Iup basketball

[IUPalum]

Sorry that Ship is getting the field house treatment again. I'd much rather have a more sparse KCAC crowd. :-)

I don't understand the Field House usage. I get maybe 1 game for nostalgia but the KCAC is their home base now. It still blows my mind that Joe would rather practice at the Field House also. I get the KCAC has other events so they can't always practice there but when it's available, why not? You have to get use to shooting with the open style back ground.

[hawks16]

Maybe we can get the KCAC to tarp over some sections like Pitt is doing dahn Heinz Field in the upper deck

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Maybe we can get the KCAC to tarp over some sections like Pitt is doing dahn Heinz Field in the upper deck

Ditch the recent concept of Saturday afternoon. It's been a gate disaster.

Start playing Saturday night again (a long-standing IUP tradition) and you can keep the tarps in storage.

Saturday night games at IUP were special. Saturday afternoon games are not.

[Fightingscot82]

Maybe we can get the KCAC to tarp over some sections like Pitt is doing dahn Heinz Field in the upper deck

If it weren't all one bowl, Cal should be doing that

[Fightingscot82]

Ditch the recent concept of Saturday afternoon. It's been a gate disaster.

Start playing Saturday night again (a long-standing IUP tradition) and you can keep the tarps in storage.

Saturday night games at IUP were special. Saturday afternoon games are not.

Attendance isn't really a focal point. Shows up nowhere in annual goals, performance evaluations, or strategic plans. Revenue at most is so insignificant they've never discussed start time. Kickoffs have been Noon for 50-60 years if not more probably from the days when nobody had lights. For these reasons, kickoffs are determined by a) a sense of tradition (we've always done it this way) to b) convenience to staff. Remember just about every single employee in an Athletic department is under a union contract, even the AD, who like the athletic trainers is considered a non-teaching professor. There are some PASSHE schools that have such a contentious work environment thanks to these unions that moving the game to what makes sense could result in a union grievance & arbitration.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Attendance isn't really a focal point. Shows up nowhere in annual goals, performance evaluations, or strategic plans. Revenue at most is so insignificant they've never discussed start time. Kickoffs have been Noon for 50-60 years if not more probably from the days when nobody had lights. For these reasons, kickoffs are determined by a) a sense of tradition (we've always done it this way) to b) convenience to staff. Remember just about every single employee in an Athletic department is under a union contract, even the AD, who like the athletic trainers is considered a non-teaching professor. There are some PASSHE schools that have such a contentious work environment thanks to these unions that moving the game to what makes sense could result in a union grievance & arbitration.

Well, I don't work for the school and don't care about their reports.

The KCAC isn't McComb. If you put an extra 1,700 in there at night it surely makes a giant revenue difference when you add up the $18 tickets, overpriced concessions and $9 beers.

I know why they changed it. That reason has come and gone. They played at night from the mid-90s until about 2023. It's time to change back.

[Fightingscot82]

Well, I don't work for the school and don't care about their reports.

The KCAC isn't McComb. If you put an extra 1,700 in there at night it surely makes a giant revenue difference when you add up the $18 tickets, overpriced concessions and $9 beers.

I know why they changed it. That reason has come and gone. They played at night from the mid-90s until about 2023. It's time to change back.

The KCAC management is outsourced to a third party as are concessions. They may know that they can't get staffing to work evenings as easily as they can afternoons. With these outside venue management groups, especially someone as large as OVG, its a negotiation rather than the university dictating. There are also other considerations like police staffing. I imagine the IUP AD's hands are at least somewhat tied.

So back to your pejorative comment about McComb, yeah, the KCAC is a much more complex venue and requires more than just some athletic staff, an officer or two, and campus dining to show up. This isn't a criticism of IUP at all, but just an educated hypothesis: the earlier tip offs and kick offs cost less money and IUP isn't really in the financial position to spend as they want. The additional revenue probably doesn't flow back to the university in a way that it makes sense or allows for preference over reality.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

The KCAC management is outsourced to a third party as are concessions. They may know that they can't get staffing to work evenings as easily as they can afternoons. With these outside venue management groups, especially someone as large as OVG, its a negotiation rather than the university dictating. There are also other considerations like police staffing. I imagine the IUP AD's hands are at least somewhat tied.

So back to your pejorative comment about McComb, yeah, the KCAC is a much more complex venue and requires more than just some athletic staff, an officer or two, and campus dining to show up. This isn't a criticism of IUP at all, but just an educated hypothesis: the earlier tip offs and kick offs cost less money and IUP isn't really in the financial position to spend as they want. The additional revenue probably doesn't flow back to the university in a way that it makes sense or allows for preference over reality.

It had nothing to do with staffing. The reason they made the change has come and gone. Hopefully they change back.

[Fightingscot82]

It had nothing to do with staffing. The reason they made the change has come and gone. Hopefully they change back.

Well then explain why it was made.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Well then explain why it was made.

During Joe's last big run the majority of his star players were from around Erie. Most of their families came to every game. The story I always got was they switched to the afternoon so those families didn't have to drive home 3 hours late at night during the winter.

The first year IUP was still really strong so the crowds stayed on par with previous years. The following years, however, the gate took major hits.

I don't think the season ticket crowd changed much (aside from getting older). But it decimated the casual fans. They just quit coming. There's still too much going on for families on Saturday afternoons. IUP gets vastly more through the gate in the evening.

For a stretch of I'd say 2010 to 2022 the KCAC was really humming. They had a run of 3,100+ (as high as 3,600+). Joe's game was kind of the thing to do in town during that period. Lately they are lucky to break 1,500. It zapped the energy out of the place. Hard to explain but they went from having some electric atmospheres to becoming pretty typical.

Keep in mind IUP was playing Saturday nights going back to the mid-90s. This was a major change.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

They should be a pretty solid D3 team for a few years considering SFU said they'd completely honor the scholarships of all current athletes through their graduation or transfer. Then once they can participate in D3 events, they'll be a D3 team haha

We'll see. Based on their posted roster, it appears the vast majority of SFU's top players all left. A handful of players stuck around but I don't think many of them actually played up there in meaningful minutes.

They did supplement with some PSAC transfers. I suspect they'll be a decent D3 opponent, and that this will become a year game for IUP. With the proximity it's a no-brainer.

What's funny is when they were a D1 ... Joe couldn't even get them to sign for an exhibition.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Sorry that Ship is getting the field house treatment again. I'd much rather have a more sparse KCAC crowd. :-)

Well, the last time Ship played in the Field House it was an absolute thriller (on a Saturday night).

It's definitely different over there -- especially when it's full. It's way louder than the typical game at the KCAC.

[Fightingscot82]

During Joe's last big run the majority of his star players were from around Erie. Most of their families came to every game. The story I always got was they switched to the afternoon so those families didn't have to drive home 3 hours late at night during the winter.

The first year IUP was still really strong so the crowds stayed on par with previous years. The following years, however, the gate took major hits.

I don't think the season ticket crowd changed much (aside from getting older). But it decimated the casual fans. They just quit coming. There's still too much going on for families on Saturday afternoons. IUP gets vastly more through the gate in the evening.

For a stretch of I'd say 2010 to 2022 the KCAC was really humming. They had a run of 3,100+ (as high as 3,600+). Joe's game was kind of the thing to do in town during that period. Lately they are lucky to break 1,500. It zapped the energy out of the place. Hard to explain but they went from having some electric atmospheres to becoming pretty typical.

Keep in mind IUP was playing Saturday nights going back to the mid-90s. This was a major change.

LOL that's a really odd reason but if it got him those players, congrats on the creativity.

I totally get the other finer points. I'd also add that the novelty of arena basketball wears off - especially when the price of everything goes up. However, that doesn't mean that someone who can go watch PSAC basketball and grab a Pepsi & pretzel all-in for $20 is going to go more often or with more friends than someone paying $50 all-in at IUP. As Cal has shown, you can build a palace but there's only so many people willing to come to your games.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

LOL that's a really odd reason but if it got him those players, congrats on the creativity.

I totally get the other finer points. I'd also add that the novelty of arena basketball wears off - especially when the price of everything goes up. However, that doesn't mean that someone who can go watch PSAC basketball and grab a Pepsi & pretzel all-in for $20 is going to go more often or with more friends than someone paying $50 all-in at IUP. As Cal has shown, you can build a palace but there's only so many people willing to come to your games.

The players were already there. It was done later in their careers at IUP (not as a recruiting tool).

That's the story, anyway.

Joe's going to again be pretty good this year. This would have been a great year to go back to playing on Saturday nights.

[Ship69]

Well, the last time Ship played in the Field House it was an absolute thriller (on a Saturday night).

It's definitely different over there -- especially when it's full. It's way louder than the typical game at the KCAC.

Ship had a pretty good team when they played that last one. If a couple of things break right, I think they could be more competitive this season than they've been the last couple of years, but playing what shapes up to be a good IUP team in that bandbox is going to be a bear.