PA Guy

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badgergopher said:
Down by 14 to a team you were supposed to beat by three touchdowns, the Gopher quarterback fumbles and the ball forward, it is recovered past the sticks...."and thet's another Golden Gopher First Down!"
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You do the cheer on every first down. The why doesn't matter. Did it stop being a first down because of the fumble? Sheesh.
 

LesBolstad said:
That's BS; the guy is terrible and they need to replace him. The fact that he continued an ad while the game was going on proves his imcompetence.
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I think we all have learned not to give 2 $%&ts what you think Les. If your boss says you have to do something, do you just not do it? Did you read my whole post which described it as a BTN red/hat guy issue and not Jamie's fault.....doubt it.
 

Jamie is terrible. Of course it's not his fault what someone puts in front of him to read. And some fool at the U thinks it's really cool when he does his Michael Buffer impersonation, and they think he's really adding to the experience. So he is sharing the blame with some or multiple people. If you like him, good for you. That's your opinion and I'm only sharing mine. The fact that I'm considering giving up tickets because of the PA guy should tell you something. That this thread is going 4 pages should tell you something. A LOT of people find that what the U is doing with the PA at the football games is ruining the experience. It's not that we do a first down cheer. It's the obnoxious way he does the first down cheer. I don't want PA led cheering. It's why the Ski U Mah cheer failed. This guy is terrible. If he's good for gopher hockey, great. He's terrible for college football. Everything about this guy irritates me.
 

GoAUpher said:
You do the cheer on every first down. The why doesn't matter. Did it stop being a first down because of the fumble? Sheesh.
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It's the way he does the cheer. Losing at home to a garbage team first down is different than rolling against Iowa and looking like we're headed for an upset first down. Yet the former still gets his annoying "and that's ANOTHER! golden gopherrrrrr!!!!" Literally everything about this guy drives me nuts.
 

Band is quiet!

CP Gopher said:
...and if I want to see the danceline I'll go to a performance. How about running some highlights of other games during those long media timeouts?
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I have to agree about the band. Our season tickets are in 212, and you cannot hear them. I assume they think the sound quality is better if it doesn't go through the sound system, but if you can't hear it what good is that. I'd rather not hear as good of quality, but still hear the band. This is the one thing (AND ONLY THING) I can say was better at the dome. I never had a problem hearing them there.
 


There's a lot to like about the "game day experience" at TCF stadium, but the quality goes down once the game starts. Let the cheer squads and band be responsible for revving up the crowd ... NOT the PA announcer! I cringe every time I hear the first down cheer. I'm sure my 4-year-old granddaughter would love the prompting, however, as it would remind her of a pre-school activity.
 

Section2 said:
The fact that I'm considering giving up tickets because of the PA guy should tell you something.
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You may not like what it tells many people.

Section2 said:
It's the way he does the cheer. Losing at home to a garbage team first down is different than rolling against Iowa and looking like we're headed for an upset first down.
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This I do totally agree with. There is no need to hype it up at that point in a game. I don't agree that Jamie should be completely bland with the call or that it needs to go away. But his exuberance can be more than a bit much and this would be good example of that.
 

Section2 said:
Jamie is terrible. If you like him, good for you. That's your opinion and I'm only sharing mine. The fact that I'm considering giving up tickets because of the PA guy should tell you something.
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Fan fail. GTFO

With all due respect to your opinion, of course.
 

GoAUpher said:
You may not like what it tells many people.
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Fine, you don't like me. I promise you that the disappointment you'd feel if your buddy Jamie was replaced pales in comparison to the joy I and many others would feel. Nobody is going to cancel their tickets if we stop the first down chant or reduce the number of ads.
 



Maybe it's just because I knew the voice first from Gopher hockey, but I don't mind Jamie at all for football. I think Gopher hockey fans in general really like what he does at Mariucci.

Although, I could definitely get by with fewer ads during the game and on the scoreboard.
 

Formo said:
Fan fail. GTFO

With all due respect to your opinion, of course.
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I have no interest in spending $1000s to watch a bad team AND endure a crappy commercialized environment. If that makes me a failure of a fan, so be it. I think sticking thru 30 years of mediocrity makes me a super fan. This guy has been grating on me for years and he's taken it to another level it seems.
 

Section2 said:
I have no interest in spending $1000s to watch a bad team AND endure a crappy commercialized environment. If that makes me a failure of a fan, so be it. I think sticking thru 30 years of mediocrity makes me a super fan. This guy has been grating on me for years and he's taken it to another level it seems.
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I guess personally I would look at the whole experience of going to a Gopher football game when I make my decision to renew my tickets. The PA announcer's voice and/or # of ads during a game are pretty low on my list of factors.
 

Word said:
I guess personally I would look at the whole experience of going to a Gopher football game when I make my decision to renew my tickets. The PA announcer's voice and/or # of ads during a game are pretty low on my list of factors.
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Everything about my experience reeked of the U trying to squeeze every dime out of me that they could. Everything. It was a terrible day. I won't bore you with the rest. The PA was the most annoying of that experience, and has been so for about 10 years.
 



Section2 said:
I have no interest in spending $1000s to watch a bad team AND endure a crappy commercialized environment. If that makes me a failure of a fan, so be it. I think sticking thru 30 years of mediocrity makes me a super fan. This guy has been grating on me for years and he's taken it to another level it seems.
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The fact that you stated that a PA announcer has ANY leverage in your ticket purchase kind of destroys any sort of Gopher fan cred you had banked up from the past 30 years.

If you don't want to pay the price of season tickets because of the product on the field.. that's one thing I'll respect. But because of a PA guy?? You don't go to a game to listen to the PA guy, you go to watch your supposed favorite team.

Why would ANYONE buy season tickets to a mediocre team at best if they didn't intend on going to every game despite whatever they were exposed to is beyond me. It's cheaper to just buy a single game ticket if you want to go that route.
 

Formo said:
The fact that you stated that a PA announcer has ANY leverage in your ticket purchase kind of destroys any sort of Gopher fan cred you had banked up from the past 30 years.

If you don't want to pay the price of season tickets because of the product on the field.. that's one thing I'll respect. But because of a PA guy?? You don't go to a game to listen to the PA guy, you go to watch your supposed favorite team.

Why would ANYONE buy season tickets to a mediocre team at best if they didn't intend on going to every game despite whatever they were exposed to is beyond me. It's cheaper to just buy a single game ticket if you want to go that route.
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My fan cred gets docked because you have terrible taste and have no idea what a big time atmosphere consists of? Hmmm. I would have guessed that would have been points subtracted from your fan cred. Do I lose music cred points because you like Coldplay too?
 

Section2 said:
Fine, you don't like me. I promise you that the disappointment you'd feel if your buddy Jamie was replaced pales in comparison to the joy I and many others would feel. Nobody is going to cancel their tickets if we stop the first down chant or reduce the number of ads.
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Actually no. You're deluding yourself. The difference is that Jamie has no bearing on my plans for my tickets. You could replace him with somebody I hate and it wouldn't change things for me at all. Sure, I'd be a bit more annoyed at times. But beyond that? Nothing. Why? Because it just isn't important to me. I hate being treated like a sponge to squeeze money from and I am beyond understanding and supportive of your desire to see the over advertisement issue changed. But that said, it still won't change my enjoyment of a game enough to ever make me not want to get tickets. Neither will the quality of the play on the field.

You've got a different take on things. That's your prerogative. But don't be surprised if people hear you say things like "I'm going to give up my seats if they don't get rid of the PA guy" and they react like you're off your rocker.

Also, you stand a much better chance getting change once Maturi is gone if you keep your tickets. Season ticket holders demanding change have more sway than guys watching the game on TV. But I'm very honest in understanding that this is the dept we've got under the current leadership and that it won't change until that leadership changes.
 

Section2 said:
My fan cred gets docked because you have terrible taste and have no idea what a big time atmosphere consists of? Hmmm. I would have guessed that would have been points subtracted from your fan cred. Do I lose music cred points because you like Coldplay too?
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Who said that I enjoyed the ads/PA guy? And even if I did, I certainly wouldn't buy my season tickets because of those two factors being 'cool' or not. No, your cred is non-existant because of your statement that you're considering dropping season tix because of a PA guy.

Your analogy sucks and is a non-factor.

Again, I repeat.. Fan fail, GTFO
 

Fair points goAUpher. Honestly, I don't think I've ever given any thought to a PA announcer at any game, unless I really liked them. If I don't like them I can easily tune them out. PA guys like Bob Casey, Dick Jonckowski, Julius Perlt, Yankees PA guy, very much like and add to the game. Current twins guy, current vikes guy, don't really notice, doesn't affect my enjoyment at all even though I'm not crazy about them.
 

Formo said:
Who said that I enjoyed the ads/PA guy? And even if I did, I certainly wouldn't buy my season tickets because of those two factors being 'cool' or not. No, your cred is non-existant because of your statement that you're considering dropping season tix because of a PA guy.

Your analogy sucks and is a non-factor.

Again, I repeat.. Fan fail, GTFO
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I said Im' thinking of giving up my seats because the team is bad and the fan experience sucks. That's many factors, and the most notable and annoying is the PA guy. i'm not paying $$$ to listen to him read ads for 3 hours. Sorry.
 

An aside, I was with a friend Saturday so I didn't bring headphones. I read somewhere that we were going to be able to listen to a no delay call over the air in the stadium because of the switch to KFAN. Does anyone know if this was the case Saturday? I usually go with my dad and we'd both probably listen to the call if we could.

Might not be a solution for everyone as we can't control whether they play Coldplay during the breaks :)
 

I guess I was out of it on Saturday, but I didn't really even notice the PA guy one way or the other. Other than the Manly throw statement, to which about half the stadium laughed/groaned. Was it really any different than in games/years past? Clearly it was to many people. I wish I had never seen this thread, now I will be paying too much attention to it. PA guy has never really added to or detracted from my game day experience. Maybe listening to the radio on headphones would help some folks? Just an idea.
 

Jamie Verbrugge (sp?) is a seasoned PA announcer for Gopher football, hockey, and wrestling. He has a cult following with Gopher hockey and has a great voice for doing PA.

I could almost guarantee that he would rather not be reading ads. As far as dramatizing, c'mon, what's he supposed to do? He's doing his best to get the crowd fired up for first downs on offense, 3rd downs on defense, etc.

I do think the one thing worth reiterating to the athletic dept is the number of ads throughout the games.
 

I agree with about 60% of what I have read in this thread. I cringed and nearly quit reading when the usual "first down cheer" controversy resurfaced. It comes up about three times per season and each time it is clear that about 70% of the people like it. I believe if you actually did a poll at the stadium, you'd find 70% of Gopher fans like it, 20% don't care, and 10% are vocally against it. So be it. I hope it doesn't go away as it is fun for friends, family, and kids to participate.

With that in mind, some things I noticed on Saturday (most of which have already been mentioned):

1. Unless the band is pointed directly at you... they can't be heard and depending on your seats they can’t be seen either. I am in the first deck section right next to the student section and I can't hear them. I am guessing it is even WORSE for the student section as the band is hidden in the horrifically designed pit (the only structural thing I don't like about the stadium). The band couldn't be heard in '09, then was much better with the added corner speakers in '10. Those speakers are gone now so it is back to a band that can't be heard, or even seen thanks to that pit they sit in. It is time to do it right. Get out the 2x4's and plywood if you have to, but get rid of that pit. It is a mistake and creates something I'd never dream I would be saying... the band was better in the Metrodome.

2. The scoreboard is a joke. I can understand putting the ads up there even as much as 80% of the time, but it is just crazy to keep the advertisements up through replays and even touchdown replays. Someone put a link up to Texas’ scoreboard. Yep, it has ads but the question is do they remain up there during replays? It also doesn’t include game stats, which the TCF scoreboard includes. This all conspires for a tiny replay area compared to what the wonderful capabilities of this scoreboard offer. I looked at it closely and the advertisement space actually looked even bigger to me Saturday than year one or two. That might be my imagination and if it is, it is due to this being a very big sore spot for me.

3. The volume and constant barrage of advertisements does not feel “college football” to me and after attending games at Gopher opponent stadiums, I can say it is indeed over the top at our own stadium. Every time I get blasted with one, I find myself wishing I was at home where I can at least hit the “mute” button if an advertisement is loud and obnoxious.

4. This one is down the list further but did anyone notice the Big 10 flags on the north rim of the stadium have been replaced with maroon and gold “M” flags? Perhaps this situation is innocent and they are waiting for Nebraska’s visit to give them some sort of welcome and add a 12th flag pole with the red “N”. However, I fear they just asked themselves… “What, we’ve got 12 teams now and only 11 flagpoles? That would run us at least a couple hundred bucks in materials and labor so let’s just get rid of the Big 10 flags and put up a bunch of those block M flags we had left over in the equipment room.”

On the flip side, I had a relative (big Pac 10 fan) from Seattle at Saturday’s game. He was quite complimentary of the student section (those that actually were there) and everything they were doing from the key jingle kickoffs, first down cheer, to dancing, etc. and he was especially complimentary of the dance squad, cheerleaders, and band. He said there just isn’t that much activity and entertainment out there in the stadium and he appreciated how it all conspired to deliver a nice atmosphere. I didn’t have the heart to bring up the attendance woes, tailgating, and other things that are light years beyond our atmosphere at other Big 10 Stadiums.
 

year of the gopher said:
Jamie Verbrugge (sp?) is a seasoned PA announcer for Gopher football, hockey, and wrestling. He has a cult following with Gopher hockey and has a great voice for doing PA.

I could almost guarantee that he would rather not be reading ads. As far as dramatizing, c'mon, what's he supposed to do? He's doing his best to get the crowd fired up for first downs on offense, 3rd downs on defense, etc.

I do think the one thing worth reiterating to the athletic dept is the number of ads throughout the games.
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He's great for Hockey. Let's leave him there. This is football. Let's get someone with a tough sounding raspy voice to simply tell us who passed caught, ran with returned the ball, and who made the tackle. For huge game changing plays, a little added emotion is welcome to highlight that it's a huge play. The cheering should be led by the cheerleaders and band, period. Let's keep the cutesy player videos and the over the top "let's get energized" ads, and stop being embarrassing.
 



I don't post often but I have to mention that the PA guy also drives me nuts. Not only what he says (I understand he's doing ads that are required), but his voice in general in addition to all the cute little remarks he adds. Everytime he says "rah" at the end of a M-I-N-N-E-S-O-T-A chant, I ask myself why this guy can't ever just shut the f**k up for two seconds.
 

Too bad you can't bring back Julius Pearlt. There never has been anyone that came close to the way he would announce the games for both football and basketball. "Landsberger-r-r-r-r-!!!!!!!" ""Ol-l-l-l-l--berding!!!!" "Michigan 92.............Michigan State 96!!!!!!!!!!!!" He was a classic in the true meaning and will always be in our hearts.
 

HouseOfHagen said:
I don't post often but I have to mention that the PA guy also drives me nuts. Not only what he says (I understand he's doing ads that are required), but his voice in general in addition to all the cute little remarks he adds. Everytime he says "rah" at the end of a M-I-N-N-E-S-O-T-A chant, I ask myself why this guy can't ever just shut the f**k up for two seconds.
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Funny...I had the same feeling reading your post wondering why I wasted 15 seconds reading those four lines of whiny bitching....
 

badgergopher said:
An aside, I was with a friend Saturday so I didn't bring headphones. I read somewhere that we were going to be able to listen to a no delay call over the air in the stadium because of the switch to KFAN. Does anyone know if this was the case Saturday? I usually go with my dad and we'd both probably listen to the call if we could.

Might not be a solution for everyone as we can't control whether they play Coldplay during the breaks :)
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Yes there was no delay on 100.3 for the game. I was listening to it.
 

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