
 

saintpaulguy said:
Scoreboard issues are a tradition from the Metrodome. I don't think we can give that up.

1st and Goal. Spike the ball. Now, it is 2nd and 12.
Click to expand...

The one that killed me was watching the team line up for the opening kick-off, looking up and seeing there were 20 minutes left in the first quarter.
 

BoneLakeMafia said:
for effff's sake people, just do us all a favor and stay home then!
Click to expand...

Why don't you get off the thread if you don't like it???
The point is, the in-game experience is HORRIBLE. I don't give a G damn if everyone else is doing it. That's a lame argument. This screaming commercials every break is obnoxious. Oh, we got a third down so so-and-so donates $25 to the Gopher Fund. Really??? Come on Teague, cut the damn commercials, or else show them on your jumbo tron....but cut the sound. And these opn field presentations of the sick kid have to stop. This is a football game. Julius Peralt used to give the scores backwards and tell us not to do something. That was about it. Now we have this screaming baboon and his first down call and all the ads. JESUS. The woman in the concession stand took about 5 minutes to get a Dilly Bar. She would grab a package AND COULD hardly open the damn thing. REALLY???????? And Goldy's Locker is a huge rip off. $275 for a jacket.
 


GopherinPhilly said:
No excuse running out of food before half time. I suspect (do not know) that the food is cooked offsite and trucked in? Aramark is real big in Philly and I know several people that work for them and they all say Aramark is a cheap company and that they ride their employees constantly about waste...wonder if we have dbag local manager over the Bank that just goes overboard. Again, I know nothing for certain but this is my suspicion.

If they do cook on site, they may lack storage facilities of their is an issue in design that doesn't allow mass cooking during the game. This isn't a billion dollar NFL stadium, these could have been some of the concessions made to keep the price down.

Regardless of the why, they need to fix it. If Aramark and the vendors can't keep stocked until the end of the third quarter then find new vendors or new stadium managers...that is why the U has a bunch of lawyers on staff, to resolve these kinds of failures in delivering services that we paid for.
Click to expand...

Figure out what you can do and do it well.

Don't try to provide something you are not capable of.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom