STrib: Dropping college football attendance is not just a Gophers thing

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bottlebass said:
I've been to other B1G stadiums. There is better tailgating, but few offer the options around the stadium that we do.
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Disagree, but other stadiums don't have downtown of major cities just down the road either.
 


bleedsmaroonandgold said:
We've been through this before. It may be a nation-wide problem, but Coyle and the Gophs are struggling more relative to that trend. There was a good analysis in the other thread showing we had one of the worst declines in the Big 10.
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A lot of people bitter who left and never came back.
 

I think that a lot of people view "tailgating" as being outdoors - grilling, games, drinking, music, etc - not going to a bar or restaurant.

You can go to a bar or restaurant any day of the year. there are only 7 days a year with Home gopher football games, so I think some people are hoping for something different/more special than just going to a bar. Something that is tied specifically to Gopher Football - a real "Gameday" atmosphere.

Granted, there is an opportunity for bars and restaurants to grab some of that business by trying to create a tailgate atmosphere and marketing themselves as the "unofficial Gopher Tailgate" spot or something like that. But I still think people see 'tailgating' as something different.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
I think that a lot of people view "tailgating" as being outdoors - grilling, games, drinking, music, etc - not going to a bar or restaurant.

You can go to a bar or restaurant any day of the year. there are only 7 days a year with Home gopher football games, so I think some people are hoping for something different/more special than just going to a bar. Something that is tied specifically to Gopher Football - a real "Gameday" atmosphere.

Granted, there is an opportunity for bars and restaurants to grab some of that business by trying to create a tailgate atmosphere and marketing themselves as the "unofficial Gopher Tailgate" spot or something like that. But I still think people see 'tailgating' as something different.
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I think Stubs does good job with their patio and BWW does an ok job with theirs, but BWW jacks up their beer.
 



22,656. Ick.


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Gophers_4life said:
It seems his point is that there are more options, and more convenient options, at other Big Ten West schools.

Not, that the U has zero options.
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We are definitely behind Wisconsin, Iowa, and Nebraska.

On the other hand, our pregame scene is MILES ahead of Purdue and Northwestern.

Haven't been to Champaign yet so can't comment (2020 hopefully).
 

Zeppelin Gopher said:
We are definitely behind Wisconsin, Iowa, and Nebraska.

On the other hand, our pregame scene is MILES ahead of Purdue and Northwestern.

Haven't been to Champaign yet so can't comment (2020 hopefully).
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NW I get, but that surprises me about Purdue. Figured being an ag school in a smallish town they’d have big grass fields for tailgating and it would be a lively scene, even though their team isn’t often great.
 



Zeppelin Gopher said:
We are definitely behind Wisconsin, Iowa, and Nebraska.

On the other hand, our pregame scene is MILES ahead of Purdue and Northwestern.

Haven't been to Champaign yet so can't comment (2020 hopefully).
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I was really surprised how good the tailgate scene in Champaign is. Top notch.


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Gophers_4life said:
NW I get, but that surprises me about Purdue. Figured being an ag school in a smallish town they’d have big grass fields for tailgating and it would be a lively scene, even though their team isn’t often great.
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The tailgating scene at Purdue is better than ours, I'll admit that.

But in terms of bar options and overall pregame scene? Not even close. West Lafayette is the worst town in the conference.
 

On my season tickets, the average game is about $90, but the big games cost more, the lesser games less, but the average is $90. If a dad took two sons to a game at that average price, the outing would cost around $300, including hot dogs, parking, etc. Who can afford that? When they tripled season tickets, they lost all the blue collar people in and around our seats. With prices that high, people can watch at home free, with no traffic or parking hassles.
 




There are so many transformative changes in College Football.

For one thing, there is a war going on spending. Millions spent on new facilities to remain competitive. Then you have to hire coaches who salaries are escalating. How many college football coaches make $8M a year?

In the meantime, the average fan's income I can bet has not been keeping up with the rising cost of tickets and other inflationary entertainment costs.

There is the transformative change with cheaper alternatives to watching the game live at the convenience of your home on big screen TV and you don't even have to drive in a traffic jam to get to park near the stadium.

The younger generation is becoming lost generations of football fans. They have so many digital options on their well connected lifestyle. It may even leave college football in the back seat.

My daughter and son-in-law no longer want to go see live games anymore. Just the hassle of getting to and out of the U is too much. There is not a lot for her three young boys to do other than watching the game.

It cost them $600 to lug the kids to the last football game that they attended live. Enough is enough. They rather go camping, watch the Saints play baseball, or other more entertaining activities they can do as a family with greater enjoyment. This is a generation of fans lost.

I don't know what the answer is. College Football is becoming a victim of its own success. Attending live games isn't what it use to be compared to previous years. Rising ticket prices is just a small part of the problem.
 

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