This is what I think we need to do

[mrydel]

Whatever the means you need to let the general public know what to do. We do not have a big stadium with a large parking lot.

[RebStang]

Whatever the means you need to let the general public know what to do. We do not have a big stadium with a large parking lot.

I agree that something like that could be a very good idea... the problem is that, right now, it would be a waste of money and effort. The people you're trying to reach with that idea aren't coming to an SMU game until SMU puts a product on the field that the casual Dallas fan wants to see.

[East Coast Mustang]

Here's the thing- people who are otherwise willing to go to an SMU football game are probably sports fans - and sports fans want to watch other games on Saturdays- SEC games, the OU game, the Texas game, etc. How do you convince them to take four hours out of their Saturday and watch SMU play Tulane?

Not saying your full page ad idea is a bad one, just not sure what the ROI would be.

[Puckhead48E]

Win.

That's it.

You can give out free tickets all you want. For parking or getting to the game...make a deal with DART to have any rider with an SMU ticket get free fare on game day. Either way, no one will come. You could give out $10 bills...and you might get an additional 1-200 students showing up...maybe. If you gave away free handles of Jack, you might get more students.

Just win.

[tristatecoog]

My brother (an SFA grad) is taking his daughter to the UH game. He got $6 tickets on Stubhub. This will be his second game. He went with me to a TCU game at Ford a few years ago. I believe people know that it's a cool opportunity and that tickets are probably plentiful. SMU has great signage off Central and stadium frontage on Mockingbird.

[Stallion]

Coupons and Dart ticket won't work. A well done promotion campaign can give a program and especially a new Head Coach momentum in recruiting. Its all about recruiting. you aren't getting the recruits in here to go 10-2 unless a recruit sees this program headed in the right direction including alumni support and attendance. I'm 100% sure every Head Coach will tell you exactly that.

[SoCal_Pony]

Well I agree with MRydel which is why I posted earlier that the Blvd should be made easy enough to navigate for someone with an IQ of 80.

Not living in Dallas recently, I have paid for many non-alums to attend games (almost all are OOC marquee opponents). All are upper-middle class whites. Feedback I get is Blvd is great atmosphere, but at times unapproachable.

I think this has been improved recently (I have not purchased tickets last couple of seasons), suspect it can be improved more, actually a lot more if you want to attract the casual fan.

As for those wanting to see other games, its a legitimate issue which should be addressed, ie plenty of TVs showing other games, including IMO, an open bar area inside Ford, and of course, improved WiFi.

Dallas has grown significantly since Mustang Mania days. Ford is a much smaller venue, I think reasonable ticket prices matter more today and of course we now have the Boulevard.

No reason not to attempt Mustang Mania2.

Agree that simply throwing $$$ at a new coaching staff will not solve the problem.

[RebStang]

Well I agree with MRydel which is why I posted earlier that the Blvd should be made easy enough to navigate for someone with an IQ of 80.

Not living in Dallas recently, I have paid for many non-alums to attend games (almost all are OOC marquee opponents). All are upper-middle class whites. Feedback I get is Blvd is great atmosphere, but at times unapproachable.

I think this has been improved recently (I have not purchased tickets last couple of seasons), suspect it can be improved more, actually a lot more if you want to attract the casual fan.

As for those wanting to see other games, its a legitimate issue which should be addressed, ie plenty of TVs showing other games, including IMO, an open bar area inside Ford, and of course, improved WiFi.

Dallas has grown significantly since Mustang Mania days. Ford is a much smaller venue, I think reasonable ticket prices matter more today and of course we now have the Boulevard.

No reason not to attempt Mustang Mania2.

Agree that simply throwing $$$ at a new coaching staff will not solve the problem.

The idea that we can pack our stadium with "casual" football fans just by setting up TVs and bars around the stadium is, frankly, laughable.

The casual college football fan is NOT going to buy a ticket to get into the stadium, pay a premium price for beer and food, etc to watch the same set of games that they could watch at home, the Barley House, or anywhere else in Dallas.

Our attendance issue has nothing to do with amenities and everything to do with the product on the field.

The football program is the problem, not the stadium. Spend the money to get the right coach and then spend the money to get him the infrastructure he needs to win... only then will the real problem be resolved. Everything else is just a fresh coat of paint on a sinking ship.

[Big12Mustang]

It's about making the casual fan an SMU fan..a fan that will buy our merchandise, bleed red and blue and come to any SMU game. TCU did a good job attracting the orphaned alumni from regional schools like UTA, TWU, Tarrant CC, etc. no reason why we can't do the same with getting the SFA, Sam Houston St, UTD, Dallas Baptist fans behind SMU. Win and have an exciting program, grow passionate fans and foster a welcoming atmosphere (this is the biggest challenge)

[RebStang]

To add to my previous post...

Our closest comparison is TCU... and, they didn't get where they are by launching a marketing campaign.

They got into the Big XII by beating someone.... well, multiple "someones".

We can launch every awesome marketing campaign you can imagine and it won't do a bit of good until our program proves it can beat someone... and I don't mean beating UConn or Memphis.

Again, invest in the PROGRAM and everything else will follow.

"Marketing" is one of the most overrated things in college athletics... 3 years ago, Ole Miss fans were constantly blathering on and on about how "our marketing sucks"... fast forward to 2014 and, wow, nobody is talking about how marketing needs to improve even though the marketing strategy hasn't changed a bit in 3 years. So, why is it no longer a problem? Might have something to do with being ranked #8 with a chance of going 10-2 on the year.

Moral of the story: The best marketing strategy for any college football program is winning.

[fifty]

The best marketing now would be us getting one of the top 2 or 3 coaches we're targeting

[RebStang]

It's about making the casual fan an SMU fan..a fan that will buy our merchandise, bleed red and blue and come to any SMU game. TCU did a good job attracting the orphaned alumni from regional schools like UTA, TWU, Tarrant CC, etc. no reason why we can't do the same with getting the SFA, Sam Houston St, UTD, Dallas Baptist fans behind SMU. Win and have an exciting program, grow passionate fans and foster a welcoming atmosphere (this is the biggest challenge)

The guy you're describing isn't going to spend a dime on anything SMU until SMU produces a product that that guy wants to buy.

It's that simple.

Marketing is not going to solve our problems and trying to use "marketing" as a fix is only going to prolong the real problem... if we're going to be an FBS level program, we need to get serious about BEING an FBS level program.

Cute marketing schemes don't pack the stands when the product on the field isn't good.

[SoCal_Pony]

Reb, I strongly disagree with you. This is not an either or proposition.

Obviously we need a good product on the field, but that simply isn't enough and it isn't happening next year for sure, probably not the following year either. But, and this is a BIG but, they better come up with some plan...not to 'pack' Ford as you stated, but to at least attempt to average 20k fans, otherwise you are severely limiting our next HC's ability to recruit.

Answer me this, with no marketing plan, the team as we know it today with maybe some late signing JCs and a new HC, exactly what do you expect their W-L record will be next year, what will attendance at Ford be, and how will the 2 impact 2016 recruiting.

As Stallion correctly stated, Mustang Mania occurred 2 years before we became relevant.

Oh, and one last point. Look at when PB arrived at the Hilltop. First couple of full years of recruiting, he had some excellent commitments with quality offers. Problem is PB also had a small window of opportunity, then the wheels began to fall off. We need to give our next HC every opportunity to succeed. That means no 7,500 attended games at Ford next year in the heart of recruiting season.

[RebStang]

Reb, I strongly disagree with you. This is not an either or proposition.

Obviously we need a good product on the field, but that simply isn't enough and it isn't happening next year for sure, probably not the following year either. But, and this is a BIG but, they better come up with some plan...not to 'pack' Ford as you stated, but to at least attempt to average 20k fans, otherwise you are severely limiting our next HC's ability to recruit.

Answer me this, with no marketing plan, the team as we know it today with maybe some late signing JCs and a new HC, exactly what do you expect their W-L record will be next year, what will attendance at Ford be, and how will the 2 impact 2016 recruiting.

As Stallion correctly stated, Mustang Mania occurred 2 years before we became relevant.

Oh, and one last point. Look at when PB arrived at the Hilltop. First couple of full years of recruiting, he had some excellent commitments with quality offers. Problem is PB also had a small window of opportunity, then the wheels began to fall off. We need to give our next HC every opportunity to succeed. That means no 7,500 attended games at Ford next year in the heart of recruiting season.

You make good points but, ultimately, I think your perspective is demonstrative of the larger problem: Too many of our fans still have a SWC mindset.

This is painful but... We're NOT a major program anymore. At best, we're a mid-level mid-major program... in reality, people around the country see us as one of the WORST FBS programs.

We're not in a 1-2 year hole. We're in a 5-10 year hole.

There isn't a miracle cure out there that will have is "relevant" again in 1 or 2 seasons.

The fact of the matter is that we haven't been truly relevant since before the death penalty... we were never relevant under June Jones... we were just bowl eligible.

The climb to relevancy and a real following among local fans is much steeper than just going to a couple Bell Helicopter Day Before Christmas When There's Nothing Else On TV Bowls.

As someone who did not grow up an SMU fan, one of the biggest problems I see is the mentality that a quick fix exists because of our previous SWC affiliation... it doesn't. We have to climb the mountain and prove we deserve to be in a better conference. A new coach and a slick marketing campaign isn't going to mean we suddenly start signing a bunch of 4 star recruits... the reality is that whoever we hire is probably going to have to work with "diamond in the rough" 2 and 3 stars for a few years while he proves he can win here... just like every other mid-major program that made it to the level of "relevant" has done. Attendance? It's not going to come until we beat someone that matters... Going 7-5 and going to some bowl game that most people have never heard of (that has a different sponsor every 2 years) isn't going to get Joe Casual Dallas Football Fan to fork over money for a ticket when he can watch the SEC game of the week at home and drink a 6 pack for less than the cost of a ticket at Ford.

[Stallion]

SMU has already done every damn thing that TCU and Baylor had done when they turned around their programs. TCU and Baylor played in decrepit old stadiums and neither had an Indoor practice facility when they hired the right guy to turn things around. SMU hired June Jones from Hawaii