Our final home game of the year will be a noon kickoff and on ESPNU.
Although we stand at 4-5, the talking heads consider us a bowl team. Most predict we will return to San Francisco for what is now called the
Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl. I think the DC Bowl would be a better fit and get a better crowd, but playing in front of our Northern California fans again is not a bad default. Plus the game is played on January 9 which means we would be the final game before the National Championship.
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The problem is tailgating has a direct effect on ticket sales. Look at what happened with Umass and URI in the late 90’s. Both Banned alcohol at tailgating events. The result was sober fans and half filled stadiums. Both schools have now reinstituted alcohol at tailgating events and ticket sales have increased. I understand that BC has very strict guidelines issued by Boston and Newton and I think BC does a very good within those rules. Questions I have is why is tailgating not allowed at satellite parking locations? Maybe those satellite locations should have charter buses with the TVs playing the best comebacks in BC history instead of the yellow school buses we have now. Has BC looked into other satellite locations that would allow tailgating? Has BC looked into having the bigger games at Gillette Stadium (i.e. ND, Clemson)? Maybe have the 1 or 2 biggest game of the year at Gillette, therefore you can possibly increase the ticket prices for nonstudents. We all know half of the state of South Carolina would travel in there RV to attend a game at Gillette every 2 years. We may lose a little of the home field advantage with opposing fans but would it be better than the morgue we have now at Alumni. Also we would be allowed to increase tailgating hours for better atmosphere and possibly create a Bowl like atmosphere to entice future ticket sales to Bowl games. These changes may not increase season ticket sales but would pull in those causal football fans who want to experience an event instead of just a game.
I think my GDF question is fair, and definitely a gripe I want him to hear:
Mr. DeFilippo,
This year on the day of the ACC Football championship we play BU in Hockey and UMass in basketball. Unfortunately, it looks like the Eagles won't be making it to Charlotte (Not eliminated yet!), but had we had a division winning season it would have forced our fans to decide between these games. Shouldn't we schedule all basketball and hockey events in that first December weekend on Friday night and Sunday afternoons? The basketball at the Garden is probably out of our hands, but we must have some pull for Hockey East scheduling. Our basketball and hockey athletes deserve better fan attendance against our rivals than what they'd see if football was playing for the championship.
Erik, perhaps you should apply the "no harm, no foul" rule, and try a question that matters.
Nah. There's still a conflict with basketball & hockey, and we should expect our team to contend for the ACCCG each year.
Speaking of chats, Big Ron Brace is chatting on ESPNBoston.com at 1:15 today.
Erik-
The ACC champ games on 12-1-07 and 12-6-08 (which BC actually played in) also conflicted with BC/BU hockey games.
Actually, to be clear, the football and hockey games were at different times, so in that sense they didn't conflict.
Having 30,000 fans in a 44,500-seat Alumni Stadium looks bad enough. I can't imagine how awful it would look to have 30,000 fans in 68,000-seat Gilette Stadium.
Sounds like a good idea...but I have a feeling it would look a lot like what happened when Baylor and Texas Tech played in the cotton bowl earlier this year:
http://cdn1.sbnation.com/entry_photo_images/632113/49100_texas_tech_baylor_football.jpg
BC-ND and/or BC-Clemson is not Texas-Oklahoma, Florida-Georgia, or Army-Navy. Playing at a "neutral site" is ridiculous, given that we can barely fill Alumni Stadium. The last thing we need is to play a game that would require our loyal students (8,500 of whom do not have cars on or off campus) to travel 25 miles to see the game.
The Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl?
Perchance to dream.
Was that the old Diamond Walnut Bowl? I got sick of those commercials during every break.
Will this bowl have ads with Sally Struthers?
Speaking of GDF, I'm kinda hopin' BJK has the chat highlighted on his calendar. What would it be without GDF's #1 fan?
So, we shouldn't ask the most important quetions about the gameday experience, but focus on his reaction to our TV coverage? Even though it's all related? Can we give BCPD a plaque while we're at it?
What about adding a "student pass" for all students. A type of pass you pre pay for at the beginning of the year (say $250) that gets students into every football, basketball and hockey game? If a game is considered "free" I feel like more people will attend games than having to fork out $12 every time you want to go see BC. Would raise student attendance for hockey and basketball big time.
I understand the fear behind not filling a stadium and most likely BC wouldn’t sell out. I can’t believe that the Colonial Clash between UMass and UNH sold 32,848 seats in Gillette between two FCS teams on the same weekend that BC played Maryland and sold 36,078 seats at Alumni that BC couldn’t sell more if it was at Gillette. Gillette would attract your casual Fan even the Die Hard Patriot Fans that would just be happy in the Stadium no matter who is playing. As for transportation look at what UMass did… “For just $10, students can get a game ticket, bus transportation to and from Gillette Stadium and an official Colonial Clash t-shirt.” http://www.umassathletics.com/sports/m-footbl/colonialclash.html BC could also look into the trains that service Gillette during events for the Boston area fan base.
The distance that Texas Tech traveled (347 miles) and Baylor (96 miles) to the Cotton Bowl would be considered a “Neutral Site” where as for BC, Gillette would be considered in their backyard . Look at what Rutgers did with Army this year at the Meadowlands which is 35 miles way and they sold 41,292 to an Army game. Yes, it’s not a sellout but if that was at Rutgers I’m sure ticket sales would have been less. I live in PA and I was considering going to Rutgers vs Army. Last time BC played Army in 2007 we sold only 40,329 in Matt Ryan’s senior year. BC is known throughout the ACC for its difficulties in its tailgating accommodations for visiting teams (ask any Clemson Fan that was tailgating on Comm Ave in 2006). With a move to Gillette for one game a year would draw in more of the oppositions fan base as well as local and alleviate many of the restrictions BC has. The end state is to sale more tickets, create the best game day experience and find the best way possible even if it’s in a venue that would be tough to sell out.
Zestyed --
Re Gillette Stadium, you are titling at windmills.
Re the sea of gray mumbo-jumbo, please use spacing and paragraphs
Better yet. Step away from the keyboard. Wait for a new topic.
CT-
Good one about Sally Struthers. Begging bugs me too.
No begging. Just Sally Struthers strolling through a refugee camp giving out boxes of Kraft Mac & Cheese.
Gillette attendance issue could be helped by offering the BC game at a sharp discount (maybe even free) to Pats season ticket holders. Nice way to cross sell BC football to local football fans. We win with increased exposure/ fuller stadium, Gillette gets a few extra thousand beers & dogs sold that they wouldn't have had otherwise.
If BC makes it to the Kraft Bowl, and Boise State goes undefeated and doesn't make a BCS bowl, BC has a chance to play Boise State in that bowl. It would be interesting to see a crappy BC team give BSU a run for their money.
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