Sad Picture at Stadium Just Before Kickoff

Submitted by winterblue75 on

courtesy of @mvictors Twitter

Mr. Yost

September 15th, 2013 at 5:03 AM ^

Sell the seats.

Change the student allotment based on games and sell seats to people who want to go.

Even if it's $10 it gets someone in the stadium. So give the students their max allotment for the big games and do research and change it from there. For these types of games if they only get 20% of their max and you sell the rest, but they fill up that 20%. Oh well, go buy a seat and next year the Akron level game will be 30%.

umich1

September 15th, 2013 at 7:24 AM ^

As a recent alum, my .02:



1) This football team is for the students first, alumni second, and everyone else third. It's the University of Michigan's football team. So with that I'm not into artificially shrinking the size of the section. Increases in price may be appropriate though since so many are still willing to throw their tickets away.

2) I love how on one thread, people complain about how the team didn't play with enough emotion/urgency, then I see all these excuses for students not going to the game. Where is there emotion? We all know these students weren't missing the game to study. They had other, "more important" things to do. Some day these students will grow up and realize that wasn't the case. You have about 28 opportunities to cheer for this team as a student, and as an alum I would tell the students that every opportunity should be treasured. I've had season tickets my whole life but experiencing Michigan Football as a student is special. But how can you complain that the team didn't show up when half of the student section didn't- I'm sure the team got the message loud and clear in warm ups.

3) don't understand complaining about scheduling to explain why students can't make it while the rest of the stadium was full. Students have to walk down state street. While tailgating, I saw license plates from New Jersey, Ohio, Wisconsin, Indiana, Kentucky, etc. They all made a big trip for "lowly Akron."

4) oh- one last thought- WE ALMOST LOST. And that final play- it was in the north end zone. Could have used that additional noise on D.

mikethehardwareguy

September 15th, 2013 at 8:59 AM ^

this is SAD.  if i was a student at mich, i would be at every game with time to spare.  some of us are not so lucky.  clearly donuts did not work.  i think the only solution now is to open those empty seats up to the FANS, like the people who are willing to pay full price on tickets, speed countless dollars on merchandise of our favorite team, and are all in for MICHIGAN.

hackattack13

September 15th, 2013 at 9:30 AM ^

people on the interwebs be angry.  Students historically do not show up at game time for noon games and/or crappy games.  With the game being during the first real weekend of classes and being on a Jewish holiday, its logical that some students wouldnt show up.  Would it be nice to see the student section over flowing like at ND-YES.  Is that an unreasonable expectation-YES.  It is what it is

snarling wolverine

September 15th, 2013 at 11:05 AM ^

Actually, historically our students have mostly shown up on time, even for noon games.  This business of having a huge chuck of the student section not fill until after gametime is something that's only been going on a few years.   I don't know if it's lingering apathy from the RichRod years but it's  time for it to stop.  Hoke is 17-0 at home, so it's worth showing up to see his team play.

 

 

hackattack13

September 15th, 2013 at 1:29 PM ^

I think  it is a combo of things.  There havent been many noon games the last few years so eventhough historically noon has been the time, it is not what students are trained for.  Noon games are easier to get to when its a big ten team or a bigger game. I think the big one is this though...the new GA policy puts all the empty seats in one block rather than what it was a few years ago where there were pockets of empty/rows looked fuller but were not squeezed in.  I know when I was a student I would start off with extra room, be cramped from the mid 1st until half, then have more room after halftime.  Now late students cant fill in rows and are forced to be in the empty blocks up top

Soulfire21

September 15th, 2013 at 9:36 AM ^

Or could it be the combination of cheap student tickets (which are actually among the most expensive student tickets in the nation averaging ~$41 a game) and the new GA policy which requires students to show up hours prior to kick off? It's going to show in games like this.

But the university also needs to schedule good opponents. I couldn't even give away 2 extra tickets I had to yesterday's game because there was no demand.

I do credit the university with trying, they are hard... The HAIL program, donuts, etc. About the only other thing they could try is free beer for the students.

KSmooth

September 15th, 2013 at 10:42 AM ^

It just goes to show that the Brandon Hype Machine (LOUD MUSIC! FLYBYS! LOUDER MUSIC! VIDEOS! EVEN LOUDER MUSIC! LUXURY BOXES! MUSIC SO LOUD YOUR EARS BLEED! UNIFORM GIMMICKS! THE LOUDEST MUSIC IN THE HISTORY OF LOUD MUSIC!) is no substitute for quality opponents and a decent college football atmosphere. I'm not going to say I hate all the changes -- I like night football -- and I understand the need for marketing but clever marketing can only get you so far. Sellouts and full stadiums are not an entitlement and too much marketing and hype gets to be grating after a while. I hope Brandon gets that.

Elise

September 15th, 2013 at 10:48 AM ^

In fairness, the GA policy they used this week would have been far better if it were implemented last week. We had actual tickets given to us instead of just little sheets of paper.

steve sharik

September 15th, 2013 at 10:52 AM ^

...as some of you old-timers claim (and I'll submit I'm 43 years old), then:

a) How come the student section is easily the loudest in the entire stadium, and that a Yost Ice Arena full of nothing but students would be way louder than Michigan Stadium full of non-students?

b) To which area of the stadium have the players run to celebrate each big win?

To me, the stadium needs people who might show up late and be loud than it needs people who are there on time and sit on their hands and never yell.  For football, TV is a better viewing experience than live, so if you're not going to make noise and support the team, you're better off not going at all. 

Let's face it, the players could give a crap how much money you've donated or how much you paid for your seat when they're out there on the field.  What they need is noise, and the students deliver, in spades.  You can tell who really gets it when the different areas of the stadium spell out "M-I-C-H-I-G-A-N" after the 3rd quarter.

snarling wolverine

September 15th, 2013 at 11:13 AM ^

I don't think anyone denies that the students are the loudest fans.  That's true in every stadium in the country.  But that's the point - they're important to our homefield advantage, and when they don't show up, our stadium isn't as tough for visitors to play in.  

I think most of us in here are former students, and we did our part when we went to school here.  I don't think I was ever late to a game.  I don't see why the current students can't carry the torch now.  It's not like pregame parties didn't exist when I went here a decade ago.  We just knew to stop it in time to get to the game.  

Being in the student section is awesome - you can stand all game and be loud without anyone complaining.  You can't do that after you graduate.  Now, in an alumni section, I can only stand part of the time, and while I am a pretty loud fan, most of the people around me are quiet, except at the most crucial times.  I would love to be in the student section again, even if it meant no guaranteed seat location.  It's fun.  It's worth getting there on time to enjoy it for four quarters. 

 

WolverineFanatic6

September 15th, 2013 at 1:00 PM ^

Thank god I'm a real fan that makes it to games on time, supports the team, and would do anything to help this football team win. I have to say we have some pathetic students and fans. The problem is these idiots think they're entitled to something bc they go to UM or bc the football team is the winningest program of all time. Sure don't look like it. I Remember a few years back when a coach said the Big house is the quietest 110,000 and that no one is afraid to play in the big house. Once you take the lead our worthless crowd becomes silent and starts pointing fingers instead of rallying the troops. Oh well. It's not like anything will ever change.

kakusei

September 15th, 2013 at 1:39 PM ^

i got there at 7am to get front row seats in the student section. could have showed up at 11 as seats were empty from four rows behind me until about 11:30 and i would have been about as close.  it was a pathetic sight.

when they let the queue of students who had lined up in the waiting area into the stadium at 9am, i would say there were only about 75 of us there, probably less.

RabidWolverine20

September 15th, 2013 at 1:45 PM ^

All you people complaining about the student section need to look at the now public section above the students. It was empty the entire game not just before kick off. Brandon couldn't even sell all of the tickets available because no one wanted to pay to watch that team. Dynamic ticket pricing needs to go both ways.

Class of 1817

September 15th, 2013 at 2:28 PM ^

...than most people are willing to admit.

I've been going to M games since I was a kid in the mid-80s and even against the WORST team imaginable...you never saw anything remotely resembling this. Not even close.

Bacon's piece on outpricing the family fan culture and thus estranging your current base is starting to hit home. I can only hope Brandon takes proper note.

kzooblue2016

September 15th, 2013 at 2:42 PM ^

As a current student, I have never missed a game and have always been there for kickoff. I can't imagine missing out on one of the 28 opportunities to be in the section. But on the other hand, it's a noon game against what was supposed to be a terrible team. This is for the students, so you can't shrink our section. I saw a post about a sort of dynamic allotment for different opponents which I think would be a solid way to solve the problem. But upping the pricing is absurd. I buy my own tickets, and any price increase would make me have to think twice about tickets, especially with next year's awful home slate. It's also ridiculous all the moaning about the student section's lack of spirit when the alumni refuse to stand up for a solid five minutes during the Wave in a CMU blow out. 

kzooblue2016

September 15th, 2013 at 3:16 PM ^

It has been entertainment for the students since the college game's inception. The casual fans and alumni came after the students. Again, I show up on time because I don't want to miss "Band, take the field" and the banner. But you can't blame people for wanting to stay out longer for a noon game against a team that 1-11 for the past three years. 

kzooblue2016

September 15th, 2013 at 7:40 PM ^

Absolutely correct. My larger point remains: created for the students, so don't screw the students over by shrinking the section or outpricing students. I hope it isn't sounding like I don't appreciate the other fans and alumni that make up the largest crowd and stadium in football. I'm just saying that I don't believe penalizing the students in lieu of other fans is right. 

MGoBender

September 15th, 2013 at 8:48 PM ^

1. Alumni are just former students.  We are of the same and we should not be bitching at each other.

2. I used to think the alums were terrible when I was a student too.  At UTL2, all the alums around me were up and screaming for every defensive play.  They're not as bad as students (including myself, formerly) like to imply.

3. You were probably doing the wave at the wrong time, IIRC  /jkjkbutnotreally

AAK15

September 15th, 2013 at 3:00 PM ^

As a recent alum I laugh at people on this thread. It was a noon game against a shit opponent. The frats were throwing pregame parties filled with free alochol and lots of girls. They're in no rush to get to the stadium because while they are football fans they are also college students. They like massive ammounts of free alcohol and women and music and partying. The game was not supposed to be close or enjoyable to a casual fan. Not every student is a die hard football fan (few are)

inthebluelot

September 15th, 2013 at 3:07 PM ^

When we got down and needed to score. Then once on D, people started cheering. The crowd was so docile and quiet, there was no atmosphere. This young team needs energy against these shit opponents. You schedule a game like Akron, this is what you get. I guarantee if there was a reasonably attractive matchup for this game, the stands would have Been full, the stadium would have been loud and the players would have Been focused. I'd rather lose to LSU by 30 than eek out a win against Toledo and have a shitty experience at the game. Just pathetic!!!