More orange than maroon and gold tonight. Pathetic crowd and mostly Clemson @bcatleagle pic.twitter.com/bQXOMdWxDB— Chris Eidt (@cjeidt) October 7, 2016
— PanickyFloyd (@PanickyFloyd) October 8, 2016
Clemson fans are known for travelling and I don't begrudge them. They're great people and I've always enjoyed interacting with them. This is also not the first time they've traveled in droves to Alumni. What made this trip different is that they were not limited to the traditional "visitors" sections (Lower East corner on the Beacon St. side, small section of north endzone, and upperdeck endzone). This time they were everywhere. The Tiger fans were sitting in BC fans' seats. This meant that BC fans either resold their tickets like never before, or the season ticket base has dwindled much more than BC has let on and BC sold all those traditional "BC" seats.
I understand why Clemson fans wanted to be there. Boston is a great trip and the team is in the middle of a great run. What Brad Bates and BC should worry about is why didn't more BC fans want to be there. We've been big underdogs at home before (think back to some of those Miami games or during the Spaz years). But big name opponents still brought out BC fans. Now they either don't care or are so turned off by the gameday experience and product on the field that they would rather stay home.
The remaining home games are such that I don't think you'll see visitors take over Alumni again this year. I just hope BC fans start to show up.
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I hope they don't show up. Why would they? I hope they play in a 3/4 empty stadium until Bates and Daz are fired. This is one of the only ways for BC fans to make their voices heard. And even then, I fear that the school administration and athletic department just won't care.
This is absolutely true. I sat in a season tix holder section and I was surrounded by orange. I saw many Clemson fans tailgating with and accompanying BC fans into the game. They really are very nice people. I am sorry to saw that there is a distinct aura of failure around the whole program now. Interest is bleeding away.
We have seats in a DBS section in the upper deck. We were sitting next to dozens of Clemson fans. I'm not sure if they bought them directly through the school or via the ticket marketplace, but they indicated they were easy to get.
Also worrisome was the student section. It did eventually fill up near the start of the 2nd quarter, but it was half empty at halftime. I understand the game didn't feel in reach, but student interest seems like it may be in line with how some of us alums feel right now. I don't want to stop going to games (I want to support the athletes) but the administration really needs to take notice and take action. And realize that a new marketing campaign with no on field results will do nothing for you.
There is a long list of reasons why BC attendance has plummeted. But it really boils down to 1 thing: for 4 tickets and a parking pass where you can tailgate, you're looking at a $4k yearly investment, minimum. That's a lot of money to spend in any scenario, but particularly where every game leaves you questioning why you care more about the program than the school does.
That's BC football in a nutshell. Why invest time and money in something when the school invests neither?
Looks like a lot of Orange. I can see my brother and nephew in the front row of the upper deck.
I went to Mariannes with my cousin before kickoff. We were literally the only people in there sporting BC colors. The neighboring bars mirrored the same atmosphere. We showed up to Alumni minutes after game started and heard people cheering. It was due to the red zone stop after we recovered the fumble. Dejected, we left at halftime. I can't believe I dropped close to $200 to attend that game. What a joke.
Everything has now become blah, blah, blah and preaching to the choir. Most everyone is in agreement that we need management surgery within the administration of athletics at BC. All of the nonsense has to end. BC needs to get off its ass and determine in earnest how to turn this around. A couple of novice suggestions:
Step 1 - the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees needs to recognize a crisis of confidence in the school among a large section of its alumni/student population and assemble an Athletics Oversight Committee (AOC) comprised of Leahy (or his successor), one or two additional members of the BOT and at least two outside appointees among the BC Alumni population having expertise in the administration of athletics to oversee athletics (including budgets, teams fielded, facilities and all key hires such as AD and major program head coaches)and ensure the school complies with applicable NCAA rules and fields highly competitive teams in every sport in which it chooses to participate.
Step 2 - Brad Bates' contract is not renewed and he is promptly replaced with a new AD who has previous experience administering a highly competitive fully compliant athletics program and a demonstrated track record of successful key hiring decisions. The AOC will establish an AD screening team comprised of selected AOC members and several alumni with strong athletics ties to the school. The role of BC's human resources department in screening new AD candidates shall be minimized. During the period of the search, the AOC will retain outside expertise having previous college athletics department management roles and demonstrated success at the highest levels outside of BC to do a top down evaluation of the structure and personnel of the BC Athletics Department (including all team programs) and make recommendations to the AOC which, to the extent accepted by the AOC, shall be implemented and administered by the new AD.
And if the BOT's is unwilling to ensure the highly competitive nature of athletics at the school within the ACC (which I fully support, can be done and greatly benefits the overall mission/reputation of the university) - then athletics needs to be significantly wound down to a much lower level and all resources directed at substantially improving the purely academic profile of the university akin to more academically oriented universities such as Emory, NYU, Chicago, Johns Hopkins, Carnegie Mellon, Rice, etc.
Its time to shit or get off the pot as far as athletics are concerned. Continuing mediocrity in any part of the university is unacceptable.
Nappy, precisely what I have been trying to say. It's time to shit or get off the pot. Either put the resources into a successful athletic program or downgrade it. The current underperforming travesty can not be sustained.
I completely agree with the top to bottom overhaul and special committee designated to oversee. I would hate beyond words downgrading the program. With the right people in place, we have shown that we have been, and can again be, competitive.
So, get off your fat behind, Fr. Leahy (or whoever) and get this thing turned in the right direction. Shame on you for letting it fester this long.
All the talk about Bates, Daz, Christian, Spaz, specific assistant coaches, players, recruiting, continuing losses, public embarrassment, Ever to Excel, lack of facilities, lack of investment, etc., etc. - has really become like a broken record. We all know its a mess largely brought about by adults (in some cases the most highly compensated and visible employees of the university)in a failing system that lacks organizational clarity, priorities and specific expectations for success insofar as BC's role as a fully viable, contributing and highly competitive member of the ACC. There is a sense of a lack of accountability. There is a sense of a ship meandering without a captain. There is a sense that Leahy and the BOT's do not recognize the problems or do not want to address them - or are simply overwhelmed by them. There is a sense that the university's management is lost and confused as to overall direction.
All or most of this perceived angst and inaction is unnecessary. It requires a few smart people, a sensible plan and a dogged determination by those in charge to communicate and achieve that plan and ensure that those who are not supportive or meeting expectations are moved out of the way.
The Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees is comprised of intelligent, highly successful people. They need to bring the issue of athletics management to the forefront. They need to give the university's constituents confidence that the problems are recognized and are being addressed diligently by the right kinds of people with more to follow. They need to let everyone know that the status quo here is unacceptable to the university's leadership.
Bravo!
Athletics is one of many problems for BC. They are also struggling to attract prospective students (see article link below) http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-02/the-10-u-s-colleges-with-the-biggest-application-drops
While BC attempts to put some positive spin on it (3% higher yield), it is dwarfed by the 28% decline in applicants. Having a competitive athletics program, particularly in major sports, is one factor, but not the only factor.
Cost is also a factor: 60,000 for tuition and housing, that is very expensive, and aligned with the top institutions in higher ed. I want to support a school that I believe has a good value proposition, and believe that BC had a decent value proposition 20 years ago, but I don't see it right now. What does the institution believe in, and stand for. I don't see a consistent message. I see a bunch of events being marketed to me, and requests for donations.
Having a competitive hoops and football program would help generate some interest. But I've given up on football, cost of attending games is ridiculous, including parking fees. Hoops season tickets is still a bargain in my book. And it should NOT be that hard to be competitive again. Pay for a good coach, and winning will take care of itself. Football and the larger roster size takes longer to build a winning program. I think the first priority is hoops, and this is Christian's year to show that he has made progress with his own recruits.
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