Nevada game thread

[Sam I Am]

A TD on a kickoff turnover. This is sensational! 3K attendance sounds low, but the weather sure hurts the crowd doesn't it.

[Charleston Pony]

on a miserable night, the question is "how many SMU fans would turn out even if we were a top 25 caliber team playing in a meaningful game?" My guess is that 10k would be a good turnout. Doesn't surprise me at all if the crowd is as few as 3,000...but it will be announced at about 7-8,000, right?

another question: does the spirit shop or do stadium vendors sell both low quality (cheap disposables) and quality ponchos on a night like this? If not, opportunity lost!

[Sam I Am]

The Wolfpack strikes back in less than a minute. BUT, the 24 point pony rule syas that SMU will win because we have scored 24 points.

[NavyCrimson]

OH %^%$ CP!!

get off of it son...

next to my brother u are sooo %^%$$ negative -

if we were a top 20 team for the last 10-15 yrs CONSISTENTLY it would have been packed no matter what & u know it - %^^$, WE ALL KNOW IT!!!!

WINNING CURES CANCER & EVERTHING ELSE -

let's enjoy it & move on b/c when the winning starts CONSISTENTLY (if it ever does), the attendance factor will take care of itself!!!

BLAME THE $%%^$ ADMINISTRATION FOR CREATING THIS ENVIRONMENT FOR THE TEAM & THE FANS IN THE FIRST PLACE -

they should be lucky that 3K showed -

i don't blame them for not showing w/weather like this anyways!

[Sam I Am]

Great day, a 94 runback of a fumble for a TD! Two TD's by an alert defender on turnovers. Way to go poines.

[Charleston Pony]

Navy & Crimson: I'm as optimistic a Mustang fan as you will find, but I'm a realist when it comes to our attendance. You went to SMU, right? Muffy & Buffy will not be bothered by foul weather and simply will not come out to watch a football game and that's the truth. Those who can afford the club seats/box seats will be there, but SMU is not a place you will find a hard core group of 30k out freezing in the rain, wearing their SMU ponchos. I wish we had that kind of support, but the truth is we are not likely to EVER have THAT kind of support. My original comment was that the 3k crowd shouldn't surprise or disappoint anyone. It's SMU, man.

Long live the 1,500!!!

[NavyCrimson]

i hear ya but i disagree -

when the winning starts - consistently - the crowds will be there - it'll take 5-10yrs consistently before it will happen -

miami, pittsburgh, usc, etc. & all the other universities in the big cities have done it & we will too if the commitment is there from the board & administration - only then will it happen!!!

but on the flip-side, we all know that smu has never had that commitment but if it happens, (supposedly it has - hummmm) the people will come!

#$#$#@!!!! people love winners!

[mrydel]

I think I just heard MM65 turn on his computer.

[SoCal_Pony]

I was a student during the Pony Express Days.

I remember we were a Top 10 Team playing Rice at Texas Stadium.

I doubt 20,000 fans were there. It looked very empty in Texas Stadium.

[NavyCrimson]

i said CONSISTENTLY winning - not a quick little 2-3 yr rout & then fall back to double 6-5 seasons or so...

it took miami & pittsburgh 5-10 years of top25 teams to draw average 40K+ games & already pittsburgh is falling back & miami a couple of yrs ago had several 20 - 30K crowd games.

winning works - try it sometime!

HA!!!

[Diehard Pony]

I was a student during the Pony Express Days.

I remember we were a Top 10 Team playing Rice at Texas Stadium.

I doubt 20,000 fans were there. It looked very empty in Texas Stadium.

Pony Express years (assuming you mean Dickerson & James years only) were 1979-1982. The two home games against Rice during that span was in 1979 (attendance 60,217) and 1981 (attendance 28,750).

[Charleston Pony]

gotta admit, this is fun. Yhe best part is nearly all these guys will be back, another year older, wiser, bigger, stronger, etc... I really do believe SMU football will be competitive again as early as next year, but certainly by 2006.

I could debate our attendance woes all night, but anyone who doesn't have their head stuck in the sand knows that is why we are no-longer playing with the BCS boys. The truth is our public school mates from the SWC days just got tired of carrying us. Even in the early 80's when we were beating UT and A$M at their own game, we still depended on them for attendance. Ask the guys who played in those years. There were games they probably came out of the tunnel and wondered where all the fans were? That's why I think building Ford Stadium was the best thing to happen to SMU football in a long, long time. If we can field a team that can compete for CUSA championships, and I believe we will, Ford will see 25-30k crowds pretty regularly...but not on a cold rainy night like tonite. This kind of weather can mess up your hair and your nice clothes, and it's not as much fun doing the wine & cheese thing out on the blvd.

When I lived in Dallas, I sat through far too many games in miserable conditions and have to admit I wondered at times why I was doing it. I made all the bball games and could never figure out what the excuse was for not coming out for those. It's SMU. There just aren't enough of us who care. But for those of us who do, better times are ahead. No doubt in my mind. For the most part, people on this board are among the 1,500.

I will be very pleased if SMU fields teams that compete for CUSA championships year after year and we can average 5-6,000 at Moody and 22-25,000 at Ford. That's about all we can realistically hope for. Those are good looking crowds in Moody & Ford. Beats the heck out of 6,000 in the Cottom Bowl. I've sat through too many of those.

[NavyCrimson]

get rid of this bcs-bs & either go back to the bowl arrangements of folklore or go to a bonafide playoff system & you'll see the crowds really grow b/c all of us lesser-knowns will then have an opp to compete with the super conferences for the #1 spot...

face it guys, we're not part of the super conference aka bcs-bs & that really hurts us crowd-wise!!!

but something tell me that with the leadership that us little-people have now leading the charge against the bcs-bs this will never happen...hope i'm wrong but the proof is in the pudding.

[SoCal_Pony]

I was a student during the Pony Express Days.

I remember we were a Top 10 Team playing Rice at Texas Stadium.

I doubt 20,000 fans were there. It looked very empty in Texas Stadium.

Pony Express years (assuming you mean Dickerson & James years only) were 1979-1982. The two home games against Rice during that span was in 1979 (attendance 60,217) and 1981 (attendance 28,750).

DH,

I was at both those Rice games. I am talking about the 1981 game, the year we were SWC Champs. Like you, I have a Media Guide that gives the attendance at 28,750. I looked at it before posting, yet went ahead with my 20,000 estimate. At the time the seating capacity at Texas Stadium was ~ 67,000 and IMO there was no absolutely no way it was over 40% full.

Anyway, I do think we can have success at Ford and am looking forward to the move to C-USA, even though it means no west coast games I can attend.

Now that our home games are over, it will be interesting to see what the ‘official’ numbers actually are.

[SMULadyIW]

What a great game! Congrats to the Mustang football team! I stayed the whole time even though it was FREEZING and rainy. I told myself I would leave once it got too cold and rainy but I once I got there I couldn't leave b/c it was such a good game. It seemed to be everybody's night, especially Alvin Nnabuife. He made history last night! Their confidence level has jumped up and it's showing. GO MUSTANGS!!