OT: D1

[IUPNation]

The people you may have interacted with or had a bad experience with outside of South Bend are not the same people going to games in South Bend.

It was okay. I don’t remember it being a bad time. It was a group trip through the hospital my mom
worked at…we did Penn State/WVU the previous year. That trip was fun.

[Fightingscot82]

I'll always flip on a whored out Wednesday night MAC game this time of year. That 8k actual humans may be a stretch.

My two years in Oxford, OH showed me that the MAC is the D1 version of the PSAC. Under resourced compared to the national leaders. Incredibly competitive. Students and younger alumni just don't give a F about their school's athletics programs because they're really fans of the local Big Ten school. Their size allows for a student section that at least appears engaged.

[IUP24]

IIRC Clemson is cutting down on the number of bleacher seats in order to convert more of them to luxury seating/boxes. The NFL comparison is apt as the new trend in college gameday experience is to follow the NFL and pro sports in general by trying to maximize $/seat rather than make money on volume. FSU and Michigan are also cutting seats for similar reasons and SDSU’s new stadium is closer in size and accommodations to an MLS stadium than the classic college style.

College attendance numbers have been dropping for years. Included in that is student attendance as well. People think Penn State pulling 107,000 people every Saturday is the norm. It's not. It's the CLEAR outlier. Which is why outside of the state of Pennsylvania not one single person could care less about the attendance for a Pitt home game. It's not even a conversation.

Turn on games on a Saturday. Outside of your couple token schools, there's empty seats literally everywhere.

[Ship69]

South Bend itself is a dump. The campus is immaculate. I went to ND in 2018 and will be their again this weekend. My opinion of ND and their fans changed dramatically after that. The mouth breathing Notre Dame fans from Munhall or Aspinwall aren't going to games at Notre Dame Stadium. I've never quite had an experience at a game like I did at Notre Dame. Those were the nicest people I have ever interacted with at a football game. They totally recognize that they are a tourist attraction, and the real fans of the team/school embrace that and are incredibly welcoming. I would encourage anyone who has never been there for a game to go. It's an unforgettable experience.

I also greatly enjoyed my time in Knoxville. Tennessee fans were incredible as well. Extremely friendly before, during, and after the game.

At the end of the day, people root for different schools, but they are all just football games. College football can be fun and enjoyable travel experiences if people didn't make things personal or think the guy that comes with a different colored shirt is automatically a jackass because they don't drink your flavor of kool-aid. I had a horrific experience at Virginia Tech. I don't think I would ever go back there. For a town/university located in an area as desolate as Blacksburg, you would think people would be appreciative of others helping to boost their local economy. Enter Sandman is cool, but man are those people rough.

Glad you enjoyed your time in Tennessee. When Northwestern played them in a bowl game a few years back, they were by far the worst online fan base we ever dealt with. I realize that people on the internet are a whole different animal, but that bunch was something else. Ever since then, the Vols can't lose enough to suit me.

[IUPNation]

College attendance numbers have been dropping for years. Included in that is student attendance as well. People think Penn State pulling 107,000 people every Saturday is the norm. It's not. It's the CLEAR outlier. Which is why outside of the state of Pennsylvania not one single person could care less about the attendance for a Pitt home game. It's not even a conversation.

Turn on games on a Saturday. Outside of your couple token schools, there's empty seats literally everywhere.

Mainly due to the fact at each level 90 percent of the teams have zero shot at the National Title.

[IUP24]

Mainly due to the fact at each level 90 percent of the teams have zero shot at the National Title.

90% is an understatement. Even in an expanded playoff, it's still only going to be the same 5-6 who have the resources to actually do it on a regular basis.

It's easier than ever to watch games at home. It's better too. Great camera quality. Get to see "more" of the game up close. When you are at a game live, you miss so much. You can't hear what broadcasters are saying. Depending on where you're sitting, you may not even have a good vantage point to know where the line to gain is for a first down. I enjoy going to games live, but I like watching at home more.

And these games are absurdly long. It's insane. Considering driving to the game, parking, maybe a tailgate or two, getting out of the stadium, and traffic leaving, it's literally an 8-10 hour day to attend a football game. That's a huge commitment for a lot of people when you can sit on your couch and have the rest of your day otherwise.

[IUP24]

Mainly due to the fact at each level 90 percent of the teams have zero shot at the National Title.

I'll add.. There are a lot of other studies out there that talk about declining attendance at sporting events... This isn't limited to college football. NFL numbers are down too. It's happening in all sports.

Cost is a driver. But interestingly, so too is sports betting and fantasy sports culture. The desire to commit to one game, even if it is your team, has never been lower.

[Ship69]

90% is an understatement. Even in an expanded playoff, it's still only going to be the same 5-6 who have the resources to actually do it on a regular basis.

It's easier than ever to watch games at home. It's better too. Great camera quality. Get to see "more" of the game up close. When you are at a game live, you miss so much. You can't hear what broadcasters are saying. Depending on where you're sitting, you may not even have a good vantage point to know where the line to gain is for a first down. I enjoy going to games live, but I like watching at home more.

And these games are absurdly long. It's insane. Considering driving to the game, parking, maybe a tailgate or two, getting out of the stadium, and traffic leaving, it's literally an 8-10 hour day to attend a football game. That's a huge commitment for a lot of people when you can sit on your couch and have the rest of your day otherwise.

Of course part of the reason the games are so long is because you CAN sit on your couch and watch it, if you can get through an extra hour of commercials. One of the reasons I like D2 football is that the games take considerably less time to play, and you're not fighting 70,000 people to leave the stadium afterward. Night games at State College are ridiculous unless you live in that region.

[jrshooter]

CBS is catching some priceless undergrad faces in the stands as Indiana takes a 7-0 lead.

[IUPNation]

CBS is catching some priceless undergrad faces in the stands as Indiana takes a 7-0 lead.

Nothing will change as long as James Tenandtwo is the coach.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

CBS is catching some priceless undergrad faces in the stands as Indiana takes a 7-0 lead.

The Kings of Tier Two will be just fine.

[jrshooter]

Damn, their receivers can't get separation on Indiana. Couple that with the two RBs not being able to get any chunk plays, and you have a pretty anemic offense. Not a great look for former Shippensburg OC Mike Yurcich, either.

[IUPNation]

Damn, their receivers can't get separation on Indiana. Couple that with the two RBs not being able to get any chunk plays, and you have a pretty anemic offense. Not a great look for former Shippensburg OC Mike Yurcich, either.

James Tenandtwo will be lucky to win.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

H2P

Lol

Holy F

[Ship69]

Damn, their receivers can't get separation on Indiana. Couple that with the two RBs not being able to get any chunk plays, and you have a pretty anemic offense. Not a great look for former Shippensburg OC Mike Yurcich, either.

You've got to have an o-line to block and (as you said) receivers who can get open to have any kind of offense. I can't believe Yurich's offenses have averaged about 35 points or more at every stop he's made and all of a sudden he's a bum. That said, I don't understand why they stick with that sidecar passing formation with multiple wideouts when their line isn't doing that great and their receivers aren't getting open. Get another back into the backfield, line up tight, and see if you can run. They supposedly have an All-American left tackle and yet they can't seem to run the ball that way. Receivers coach better be beating the bushes next yeara. When was the last time they had a really outstanding o-line? Seems like a while.