SLU Attendance Discussion

[3star_recruit]

So to summarize our MBM recommendations: bring back the shuttle, provide more golf carts and lower concession prices. I don't think there's any way in hell the last thing happens because it's not happening anywhere else.  The other two recommendations might be good for another 300 people. 

So we're back to what we knew in the first place - we have to string together tournament appearances and maintain a decade long culture of winning where the floor is the NIT.

 

[wgstl]

1 minute ago, 3star_recruit said:

So to summarize our MBM recommendations: bring back the shuttle, provide more golf carts and lower concession prices. I don't think there's any way in hell the last thing happens because it's not happening anywhere else.  The other two recommendations might be good for another 300 people. 

So we're back to what we knew in the first place - we have to string together tournament appearances and maintain a decade long culture of winning where the floor is the NIT.

 

The shuttle bus was just for me. I liked parking there more bc it was easier for me.. the golf carts are needed. 

[HoosierPal]

1 hour ago, billiken_roy said:

spoon's team was the high point of billiken basketball.   

 

they won.   

they played an exciting style of basketball. 

 they were in the high profile conference playing marquette, louisville, memphis, cincy,   

 

i seem to remember we had anywhere up to 20,000 for games and the low might have been like 12,000.   heck i think one of our top three attendance games of all time was during the spoon years vs like austin peay and we had like close to 18,000 maybe?   if anyone has an old printed yearbook it would have those attendance games.   the leading attendance games on slubillikens.com only has chaifetz records.   

	SINGLE	GAME
	RECORD	ATTENDANCE
1	12/06/97	ILLINOIS	32429
2	12/12/99	MISSOURI	25790
3	12/22/06	NORTH CAROLINA	22539
4	12/23/98	KANSAS	22527
5	01/31/98	LOUISVILLE	21331
6	03/01/95	DePAUL	21004
7	02/26/95	DAYTON	20930
8	02/11/95	MEMPHIS	20911
9	12/28/94	AUSTIN PEAY	20618
10	12/03/01	MISSOURI	20602
11	01/22/95	MARQUETTE	20176
12	01/28/95	CINCINNATI	20149
13	02/15/98	DePAUL	20137
14	01/20/96	DePAUL	20019
15	02/12/98	CINCINNATI	20007
16	02/16/95	ALCORN STATE	19966
17	02/25/96	MARQUETTE	19714
18	01/30/99	MARQUETTE	19437
19	02/19/96	CINCINNATI	18560
20	02/25/98	MARQUETTE	18493

[brianstl]

5 minutes ago, 3star_recruit said:

So to summarize our MBM recommendations: bring back the shuttle, provide more golf carts and lower concession prices. I don't think there's any way in hell the last thing happens because it's not happening anywhere else.  The other two recommendations might be good for another 300 people. 

So we're back to what we knew in the first place - we have to string together tournament appearances and maintain a decade long culture of winning where the floor is the NIT.

 

Georgia cut concession prices on many items almost 50% last season.  $2 Bottled water, $2.50 bottled soda, $2.50 hot dogs, $2 candy, $2 for a small popcorn and $5 for a large popcorn bucket.

[SluSignGuy]

There was a really good conversation about attendance happening in another thread, so I thought I would bring more attention to it by giving this discussion its own thread.

[brianstl]

These concession price reductions were announced by the Houston Texans just today.

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2022/08/09/Facilities/Texans-reduce-popular-concessions-prices.aspx

[Compton]

5 hours ago, wgstl said:

Found this pretty interesting. Seems we averaged 4,991 per last year.

- If this number isn't 125k or better that'll be extremely disappointing or something bad happened. 

 

 

Average attendance of 633 for Fordham. 633.

Also, @wgstl, are you sure those numbers include exhibition (we had two) and post-season (we had one) games? If not, that brings our average attendance up to 5,823.

[3star_recruit]

10 minutes ago, brianstl said:

Georgia cut concession prices on many items almost 50% last season.  $2 Bottled water, $2.50 bottled soda, $2.50 hot dogs, $2 candy, $2 for a small popcorn and $5 for a large popcorn bucket.

I'm pretty sure that's Georgia football.  Their economics are a little bit different.

I've been trying to steer this conversation to apples and apples comparisons but I can see that isn't going to work.

[billikenfan05]

19 minutes ago, brianstl said:

Georgia cut concession prices on many items almost 50% last season.  $2 Bottled water, $2.50 bottled soda, $2.50 hot dogs, $2 candy, $2 for a small popcorn and $5 for a large popcorn bucket.

Falcons pioneered it when they built their new digs. 

[brianstl]

11 minutes ago, 3star_recruit said:

I'm pretty sure that's Georgia football.  Their economics are a little bit different.

I've been trying to steer this conversation to apples and apples comparisons but I can see that isn't going to work.

I don't mean to be a dick, but you said no one is dropping concession prices.  I gave two examples from the past twelve months (one that just happened today) and then you try to move the goal posts.  I can give you multiple other examples that have happened in the past 12 months.  I can give you even more examples if you would like to extend the timeline out to the last three years.

Multiple sports programs both college and pro have dropped concession prices over the last several years.  But you can always keep changing the parameters of what you want to discuss if you want to be able to make excuses for not acting to address declining attendance.

[billikenfan05]

1 minute ago, brianstl said:

I don't mean to be a dick, but you said no one is dropping concession prices.  I gave two examples from the past twelve months (one that just happened today) and then you try to move the goal posts.  I can give you multiple other examples that have happened in the past 12 months.  I can give you even more examples if you would like to extend the timeline out to the last three years.

Multiple sports programs both college and pro have dropped concession prices over the last several years.  But you can always keep changing the parameters of what you want to discuss if you want to be able to make excuses for declining attendance.

I don't have insight into concessions and building management like I do marketing. However, I would imagine if SLU ran their own building instead of outsourcing it, price reduction would be an easier goal to accomplish. As it stands I doubt building management(used to be spectrum, don't know anymore) is interested in doing so.

[3star_recruit]

2 minutes ago, brianstl said:

I don't mean to be a dick, but you said no one is dropping concession prices.  I gave two examples from the past twelve months (one that just happened today) and then you try to move the goal posts.  I can give you multiple other examples that have happened in the past 12 months.  I can give you even more examples if you would like to extend the timeline out to the last three years.

Multiple sports programs both college and pro have dropped concession prices over the last several years.  But you can always keep changing the parameters of what you want to discuss if you want to be able to make excuses for not acting to address declining attendance.

I don't think you're being a dick, I just think we have different definitions of what apples to apples is.  In my mind I was having a college basketball discussion while your examples draw from all sports.  I'll just have to keep that in mind anytime we're talking about improving the Billikens situation.  Your worldview is a lot broader than mine.

[brianstl]

1 minute ago, billikenfan05 said:

I don't have insight into concessions and building management like I do marketing. However, I would imagine if SLU ran their own building instead of outsourcing it, price reduction would be an easier goal to accomplish. As it stands I doubt building management(used to be spectrum, don't know anymore) is interested in doing so.

Everything can be negotiated and Comcast Spectacor has financial interest in keeping SLU happy.  Chaifetz is among the most attended venues it's size for concert's and another non SLU events.  Comcast Spectacor wants to keep operating the venue beyond their current deal.  If SLU wanted to, they could get Comcast Spectacor to address the concession prices for SLU basketball games.  Both the men's and the women's.  It isn't like they have to manually change the price boards between events.

[AnkielBreakers]

11 minutes ago, brianstl said:

I don't mean to be a dick, but you said no one is dropping concession prices.  I gave two examples from the past twelve months (one that just happened today) and then you try to move the goal posts.  I can give you multiple other examples that have happened in the past 12 months.  I can give you even more examples if you would like to extend the timeline out to the last three years.

Multiple sports programs both college and pro have dropped concession prices over the last several years.  But you can always keep changing the parameters of what you want to discuss if you want to be able to make excuses for not acting to address declining attendance.

It’s time for Humphrey’s penny pitchers. 

[brianstl]

Just now, 3star_recruit said:

I don't think you're being a dick, I just think we have different definitions of what apples to apples is.  In my mind I was having a college basketball discussion while your examples draw from all sports.  I'll just have to keep that in mind anytime we're talking about improving the Billikens situation.  Your worldview is a lot broader than mine.

Fair enough.  I always enjoy our exchanges even when we disagree.

[BrettJollyComedyHour]

11 minutes ago, AnkielBreakers said:

It’s time for Humphrey’s penny pitchers. 

Anybody see the collab they did with Series 6? The SLU-sphere has some cool apparel for this year.

[wgstl]

44 minutes ago, Compton said:

Average attendance of 633 for Fordham. 633.

Also, @wgstl, are you sure those numbers include exhibition (we had two) and post-season (we had one) games? If not, that brings our average attendance up to 5,823.

Ya I counted the exh and post season, my bad 

[Old guy]

2 hours ago, willie said:

Totally antidotal but I work with 2 people who are buying season tickets for the first time because they think we are going to be good. 

"Antidotal" or anecdotal?

[JohnnyJumpUp]

Give us more concession options... Bring in a Hot Box cookie stand, a Pappy's stand with pulled pork & brisket sandwiches, a Cane's Chicken Tender stand.... BRING IT!

[dennis_w]

1 minute ago, JohnnyJumpUp said:

Give us more concession options... Bring in a Hot Box cookie stand, a Pappy's stand with pulled pork & brisket sandwiches, a Cane's Chicken Tender stand.... BRING IT!

how fast would pappys sell out? or an amighettis?

 

[BrettJollyComedyHour]

12 minutes ago, JohnnyJumpUp said:

Give us more concession options... Bring in a Hot Box cookie stand, a Pappy's stand with pulled pork & brisket sandwiches, a Cane's Chicken Tender stand.... BRING IT!

The Raising Cane's thing would be an easy slam dunk. They've done promos in the past!

[willie]

13 minutes ago, Old guy said:

"Antidotal" or anecdotal?

Glad you weren’t my high school English teacher. 

[cheeseman]

2 hours ago, brianstl said:

The Cardinals are averaging more fans per game this season with every home game broadcast in one manner or another than they did in the early 2000's in a bigger stadium without every home game broadcast.  

I was not using the Cardinals as an example for lower attendance.  I was simply pointing out that televised games have kept me home.

[Old guy]

1 hour ago, JohnnyJumpUp said:

Give us more concession options... Bring in a Hot Box cookie stand, a Pappy's stand with pulled pork & brisket sandwiches, a Cane's Chicken Tender stand.... BRING IT!

This is a chicken and an egg problem. If attendance is low and continues low the concessions have to raise prices or close. There is demand for getting a concession inside an arena when the attendance is high, not when it is low. Once attendance is high there can be more variety and better prices. As long as the attendance stays low, you are going to be offered high prices and little variety. Concessions do not stay open unless they make money.

[Fraz]

7 hours ago, dennis_w said:

i would add that every game is televised, i live a good distance away and a weekday game gets me home in the wee hours, so i watch the tv and dont attend no matter how attractive the opponent

And it’s a really good broadcast.  Danny Mac and Highmark do a fantastic job