THE IUP Football Thread

[CUlater]

This looks like a 'buddy' signing for Karst. Not much of a resume. I'd imagine he will be a special teams player and depth WR. Their top 6 WRs are loaded. I don't see this guy breaking the top 6.

For sure, but that’s a solid role player. It’s getting a bit ridiculous lol. At the end of last season I thought IUP was returning the most talented/experienced roster in SR1. You’ve done nothing but add a bunch of talent since and I would expect a couple more over the next 4 weeks. Looking forward to seeing what they can do with it.

[iupgroundhog]

For sure, but that’s a solid role player. It’s getting a bit ridiculous lol. At the end of last season I thought IUP was returning the most talented/experienced roster in SR1. You’ve done nothing but add a bunch of talent since and I would expect a couple more over the next 4 weeks. Looking forward to seeing what they can do with it.

It would seem that the outstanding issues are OL/DL and RB. And, of course, as Tort says, anybody else who will make them better.

[IUPalum]

[QUOTE=GregD;n756602]

What are they getting for a game ticket?[

IUP could not sell a meal to a billionaire dying of starvation.

To many cheap bastards in Indiana.

[Ship69]

[QUOTE=IUPalum;n756633]

To many cheap bastards in Indiana.

I'm not sure they're cheaper in Indiana than they are in most PSAC towns.

[IUP24]

IUP announced a fantastic discount (sarcasm) for a football tailgating season ticket.

For just $225 you can get a regular season pass. Six home games ... that's a cool $37.50/game to park beside Miller Stadium.

They've completely lost their minds. This is freaking D2 in a small town ... for a team with a following that gets older by the day.

That's basically the "we don't want students and we don't want most locals" pricing.

Or, of course, you can park a block away -- for free -- and just carry a cooler to that area (if you wish to tailgate).

Now, keep in mind it is a significant discount compared to years past (it's usually $65/spot for tailgating). That price needs no further comment. LOL.

And, by the way, they have (by far) the most expensive game tickets in the PSAC.

Laugh, but I do believe there's some truth to this.

I can recall that IUP put an effort in place to actually give students who parked in that area a difficult time when I was a student. I remember my senior year (when my friends and I were all 21), we parked there a few times for games to tailgate. We were watched and circled by IUP campus police the entire time. Nothing like making students/young fans uncomfortable in that environment. It was the oddest thing. It was abundantly clear that they were watching for us to do something wrong or waiting for something to look suspicious to interject themselves into our social gathering.

It wasn't like we were sitting there blasting music or playing drinking games either. We had a few lawn chairs, a small grill to cook some dogs/burgers, and a small cooler with some beer.

[IUP24]

What are they getting for a game ticket?

I spent 30 bucks to purchase in advance for a single game online last year. I think the cost is due to 3rd party group they use to handle the tickets and purchases online.

Now.. Your cost is going to go down if you don't want to a mobile ticket, if you are willing to pick up at will-call (and wait in the line), or if you want to simply buy at the gate that day. But you lose convience and the ability to pick your exact seat.

[Fightingscot82]

Oddly enough, Edinboro charges jack squat for parking anywhere, including the parking lot directly behind the visitor side. In fact, there are some longtime locals who tailgate in that vicinity and plug in to the university power so they're actually giving away parking & power LOL.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

[QUOTE=IUPalum;n756633]

To many cheap bastards in Indiana.

IUP's football attendance has been on the climb the past couple seasons. Slow but steady.

Now, I have absolutely zero faith in the numbers they report.

Purely eye test (and having attended games there for 30 years) ... there are days when they report 2,600 that you can easily tell there are 4,600+. Then by October there are games they report 4,500 and there might be 2,000 in the stadium. With that said, the 'eye test' attendance has been up the past few seasons. Has moving the band back over and giving it a full section on the home side altered the perception of attendance some? Perhaps. But, that's a good thing regardless.

The ridiculous tailgating lot prices are just one of several issues the 'game day' experience at IUP has that turns off casual fans. I'm not talking about the guys who set up and fly the flags in the parking lot, etc. Those are core, die-hard fans and they will be there even it the price was $100/spot. But, they aren't getting casual fans to pay $65/spot to tailgate for a D2 football game (and then spend $20-ish per ticket plus food, etc.). No chance in hell.

The biggest overall difference between the men's basketball game-day experience and the football game-day experience is most people you talk to will tell you the football day is boring -- not so much the actual game action, but everything else. I get the purist will say the game is all that is needed, but that's not anywhere close to true when talking about attracting the casual, younger fan. Basketball packs a ton of stuff in to the show in between the action (the stuff the kids love). Football doesn't have any of that stuff. To an extent, the KCAC basketball experience is similar to a minor league baseball game. There's a lot going on aside from the game. Kids love all that stuff.

Football has to start attracting a younger audience. The average age between the football crowd and the basketball crowd is pretty staggering. The middle section on the home side (right behind the team) is getting very old (i.e. they are extremely quiet, don't cheer much, etc.). I've said for years and years the first 10 rows of that section should be the student section. Liven things up.

[IUPNation]

Section C is so old that they don’t need cup holders but holders for the IV’s and Oxygen Tanks.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Section C is so old that they don’t need cup holders but holders for the IV’s and Oxygen Tanks.

Right.

And, that's the section directly behind the team. That's where they need the best, loudest fans.

Looking up and seeing fans in their IUP CO-OP gear (sorry Tort) only gets the team so pumped.

Teams feed off crowds. People have wondered forever why Tort's teams have struggled or looked disinterested inside Miller. How excited to do most people get at a funeral home?

The most intense I've ever seen a Tort team was up at SRU two years ago. They got heckled on the bus, walking off it, the whole warm-up, F IUP chants ... everything. When IUP took the field right before kick-off, that was one hell of an amped up team. They then clobbered SRU in front of 9,000 -- 8,300 of which were long gone mid-3rd quarter. Here's the other part: IUP travels pretty well up there. Traveling fans are the best, most-engaged fans. Sit them all together (as happens on the road) and they feed off each other.

Duke basketball could sell its courtside seats for incredible sums of money. Yet, they don't. The students get courtside. Cameron Indoor is probably the toughest venue to play inside in all of basketball. The court is surrounded by so much energy. Now, close your eyes and imagine the home side of Miller Stadium.

I get 'Section C' donates a ton of money to the program. I'm not saying kick them out ... just move them all up. Give the students (and general admission) the first 10 rows of the home side. I guarantee you'd see an instant atmosphere improvement. It would initially cause a Holy War but they'd get over it.

[Iupgh]

It would seem that the outstanding issues are OL/DL and RB. And, of course, as Tort says, anybody else who will make them better.

Well the OL just got a boost as the Concord lineman that previously visited has signed up to be the next great transfer OL in which IUP has a long history of producing. They usually don’t miss on these cats. It also appears he has several years of eligibility. Boy the offense on paper looks unreal. We shall see.

[IUP24]

Right.

And, that's the section directly behind the team. That's where they need the best, loudest fans.

Looking up and seeing fans in their IUP CO-OP gear (sorry Tort) only gets the team so pumped.

Teams feed off crowds. People have wondered forever why Tort's teams have struggled or looked disinterested inside Miller. How excited to do most people get at a funeral home?

The most intense I've ever seen a Tort team was up at SRU two years ago. They got heckled on the bus, walking off it, the whole warm-up, F IUP chants ... everything. When IUP took the field right before kick-off, that was one hell of an amped up team. They then clobbered SRU in front of 9,000 -- 8,300 of which were long gone mid-3rd quarter. Here's the other part: IUP travels pretty well up there. Traveling fans are the best, most-engaged fans. Sit them all together (as happens on the road) and they feed off each other.

Duke basketball could sell its courtside seats for incredible sums of money. Yet, they don't. The students get courtside. Cameron Indoor is probably the toughest venue to play inside in all of basketball. The court is surrounded by so much energy. Now, close your eyes and imagine the home side of Miller Stadium.

I get 'Section C' donates a ton of money to the program. I'm not saying kick them out ... just move them all up. Give the students (and general admission) the first 10 rows of the home side. I guarantee you'd see an instant atmosphere improvement. It would initially cause a Holy War but they'd get over it.

I still don't know how "rowdy" some of the townspeople or generic fans get when they do show up to create the atmosphere you're searching for at Miller Stadium. IUP basketball is the "in team" at that time of year. Indiana and the surrounding area is a strong basketball community already, and the success of IUP historically has done a lot to grow that fanbase and create actual fans of the team and program. People "root" for IUP football, but I'm not sure people are "invested" at the same level they get for IUP basketball. The big challenge is that nobody wakes up on Saturday morning with their headliner being IUP hosting Mercyhurst in the 4:00 PM Hall of Fame game. I think there's way too many fans of other larger successful programs in the area (i.e. Pitt and Penn State) to ever generate the type of interest for the program as a whole. Major programs for basketball in the area don't get the same pull in that Indiana community, I would argue. Lot of Penn Staters up there, and despite them having a good year every so often, they just don't have an appetite for Penn State basketball as a fanbase. Pitt has a good basketball following, but they have been down for some time now.

Could they do a lot to improve the gameday atmosphere there? As we've said for years ad nauseum, yes. But I just don't know how rowdy the casuals who show up get. They aren't IUP football fans first.

The goal should be to first increase the attendance, whether in truth or visually based on how things look within the stadium, and then hope to organically generate a better atmosphere due to that. Like you mentioned, the band being moved does something to condense the fans and make it look better visually. My quick list of things to improve some of these items:

1. Ensure that 90% of attendance is "free attendance." Figure out what part of the stadium is "reserved seating." If it's the top 10 rows of Section C (the view is far better up high anyways), then make that more of an experience for season ticket holders. Rip out those bleachers and install stadium chairback seats. People pay for season tickets or single-game reserved tickets in those areas. Control and police the hell out of that section to make sure nobody wanders in and takes a seat that didn't pay for it. The remainder of the stadium (mostly) is general admission and free seating at that point.
-Note: You lose nothing in terms of allowing people to walk in for free. 1) It happens a lot already anyways. 2) The likelihood that you get a family of 4 to show up likely increases with free admission. It allows you to bank on somebody purchasing food at the concession stands, or purchasing some merch for the kids. Chances are likely you make more money and grow your fanbase doing that.

2. Ensure that one specific location of the stadium is "students only." You want to make things "rowdy" or create more of an "atmosphere"? Stop mixing senior citizens and adults with young children with drunk college students hoping to have a good time. Recalling back to my days at IUP, that was the absolute worst. Most students don't walk in the door until 5-10 minutes before kickoff. At that point, what normally is considered the "student section" gets infiltrated with those just there to watch the game, not necessarily there to get "rowdy." Whether that's all of section C, lower parts of the stadium along the sidelines on the home side, etc. The students need a dedicated section/area by themselves.

3. Align more with local events to create large attendance groups. I think that IUP has done well with this recently, but youth football teams, scout groups, other local youth community organizations and groups. Make coming to the football game an outing. Your chances of creating an "atmosphere" increase by simply having more bodies in seats. And if they have a good time, they are likely to return again (especially with free GA tickets).

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Well the OL just got a boost as the Concord lineman that previously visited has signed up to be the next great transfer OL in which IUP has a long history of producing. They usually don’t miss on these cats. It also appears he has several years of eligibility. Boy the offense on paper looks unreal. We shall see.

Great addition

[IUPbigINDIANS]

I still don't know how "rowdy" some of the townspeople or generic fans get when they do show up to create the atmosphere you're searching for at Miller Stadium. IUP basketball is the "in team" at that time of year. Indiana and the surrounding area is a strong basketball community already, and the success of IUP historically has done a lot to grow that fanbase and create actual fans of the team and program. People "root" for IUP football, but I'm not sure people are "invested" at the same level they get for IUP basketball. The big challenge is that nobody wakes up on Saturday morning with their headliner being IUP hosting Mercyhurst in the 4:00 PM Hall of Fame game. I think there's way too many fans of other larger successful programs in the area (i.e. Pitt and Penn State) to ever generate the type of interest for the program as a whole.

Could they do a lot to improve the gameday atmosphere there? As we've said for years ad nauseum, yes. But I just don't know how rowdy the casuals who show up get.

The goal should be to first increase the attendance, whether in truth or visually based on how things look within the stadium. Like you mentioned, the band being moved does something to condense the fans and make it look better visually. My quick list of things to improve some of these items:

1. Ensure that 90% of attendance is "free attendance." Figure out what part of the stadium is "reserved seating." If it's the top 10 rows of Section C (the view is far better up high anyways), then make that more of an experience for season ticket holders. Rip out those bleachers and install stadium chairback seats. People pay for season tickets or single-game reserved tickets in those areas. Control and police the hell out of that section to make sure nobody wanders in and takes a seat that didn't pay for it. The remainder of the stadium (mostly) is general admission and free seating at that point.
-Note: You lose nothing in terms of allowing people to walk in for free. 1) It happens a lot already anyways. 2) The likelihood that you get a family of 4 to show up likely increases with free admission. It allows you to bank on somebody purchasing food at the concession stands, or purchasing some merch for the kids. Chances are likely you make more money and grow your fanbase doing that.

2. Ensure that one specific location of the stadium is "students only." You want to make things "rowdy" or create more of an "atmosphere"? Stop mixing senior citizens and adults with young children with drunk college students hoping to have a good time. Recalling back to my days at IUP, that was the absolute worst. Most students don't walk in the door until 5-10 minutes before kickoff. At that point, what normally is considered the "student section" gets infiltrated with those just there to watch the game, not necessarily there to get "rowdy." Whether that's all of section C, lower parts of the stadium along the sidelines on the home side, etc. The students need a dedicated section/area by themselves.

3. Align more with local events to create large attendance groups. I think that IUP has done well with this recently, but youth football teams, scout groups, other local youth community organizations and groups. Make coming to the football game an outing. Your chances of creating an "atmosphere" increase by simply having more bodies in seats. And if they have a good time, they are likely to return again (especially with free GA tickets).

I'm not talking 'rowdy' ... I'm just wishing for a 'pulse'. I totally agree the basketball crowd and football crowd are extremely different.

Like I said, football attendance (whatever the actual number may be) has been getting better the past two years. That said, it's still the same lame-a$$ atmosphere inside.

A couple years ago in the opener against Kutztown, the students actually showed up and it was really loud in there. The 'Pick Six' that ultimately won the game for IUP was one of the loudest moments I've heard in there in forever. Unfortunately, they only really showed up for that first game.

It's better than it was, atmosphere-wise, but until that 'Section C' issue is resolved, it can't take the next step.

Free tickets are noble idea for 90% of the stadium but that's never going to happen.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Well the OL just got a boost as the Concord lineman that previously visited has signed up to be the next great transfer OL in which IUP has a long history of producing. They usually don’t miss on these cats. It also appears he has several years of eligibility. Boy the offense on paper looks unreal. We shall see.

Well, one thing is for certain: Tort had some money to spend this off-season. So, kudos to the program supporters. All these high-profile transfers he's signed haven't come cheap.

Always remember while the 'check writers' don't take the field, the winning starts there. IUP is very fortunate to have a very loyal, giving core group. A whole lot of (real) money (not discounted blue-light special privates coin) has been spent on this upcoming team.