The Elephant in the room

B

BILLBUCKNER

Well-Known Member
ARE THE APTHETIC HAWKEYE BB FANS. Good grief ,what a sorry crowd for a Big 10 game. Nebraska packs a stadium to watch a sport that until recently was something they did until spring football. I know there are alot of valid reasons why Carver no longer packs them in. But to me the biggest hurdle to becoming a top BIG team is crowd support. If I'm a top recruit,I'm going to the other top 20 teams to play in front of packed crowds. The Iowa admin is as much responsible as anyone because they do very little to market the team.

One suggestion I have would be to put in High roller sky boxes one both sides. 15,000 capacity is too large and the arena often looks lifeless because of all the empty seats. Those sky boxes would sell out and hopefully get the grey haired donors away from the sidelines and allow for students to sit there. They are the future Hawk fans and donors. If you don't get them then,you never will.
 
I think something that could make it much louder it just adding glass around the concourse above seating. But they are missing out on a lot of revenue not having club seating where alcohol can be consumed. Isn't there a club seating area that allows this at northern iowa?
 
I don't have season tickets, and live about 30 mins from IC.

I should have gone today. Not working, Sunday games are doable for me. The ease of getting tickets, decent ticket prices, riding a free bus right to the door, a free ride back to Hancher after (i.e. an easy trip around the usual obstacle course) means a lot.

Yet, I stayed home today and watched it on BTN. Why?

It still takes 4-5 hours to do the 'event.' It was Rutgers, it was cold, and frankly the cheap seats SUCK at CHA. No leg room, uncomfortable plastic, etc. So, two reasons that will change (better teams will come in and it *will* warm up) but the seats man are pathetic.
 
I'll chime in here. Yes, they pulled out today's game with a nice rally. Any Big Ten W is a good W. That being said...here's my take. I'm no coach...far from it. So take this as the "average fan" view.

Fran's brand of basketball isn't very "watchable". Yes, this team is young...but his teams have never had solid rhythms...or recognizable sets/patterns/whatever in the offense. To the casual fan...they look spastic, random and often sloppy. It's not a particularly attractive brand of bball to watch. I think that plays a certain part in this.

I'd like to hear a more technical explanation of his approach from more savy bball experts. Tell me (us) what we're supposed to watch and enjoy about Fran-ball. Cause it really seems to lack identity, and I think that plays a role in the limited fan interest.
 
Seth53 said:
^^Lick ball was unwatchable^^ At least Fran gets it up and down.
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Agree. I appreciate good defense and that's been lacking this year and today was a total snoozer to watch but it's so much better than watching Lick ball
 
I don't really get the obsession people have with fan attendance. Who cares? Ive watched every single game this year live on TV or the internet. Does that make me less of a fan?

The schools make way more money off TV deals than ticket sales anyway so you could argue they'd rather have you watch from home.
 
hawkdrummer1 said:
I'll chime in here. Yes, they pulled out today's game with a nice rally. Any Big Ten W is a good W. That being said...here's my take. I'm no coach...far from it. So take this as the "average fan" view.

Fran's brand of basketball isn't very "watchable". Yes, this team is young...but his teams have never had solid rhythms...or recognizable sets/patterns/whatever in the offense. To the casual fan...they look spastic, random and often sloppy. It's not a particularly attractive brand of bball to watch. I think that plays a certain part in this.

I'd like to hear a more technical explanation of his approach from more savy bball experts. Tell me (us) what we're supposed to watch and enjoy about Fran-ball. Cause it really seems to lack identity, and I think that plays a role in the limited fan interest.
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A lack of role players is how I would say it and what sometimes looks like street ball (unorganized unplanned offensive sets). Lick over done this concept and Fran seems to lean the other way just a little too much. Still I would take Fran ball any day over Lick ball.

I also think most people realize this year's team is NIT bound so that takes out some of the fun and enthusiasm. Unless this team can pull off a major upset in the BTT and run the table in that tournament the only enjoyable part will be watching the young players develop, Joc going out in style, and Iowa making some noise in NIT.
 
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hawkdrummer1 said:
I'll chime in here. Yes, they pulled out today's game with a nice rally. Any Big Ten W is a good W. That being said...here's my take. I'm no coach...far from it. So take this as the "average fan" view.

Fran's brand of basketball isn't very "watchable". Yes, this team is young...but his teams have never had solid rhythms...or recognizable sets/patterns/whatever in the offense. To the casual fan...they look spastic, random and often sloppy. It's not a particularly attractive brand of bball to watch. I think that plays a certain part in this.

I'd like to hear a more technical explanation of his approach from more savy bball experts. Tell me (us) what we're supposed to watch and enjoy about Fran-ball. Cause it really seems to lack identity, and I think that plays a role in the limited fan interest.
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Our football team has an identity. Was the Outback bowl very watchable? If you didn't get excited during the Michigan win, or the double OT game vs Nebraska then idk what to tell you. Fran lets his team play. I'd honestly prefer this style over the slow down, Bo Ryan show any day. The spastic look comes from not having great guard play over the last few seasons. JoBo will be Frans best PG recruit to date (no offense to MG). He'll progress as the season goes, and will be solid for the next 3 years. We start the youngest team in the B1G and are winning games. The future is bright for Iowa hoops.
 
mopkins said:
I don't really get the obsession people have with fan attendance. Who cares? Ive watched every single game this year live on TV or the internet. Does that make me less of a fan?

The schools make way more money off TV deals than ticket sales anyway so you could argue they'd rather have you watch from home.
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You do realize that fan participation is something Kirk talks about quite a lot in interviews? You do realize that athletes feed off of crowd enthusiasm? Your comment was so dumb I will now hunt you down and go Deliverance on your ***.
 
Let's try tearing down Carver...and since it isn't full and the income is more important from TV than fans...

A "smallish" barn replica with say, 8,500 capacity...fans overlooking the court from above and close to the court below...tickets will be coveted...the noise and excitement will be incredible...the younger you are...the closer to the court you will be...kind of a "senior discount" reversal.

Design the place for visibility, closeness to the players, and noise...raise the court or something similar to make it unique.

Many fans will now be upset that they can't get a great seat while others will bemoan the fact that they can't get a ticket...perfect.

Like to be a HS 4-5* and play in that pandemonium?
 
I've said it a few times or more on here - IMO Iowa has a higher chance of Fran leaving than it does of Fran getting fired. I don't think he will leave, but who could blame him if he did? After 3 straight NCAA trips - a great new cast of exciting players come in, couple that with one of the countries leading scorers and still NO ONE cares enough to show. He's also filled his roster with in state kids that people in this state should be invested into enough to go to games.

I live 4.5 hours away - I typically go to 1 or 2 games a season at Carver and also the game in Des Moines and the game in Lincoln, NE.

I don't think it's the building. I don't think it's winning, cause doing just that hasn't really solved the issue. Actually he's won and people still think he might not be "the guy" - so it's curious as to the reason our stadium is empty IMO.

Nebraska's is packed even when they aren't good. Creighton's is packed even when they aren't good. ISU's packed and while they've been good for awhile, could you imagine them having the crowd Iowa has consistently?
 
Everyone has their individual reasons. It's tough to get me off the couch when my 4k tv shows it so well. If I lived across town it'd be a tough sell for me. As much as it costs and as comfy as I am at home being able to pause the game while I go to the bathroom or the kitchen is just invaluable... To some that's just worth more to me then the fan experience of being at the games anymore... I've been to games sure it's fun. The older I've gotten....
 
What would happen if they dramatically cut ticket prices, for example, from $28 to $18? Would more people come? Even assuming greater attendance, they'd probably have lower revenue, but would it be worth it to have a more full CHA? Would they make up the revenue elsewhere? Do they even care?
 
I would not indict the crowd based on a 3:30 Sunday game vs Rutgers while the students are gone. The crowd will be better on Thursday for an 8pm game.

Population geography is just more difficult for Iowa than for ISU or NE. IAC just doesn't have the population of Lincoln or the large metro closeby like ISU and NE. Really it's more challenging for Iowa than most B1G teams. Purdue and PSU would be the other 2.
 
I think important wins (top-ranked teams, in-state rival) and dramatic wins (buzzer beaters, comebacks) will help create some attractive energy and bring fans back. However, that energy is easily counteracted by dramatic losses and horrible performances.
 
BILLBUCKNER said:
ARE THE APTHETIC HAWKEYE BB FANS. Good grief ,what a sorry crowd for a Big 10 game. Nebraska packs a stadium to watch a sport that until recently was something they did until spring football. I know there are alot of valid reasons why Carver no longer packs them in. But to me the biggest hurdle to becoming a top BIG team is crowd support. If I'm a top recruit,I'm going to the other top 20 teams to play in front of packed crowds. The Iowa admin is as much responsible as anyone because they do very little to market the team.

One suggestion I have would be to put in High roller sky boxes one both sides. 15,000 capacity is too large and the arena often looks lifeless because of all the empty seats. Those sky boxes would sell out and hopefully get the grey haired donors away from the sidelines and allow for students to sit there. They are the future Hawk fans and donors. If you don't get them then,you never will.
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You are not using that correctly. The elephant in the room is used to describe a big problem that nobody is talking about. You are wrong for two reasons, one it isn't a big problem and two, people talk about it nearly non stop. In my opinion the non-stop chatter mostly springs from a fans need to feel their presence gives them some power over the outcome of a game they are nonparticipants in. This for the most part is a falicey. While a loud home crowd can briefly fire up a player or team, it can't really lift a team from a losing effort to a winning one. The oft sited home court advantage has more to do with continuity of routine, sleeping in your own bed, keeping to your normal schedule etc, than playing in front of a loud home crowd.
 
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