Full circle - back to the 1500

skyscraper · Post by **skyscraper** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 12:11 pm

I can safely say that was a full Doherty-era experience at Moody last night.
It was the 1,500 in attendance - no more, no less. The crowd was mildly interested, there were a handful of students and you could have had a conversation with someone on the other side of the court if you wanted.
David Miller and the AD staff aren't blind and deaf. The fanbase has clearly tuned out. Miller and his $$$ helped turn Moody into one of the coolest sports environments I've ever been a part of. Is he content with this backslide on the court and off?

used to be 2 · Post by **used to be 2** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 12:16 pm

Strange, i thought Hart was planning a re-seat next year.

One Trick Pony · Post by **One Trick Pony** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 12:17 pm

It seemed eerily quiet on the network broadcast .

skyscraper · Post by **skyscraper** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 12:18 pm

OTP -- it was the most quiet I've heard Moody post-renovation. The entire night was a bad flashback to Doh's final seasons.

Caballo · Post by **Caballo** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 12:37 pm

I gave up my season tickets due to the reseat. Prior to that my son and I rarely missed a game, maybe three in four years. And it was easy to give tickets away to those games we didn't attend.

While it has been some time since the reseat, I can't help but think that is a major component of fan apathy. Not the only thing, but a major thing. I wonder how season ticket sales will progress for next year if this keeps up.

JasonB · Post by **JasonB** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 1:05 pm

Results have had a bigger impact than the reseat, IMHO. there has been a slope downwards though even prior to the reseat:

First, we didn't match the Cincy offer for the production guy. Game production went down a little.

Then, there seemed to be large blocks bought by corporations or something. So, every game was sold out, but there were certain seats that seemed always empty, especially in the section I sat in.

Then the reseat cost us more.

Then the results have caused it to taper off significantly.

Basketball is a ton of games. Huge commitment for people who don't live in University Park. When the team was awesome, I held my season tickets and made almost every game. The last two seasons, I had season tickets but didn't quite make as many games. This year I had to bail on season tickets because my schedule with work and coaching is out of control. I've watched every game on TV, but it is what it is.

But, I'll be there for the big home games this year. And I'll find a way to clear my schedule next year and get season tickets if the team is really good. I suspect there are a ton of people just like me.

Buddha · Post by **Buddha** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 1:23 pm

Let's not get carried away - crowd was small, but nowhere near as small and lethargic as it was during Doherty years.

Buddha · Post by **Buddha** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 1:26 pm

Announced attendance wad 3,878. That sure seems like a generous total, but it definitely wasn't 1,500, either. Somewhere in between.

skyscraper · Post by **skyscraper** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 2:16 pm

I was there. It was the 1,500.
3878 would've been more than half full. It wasn't even close to that.

LA_Mustang · Post by **LA_Mustang** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 2:29 pm

Your head coach has to be a salesperson, especially at a school like SMU. Tell the fans how good youΓÇÖre going to be and that youΓÇÖre going to win big, soon. You have to act like you love this job and love the school. Even though he was a legend, LB was all about selling SMU and Dallas. It never was about him or the his job, it was always about the school and the program. This coach doesnΓÇÖt believe that is part of the job. Instead, constantly telling fans and anyone who will listen how tough his job is because of (insert excuse here) doesnΓÇÖt inspire you to jump in your car and drive to Moody with the family. It does the complete opposite.

Terry Webster · Post by **Terry Webster** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 3:11 pm

Ecu isn't much of a draw. I remember going to the game against them 3 or 4 years ago and the crowd was nothing to write home about. We were all by ourselves up in the stands.

PonySnob · Post by **PonySnob** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 3:19 pm

used to be 2 wrote:Strange, i thought Hart was planning a re-seat next year.

Believe it is for the 22-23 season.

DanFreibergerForHeisman · Thu Jan 23, 2020 3:22 pm

PonySnob wrote:
used to be 2 wrote:Strange, i thought Hart was planning a re-seat next year.

Believe it is for the 22-23 season.

It will be interesting to see what our peer schools Duke and Villanova are charging in 22-23.

smubrooks · Post by **smubrooks** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 3:55 pm

Does Jank relentlessly reach out to students, specifically the Greeks, the way LB did?

Charleston Pony · Post by **Charleston Pony** » Thu Jan 23, 2020 4:04 pm

Buddha wrote:Announced attendance wad 3,878. That sure seems like a generous total, but it definitely wasn't 1,500, either. Somewhere in between.

During the "peak" years of the 1500 and when that term was coined by the "Old Mustang" (Jim Crist, a classmate of mine) the announced attendance would be barely over 2,000 so we've always had close to 1,000 very loyal season ticket holders. Remember, "The 1500" was a term Jim used in describing the hard core loyal fan base that came out to support our team even when we were playing Paul Quinn or Rollins College and no matter what our record might have been.

This is a pretty good team SMU has today and it's sad that the "revenge" game against ECU was so poorly attended...especially by the students that once proudly called themselves the mob. I think we can all agree that SMU, for the most part, has a pretty sorry fan base and like it or not, that's a big part of why it is so tough to sustain a Top 25 program in any sport at this school. Who knows how long a 75 year old HOF coach might have kept this program relevant on a national level but Jank and this team deserve more support than they are getting.