Lack of Students at game AGAIN!

[ornryactor]

Travman, I've noticed that you have a history of pointlessly bashing the Cyclone Alley kids. Why? What have we done to offend you so deeply that you go out of your way to repeatedly start new threads insulting us? I have said it before and I will say it again: back off.

I don't know if it was different "back in the good ol' days"- when Iowa State students were a group of hard-working, highly intelligent young men and women who showed up at every single sporting event on campus regardless of day, time, or weather, and walked 20 miles uphill both ways through flash floods and blizzards to get there- but most people don't know that we supposedly dislike Missouri any more than we do other North or Big 12 schools. Everybody knows we hate Nebraska, and as far as they're concerned, that's our rivalry right there. Hell, I had no idea that Mizzou was anything special until this year's football game, and I still remain unconvinced that this "hated rivalry" extends any further than the football field. I don't see them as any different than K-State or Colorado. Yeah, we get it- they're a rival B12North school. Whoop-de-friggin'-do.

If you're expecting Cyclone Alley or Hilton in general to be packed to the gills for every single game this year, you have absurd expectations. Let's face it- this is a team that has struggled this year, and will do so for the rest of the season. Yep, they've had some success, and will continue to do so, but the average student doesn't have a ton to get excited about. There were a damn good number of CA fans there last night, and we made some noise, thank you very much. And, as everyone always seems to forget, college students don't just get to sit around on our butts every night of the week once our classes are done for the day. We have homework and studying to do, we are involved in many other activities, be it by choice or by requirement. I sure wish that my choir and band concerts didn't overlap with basketball games and wrestling meets, but they sometimes do. When that happens, I need to go perform, and I'm happy to do so. That means I'm not at the game. I suppose that makes a horrid Cyclone fan; you're right. In fact, I think I'll go drop my music education major so that I'm no longer required to be in performing ensembles- despite the fact that I enjoy being in them anyway- and become a General Studies major so that I am free to attend every basketball game. Then maybe my life will be worth living.

Don't you see how ridiculous that is?

[cstrunk]

As a student myself, I was really embarrassed at the lack of students at the game. Kudos to those who were there, they seemed to help but for the most part the crowd was never really "into it."

1. Jamie Pollard currently IS looking into shrinking Cyclone Alley for next year.

2. Cyclone Alley is looking into an electronic system that would keep track of students attendance at all men's and women's basketball games, and then the students with the most points would be allowed to sit near the bottom, while the fair weather fans would be forced to sit upstairs. We would get rid of the voucher system which consists of randomly generated voucher numbers for games like Iowa, Texas, and Kansas. Having the points system should help motivate students to get to ALL games in order to have the better seats during the big games.

3. Students, just step up and quit being pansies. (Most students on this board do not fit into this category).

[CYdTracked]

I'm not bashing CA, I'm frustrated that they are taking what they have for granted. I'm only 4 years removed from school so CA was just starting when I left. My roommate is only 1 year removed from school so he was part of CA and he's just as frustrated as I am.

I love CA and I think they add alot to Hilton but seems like the only time the CA sections are ever full to the top is for a couple big games of the season anymore. And it bothers me that some of you CA folks here don't find that a problem.

[goldmember]

ISU BBall fans have been disapointing in general the last couple of years. If it's the not parquet seated fans leaving with 4 mins left in the game (regardless of the score), or students only showing up for 2 games a year in force. I know the Athletic Department is frustrated as well. It's like ISU fans look for a reason not to go instead of the opposite. Examples...It's too cold, the game is on TV, its only Baylor, tickets are not front row, etc. Hopefully the fans leaving early part will be resolved when the new box seats are put in.

[ajk4st8]

How lame once again was our student section?

It is totally pathetic. The non-student crowd was great yesterday and had HUGE numbers!

Our students once again prove that they will not show up to basketball games. TAKE AWAY THEIR TICKET NUMBERS!

[tigershoops31]

I don't know if it was different "back in the good ol' days"- when Iowa State students were a group of hard-working, highly intelligent young men and women who showed up at every single sporting event on campus regardless of day, time, or weather, and walked 20 miles uphill both ways through flash floods and blizzards to get there- but most people don't know that we supposedly dislike Missouri any more than we do other North or Big 12 schools. Everybody knows we hate Nebraska, and as far as they're concerned, that's our rivalry right there. Hell, I had no idea that Mizzou was anything special until this year's football game, and I still remain unconvinced that this "hated rivalry" extends any further than the football field. I don't see them as any different than K-State or Colorado. Yeah, we get it- they're a rival B12North school. Whoop-de-friggin'-do.



Don't you see how ridiculous that is?

I don't think anybody is trying to make boasts about how tough they were or how hard they cheered back in the day. Just pointing out the fact that student attendance has sucked this year. I don't think you can deny that. In fact, it's been a lot worse than any year I can remember (I have only had tickets for about 10 years though). Nobody is trying to brag up "how it was when I was in school". People are just saying that we need to fill up the stands, especially when the students have already paid for their tickets so nobody else can take those seats. It'd be one thing if there just wasn't enough interest to get those seats sold no matter what. The point is that people are buying the tickets and not going for one reason or another. The other thing that people are trying to say is that changes are going to be coming if we can't fill these seats up. I guess if you're a die-hard that's probably just fine, cause you'll be there bright and early for every game anyway. The only way I can see somebody making a big stink about the points made here is if they are somebody that either only wants to see the "big games" or somebody that wants to show up 5 minutes after tip-off and still sit close to the court. If you're wanting to see ISU basketball succeed we need to get butts in the seats for both the bottom line and to make Hilton as tough an environment as possible. At least that's how I see it, but then again my viewpoint is probably distorted from all of my 20 mile "uphill both ways" hikes to Hilton when I was in school.

[madcityCY]

It's starting to become an every game thing with noticable empty seats in the student sections so that is why you keep seeing this topic coming up. People notice this because the student section is in a prominent location...

If I was the athletics department here'd be my way of getting the students to show: pack your lower level sections every game else we'll take some of them away and sell them at premium prices to people who would PAY to sit there.

Seriously, some of you students think this is no big deal but don't think for a second that Pollard might have thoughts of taking some of those seats he could be getting $2500 NCC donorships from people that used to sit there. I would prefer the students there because they make more noise and get into the game. But if they can't fill the sections full we also need to raise money for renovations and that is an aweful tempting possibility to reduce the number of student seats in the lower level if I can turn it into more revenue and still fill the seats.

I'm not sure that seats behind a bunch of rowdy students are that attractive to NCC members.. yes they are closer to the floor, but they would have to put up w/ student antics- which are great... if you sit across the coliseum. Next year, if we are improved, there will be more students at the games. That's just the way it works.

[CrossCyed]

Painting with a rather wide brush....

[chadm]

Is a new thread needed?
http://www.cyclonefanatic.com/forum/...ead.php?t=6061 (Lack of Students at game AGAIN!)

[ajk4st8]

I sat in CA yesterday. Lame. If thats all the amount of students we can bring for a Big 12 game, take away their tickets. The ones who show are fine. But why waste tons of lower level seats when people would buy them up?

Im shocked more people aren't ****** off about this. We waste so many seats to students who dont show. Football and Bball.

When over 20,000 kids go to ISU its shocking that maybe 5% care to attend bball games.

[mwitt]

The people who are saying the cold isn't an excuse aren't being realistic.

I wouldn't miss any of Iowa State's games for anything, and I can't even get in the mindset of some other people who skip games every now and then, but the fact of the matter is that not all students are die hard fans like the ones who post here. The ones who care enough about Cyclone sports to post here all think the same way as me. They can't imagine just not going.

The truth is .... some of the students don't care all that much. They see it as something to do every now and then. They don't hurt when we lose and float on cloud 9 when we win like some of us.

[CYdTracked]

I'm not sure that seats behind a bunch of rowdy students are that attractive to NCC members.. yes they are closer to the floor, but they would have to put up w/ student antics- which are great... if you sit across the coliseum. Next year, if we are improved, there will be more students at the games. That's just the way it works.

They won't give them seats behind CA I'm sure, they'll just take away an entire section or 2 if they reduce it. This is why I think CA folks need to be worried because it CA seating is reduced it won't be the last few rows of a section, it will be a whole section.

The best way to prevent something like that from happening is pack the seats every game and don't even tempt the Athletic Department to consider reducing the number of seats.

I know some people here think that I'm bashing CA and honestly I'm not. This is constructive crticism because if it were me in CA I'd be pretty upset my fellow students that signed up are not coming out. Don't think for a minute if CA was always packed and the public didn't fill their sections full enough that the students wouldn't be the first to criticize us because you know they would. I'm sorry if some of my comments are blunt and hit a nerve but it has to be said and hopefully it will fire some people up enough to be more pro-active about getting people there that they know are not coming.

[sodakjoe]

Lets not forget that some people don't LIKE sports, or that some people are scraping just to get by to pay for college, and are working just to pay for tuition, and have better things to worry about than paying for student tickets, or about students who think it's better to spend their time studying rather than go to a basketball game.

All of these factors don't even account for those that DO like sports, can afford tickets, etc who are fans of OTHER teams, whether it be from their home state, or whatever, and also doesn't account for those that simply don't come because let's face it, our team isn't that good. Cyclone Alley sold a record number of student season tickets this year, breaking 3,000. Now, if 3,000 tickets were sold and the undergrad enrollment for ISU is 23,710, according to the ISU website, that means that over 12% of students bought tickets to see the Cyclones play basketball. Obviously not all of those students are going to be able to come to every game, but doesn't it say something that they bought tickets? Buying tickets supports the program too. I know a lot of kids who have student tickets who don't end up using all of them because they go home for a weekend or two, or they have concerts, or other organization's events during the weekend. The Student section will RARELY be full no matter who we're playing, expecially since JP said that not all of the tickets were even sold.

And will the NCC people please get off their high horse? The parquet is NEVER full. EVER. For KU, Nebraska, Mizzou, who the heck ever we're playing, it is NEVER full. There are always empty seats where you guys are at, too. Let's not make this out to be a "students don't show loyalty" or "students don't care" kind of argument. None of us should EXPECT Hilton to be full when our team isn't good. There are a lot of fans out there that packed it in for this season and are waiting for next. It's a shame, but it happens. We aren't as privileged as KU or Duke to have a top 10 program every year where we can sell out every game. When our team is in top 25 contention every season, that's when you can start getting angry about empty seats. Not when your team is scraping to stay above .500

As for me, I'll be there, in the Pep Band, at every game I can possibly make it to, doing my part, and not concerning myself with other people who choose not to participate. That's their loss, not mine.

[clonez]

heres what they should do, move cyclone alley to one of the sides along the court, not behind basket, but in lower level, that is a limited number of seats so their will be a rush for those, if you dont get their in time, they have to sit either i parquet where they sit now, or in the balcony, gets the good hardcore fans to the front and center

[cycook]

wow, do you people think that sitting on this site complaining about this issue is really going to solve anything? Let's think about it, there are people responding to this thread that weren't even at yesterday's game-so their opinion obviously doesn't count; and the people that are reading your whiney messages probably aren't the students that don't go to any game-they're actually probably students that attend every home game like myself. Stop wasting everybody's time.