[NU Sports] NU Attendance et al

[Beamsley, Jeff]

I can appreciate the appeal of a simple solutions.
 
To summarize this one - Fans will fill our stadium if our team win more consistently.  In order to win more consistently we have to recruit at the same level as the teams you mentioned - OSU, Michigan, and Florida.
 
The problem with simple solutions are that they are most effective solving simple problems.  
 
Establishing a robust college sports program in a major metropolitan area is a complex problem.
 
For example, if inconsistency and fan disappointment is the root cause for erosion in fan support, how do you explain the Cubs and Bears?
 
The reality is that the team is progressing.  Our recruiting classes have improved every year under Fitz without diluting our advantage - we attract kids who appreciate the value of a Northwestern degree.  
 
We are also winning more consistently.  In past years, the season following the graduation of a senior QB was dreadful.  This year we did what quality programs do, we reloaded rather than rebuilt.
 
In years past, one or two key injuries tanked our season.  This year we overcame those injuries and became bowl eligible.  That's because the quality of our second and third stringers is better than it has been.
 
The sort of football program that you crave is being built underneath your nose.  More patience and trust will yield the result on the field that you desire.
 
I can't say how long it will take for the fans in Chicago to wake up to what is going on in Evanston.  
 
The serious challenge we have to filling all those empty seats is our small undergrad population.  We have to depend on a higher percentage of alums and friends to make our stadium SEEM full than many of our BT peers.  It really is fairly simple math.  Kids go to the games because that's part of the college experience.  Parents go to the game to share that experience with their kids.  Alums go to the game because they went when they were kids.  When you have 40K kids, you can average 40K on the strength of these three components pretty realiably regardless of the quality of the team.  In our case this is only going to generate 10K or maybe 15K when the team is really good.
 
As far as being Cinderella.  I think that is the best part of being a Northwestern fan.  We will always be the underdog and I don't mind.
 
Jeff
 
 
 
 


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From: nwu-sports-bounces at tssi.com on behalf of Dennis W. Brandt
Sent: Tue 11/10/2009 9:45 AM
To: nwu-sports at tssi.com
Subject: [NU Sports] NU Attendance et al



> But seriously, I am just sick of the whole attendance talk -- we've put a darn good product on the field for 15 years with more bang for the buck than anywhere else with upsets and thrilling finishes,

Can't deny there have been thrilling finishes over the years.  Can't deny a small fan base is part of the attendance problem.  But the economy?  Seen the stands at Ohio State and Penn State lately?  Seems to me that NU grads are among the least affected by an economic downturn.

The biggest problem is the Cats' year-to-year inconsistency on the field.  As we discussed earlier this season, some (me) predicted a 10 - 2 finish, others said 3 - 9, and most offered predictions somewhere in between.  Think Ohio State and Florida fans made such a wide range of prognostications?  If Michigan fans were jolted by their team's drop-off, does anyone doubt they will return to powerhouse status eventually?  We had the amazing glory days of '95 and '96, a so-so '97, and the inglorious '98 and '99 seasons.  The introduction of the spread offense inspired a comeback in 2000, but that faltered in 2001.  After that, the team was average or worse until Fitz gradually began turning it into "pretty good."  Fans will come IF there is almost ALWAYS a chance of winning the Big Ten crown, which by definition means having a legitimate shot at defeating the Big Three and not having to await one of our infrequent up years matching one of their rare down years to do it.  The enthusiasm of the Northwestern Cinderella story has worn off.  The NU football team raised fans' expectations but failed to deliver consistently.  To do that, they must at least peek through that talent ceiling and recruit more high-caliber football players.
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