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In or Out?

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Season ticket holders versus non season ticket holders wasn’t the comparison I was making.

The post I was responding to argued that season ticket holders who keep their tickets are better fans than season ticket holders who get rid of them in response to Ash staying.
But you said that those that keep them are "loyal". Loyalty has nothing to do with it.
 
The group of 16 I was in five years ago is now down to three. I bailed last year due to other commitments on Saturdays with my kids, but I have no intention of returning. I don't even bother watching on TV anymore. It's embarrassing to be an RU football fan right now. I will still go to basketball games, at least they will be consistently competitive.
 
In with 4 tix again, grudgingly.

It makes me sad, though. My kids are 5, and are just starting to pay attention to the game itself - we really have only gotten them to 1-2 games a year so far. Was hoping we'd start to bring them to all the non-night games next year, and it'd become a family tradition to go to games together.

But now? I have little interest in attending the games myself. I only went to three games this year, and won't be going on Saturday. I only see 2 or 3 wins on the schedule next year, even if we do correct the mistake and bring in a legit staff. In the years that I was hoping to really get my kids to become fans.... we're pretty close to steaming garbage.

So, I'm keeping my tickets and priority points in the hopes that in 2-3 years the next coach will have gotten us back on track, and I can try to get them into the game then.

Still, I'm mentally and emotionally checked out on football at present. I haven't watched any of the coach pressers since Week 2 this year, or really read any online articles about the team. I've DVRed games and then deleted them without watching, or only watched a quarter or two. Still some glimmer of hope that this ship can get itself back afloat in a few years, but right now it feels scuttled.
 
Just as a point of debate, I think it does. This isn't meant to be offensive, and lord knows keeping season tix or not is not really meaningful to someone who is 10,000 miles away, but I think the person stays in during the really bad times is a better fan than one who does not.

What do others think?
I have been in since 1980. Does sticking around make now make me a better fan or a sucker. Sometimes you have to cut your losses. I do not blame anyone for leaving this mess.
 
When the product gets better, folks will be back. If not the same ones, then new ones.

People around here love winners.

Just look at basketball.
 
I can’t believe we have actually reached the low point of debating whether or not the Shea era was better than ash. I think the Shea era was better, but if ash is fired now he will leave the program in better shape than what Shea did. By keeping ash here another year the program will be set back even further .
 
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I can’t believe we have actually reached the low point of debating whether or not the Shea era was better than ash. I think the Shea era was better, but if ash is fired now he will leave the program in better shape than what Shea did. By keeping ash here another year the program will be set back even further .

I preferred getting beaten 70-14 at (9-4) Syracuse in Shea's 3rd year to getting beaten 55-14 at (3-7) Kansas in Ash's.
 
We all want a better future. I will be thrilled to make a bowl game some year soon. I'm 57 years old. Waited 30 years for a season like 2006. Can't wait another 30 for the next. Also as time flys by you realize your free time is like gold. It shouldn't be spent being miserable and cost you a fortune for the aggravation. There is much happier times being away from watching an 1-11 team.

WORD!
For the first time ever we left a couple of games at or before the half . Just couldn't stand being in the stadium. It felt MISERABLE. Since we had Scarlet parking we sat outside listened and watched on video board and enjoyed some more nice tailgating.
When that happened it changed everything (for now).
Who knows how many weekends I have left. I'm going to enjoy them.
 
Just as a point of debate, I think it does. This isn't meant to be offensive, and lord knows keeping season tix or not is not really meaningful to someone who is 10,000 miles away, but I think the person stays in during the really bad times is a better fan than one who does not.

What do others think?
I would think that the credits I have earned over 40 years and making trips to every bowl game with many seasons being "bad times" qualifies me as a serious fan and supporter. Just not next year or until we make a serious commitment to being competitive in this sport/conference. And proving that by investing some of the windfall we are getting and will get into that effort.

And if not then I don't give a frack. I know who I am and all my friends do too. That is all that matters.
 
In regardless. RU alum and supporter forever. It's amazing how many people on here see RU football the same way they see pro sports. I will never lose site that this is an academic institution first and athletics are secondary. Yes it's a crappy time right now but without support it will not get better. Also thank you all for better seat and parking options.

Tell that to the other B1G schools. We choose to go "there". I would have been just fine staying back in the good ol days. Hell, even going independent and playing the service academies and getting paid to play some of the big boys. But no. We choose to get slaughtered to pay off student fees.

As for tix and parking lol. You don't think I can buy cheap a$$ tix and sit darn near ANYWHERE I want? Or buy good parking on the spot market? Here's a secret. I already can when friends decide they want to go along too.
 
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I can’t believe we have actually reached the low point of debating whether or not the Shea era was better than ash. I think the Shea era was better, but if ash is fired now he will leave the program in better shape than what Shea did. By keeping ash here another year the program will be set back even further .
At least on Shea's team the QB WAS the best player on the term. Ash can't even find 1.
 
In with 4 tix again, grudgingly.

It makes me sad, though. My kids are 5, and are just starting to pay attention to the game itself - we really have only gotten them to 1-2 games a year so far. Was hoping we'd start to bring them to all the non-night games next year, and it'd become a family tradition to go to games together.

But now? I have little interest in attending the games myself. I only went to three games this year, and won't be going on Saturday. I only see 2 or 3 wins on the schedule next year, even if we do correct the mistake and bring in a legit staff. In the years that I was hoping to really get my kids to become fans.... we're pretty close to steaming garbage.

So, I'm keeping my tickets and priority points in the hopes that in 2-3 years the next coach will have gotten us back on track, and I can try to get them into the game then.

Still, I'm mentally and emotionally checked out on football at present. I haven't watched any of the coach pressers since Week 2 this year, or really read any online articles about the team. I've DVRed games and then deleted them without watching, or only watched a quarter or two. Still some glimmer of hope that this ship can get itself back afloat in a few years, but right now it feels scuttled.
Our kids went to all the games for several years, but bailed once they became teenagers. Smarter than their parents? LOL.
 
In regardless. RU alum and supporter forever. It's amazing how many people on here see RU football the same way they see pro sports. I will never lose site that this is an academic institution first and athletics are secondary. Yes it's a crappy time right now but without support it will not get better. Also thank you all for better seat and parking options.

I love RU, always will and always will support the school.

However if Ash stays that is a signal that the leadership in the athletic department is rotten.

If someone with a kid in HS asks me about RU academics and student life, they won't find a bigger cheerleader. But that doesn't mean I need to give the school my money and my time when it won't commit to running a B1G level athletic dept.
 
I'm leaning towards the keep one to maintain consecutive seasons/priority points strategy if Ash is back. So that's dropping two tickets for those doing the math. In addition to the horrendous state of the program, from a personal circumstances standpoint it just makes too much sense. I can hold back financial support while still having access to tickets via the secondary market. I get flexibility on number of tickets and what games I go to. From the sound of things, I'll probably even be able to just go sit in my current seats anyway.

There would probably have to be some Sandusky-like scandal for me to ever consider completely walking away.
 
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I don't fault someone who lives in Middlesex/Somerset for whom it's easy to go games. Especially for those who are retired or work locally.

But I'm on the younger side and live in Jersey City. I was glad to take the ride down and spend time at the game and tailgaiting when I believed the school cared about going to a bowl game.

Retaining Ash shows they don't care. It's hard for me to come to bball games during the week. My whole affiliation with RU will just become a lot more limited.
 
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I’ve gone from 5 > 4 > 2 this year. I also dropped parking this year for the first time. I haven’t had an issue getting a parking pass or extra tickets. As for 2019, I am definitely giving up 1 seat and sadly saying goodbye to my 40 yard line seats. I am down to buying a single in a non-mandatory donation section or dropping altogether.

I showed up last week and wanted to be excited but I couldn’t even get myself to go into the game. It stinks.
 
In regardless. RU alum and supporter forever. It's amazing how many people on here see RU football the same way they see pro sports. I will never lose site that this is an academic institution first and athletics are secondary. Yes it's a crappy time right now but without support it will not get better. Also thank you all for better seat and parking options.

What a joke. Most of the "student" athletes on the football and basketball teams are forced to take brain dead majors by the administration. Get back to me when the majority take either STEM or some of the humanities that actually require critical thinking (Philosophy).

College revenue sports are a farce and actually do a disservice to the majority of athletes that participate in them. The majority don't land in the NFL or NBA and come out with a worthless degree. There's a reason most turn into PE teachers or coaches.

Let's call it what it is... A professional minor league system that masquerades as "student athletics". Since that is the case, it should be treated as a professional organization.

Barichi not understanding that just shows how unqualified and incompetent he really is for his position. The Peter principle at work there...
 
I'm keeping my 2 seats for one more year. I downgraded from 4 seats two years ago. If there is no significant improvement next year, I'll probably drop my seats altogether.

It just hasn't been any fun for 3 years now, and I can find better things to do with my time and money. My friends all bailed out the year before, so tailgating is done, and I can't convince any friends or family to go to the games.
 
None.... keeping our six. And after 25 years in the same section looking to move one section over, to 125 to get as close as possible to the center of the field. This should be no problem especially if all the "threats" from the deserters on this board are true. Appears there should be a lot of opportunity to re-locate
 
Over the course of the season, multiple people have stated in various threads that they'd be dropping a significant portion of their season tickets or just dropping them all together if ash is brought back. This is especially concerning to me and hopefully to our athletic department because if our absolute die-hard fans on message boards are dropping season tix, parking and donations, have to imagine all of the casual fans are as well. I was hoping in this one thread we could keep track of how many season tix and parking passes will be dropped if ash is back. Besides the financial part of it, it will crush recruiting (as if it's not awful already) playing in empty stadiums and it will be hard to win these fans back when a change is inevitably made anyway.

For starters, my season tix have dropped from 4 to 2 under the Ash regime and I will be dropping those remaining two plus my parking pass if ash is back. Curious to know what others will do.

Really??? We know where you stand and really don’t care since u have become a broken record. Hopefully after dropping ur tix u stop ur subscription here as this has been spoken about in numerous threads.

Don’t you have a class to give or something?

You have to be able to do more good with your time no?

Geez
 
“I showed up last week and wanted to be excited but I couldn’t even get myself to go into the game. It stinks.”

If I’m Hobbs then this is a troubling statement from the fan base, along with a number of other statements in this thread. In the past RU fans have been very resilient about coming to the games and renewing season tickets, even after some awful seasons.

Looks like we are reaching a tipping point for many fans that have been loyal to the program for years. Keeping Ash is going to be costly to the RU revenue stream for FB next season and beyond.

Can’t wait to see Hobbs comments after the season finale vs MSU.
 
I'm not trying to be offensive either but if everyone kept there tickets what would Rutgers motivation be to change and try to improve? Is a person a 1000 miles away, who eats, drinks, sleeps Rutgers and comes to a few games each year, less of a fan who has season tickets and really doesn't care if they win or loses?
I've been a season ticket holder for 30+ years. Doesnt make me more or less a fan of anyone that love Rutgers Football.
You're moving the goalposts. People who have to travel long distances are not comparable to people who do not. I'm a pretty solid RU fan and I haven't been to a game in 13 years. Might have something to do with the 10,000 mile trip to the game.
 
It makes them better fans. But if there is no virtue in that, then evaluating that is meaningless. If there is any virtue to be found, it would be found in the people who want to be at the games but abstain in order to bring about the good in the long run.
I think that is pretty much what I said.
 
I disagree. People keeping their tickets are more loyal, but that doesn't necessarily make them better. If one side of relationship has issues but feels no pressure to correct them because there are no circumstances in which the other side will end things, that makes the situation worse not better.
By that logic, do you exhort fans to root for us to lose, and really badly?
 
You're moving the goalposts. People who have to travel long distances are not comparable to people who do not. I'm a pretty solid RU fan and I haven't been to a game in 13 years. Might have something to do with the 10,000 mile trip to the game.
I'm not moving the goal posts at all. You can be a huge Rutgers with season tickets or a huge Rutgers fan 10,000 miles away. Having season tickets doesn't make you a better fan.
 
I would think that the credits I have earned over 40 years and making trips to every bowl game with many seasons being "bad times" qualifies me as a serious fan and supporter. Just not next year or until we make a serious commitment to being competitive in this sport/conference. And proving that by investing some of the windfall we are getting and will get into that effort.

And if not then I don't give a frack. I know who I am and all my friends do too. That is all that matters.
You are a great fan. I would argue that a clone of you that didn't give up their seats would be an even better fan.
 
I'm not moving the goal posts at all. You can be a huge Rutgers with season tickets or a huge Rutgers fan 10,000 miles away. Having season tickets doesn't make you a better fan.
Yes, you can. That isn't the point. The point is that when two fans, under similar circumstances, make different decisions about whether to maintain season tix or not, then one can conclude that one is a better fan than the other.

Bringing in the idea that one lives thousands of miles away makes the situations non-comparable and meaningless.
 
Yes, you can. That isn't the point. The point is that when two fans, under similar circumstances, make different decisions about whether to maintain season tix or not, then one can conclude that one is a better fan than the other.

Bringing in the idea that one lives thousands of miles away makes the situations non-comparable and meaningless.
Respectfully, you cannot conclude one fan is better than another based upon their decision to renew or not to renew.
 
Respectfully, you cannot conclude one fan is better than another based upon their decision to renew or not to renew.
Well, there are things like financial ability and proximity to the program that would be factors, of course. But let's make everything absolutely equal. Twin brothers, live next door to each other, same job and total income. One renews, one cancels. Can you conclude that the renewer is a better fan? I argue yes, because he is supporting the team when they absolutely need it the most. The other has chosen to end his support (at least in terms of being there for the team and providing financial support). That's my argument. I'd love to hear the other side on this (again, I don't care, and someone who has had season tix for 10+ years is a great fan in my book, either way. This is just an academic argument in my book).
 
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Respectfully, you cannot conclude one fan is better than another based upon their decision to renew or not to renew.

I have an issue with "fans" here every year...be it football or basketball...I support the coaches and players every year they are here...until they are not and then I support the next coach and new players.

I just can't bring myself to turn my fan "ness" on and off because the coaches and players are getting it done....I don't think they WANT to lose
 
Well, there are things like financial ability and proximity to the program that would be factors, of course. But let's make everything absolutely equal. Twin brothers, live next door to each other, same job and total income. One renews, one cancels. Can you conclude that the renewer is a better fan? I argue yes, because he is supporting the team when they absolutely need it the most. The other has chosen to end his support (at least in terms of being there for the team and providing financial support). That's my argument. I'd love to hear the other side on this (again, I don't care, and someone who has had season tix for 10+ years is a great fan in my book, either way. This is just an academic argument in my book).
Let me play devils advocate with you. Two fans living 10,000 miles away. One attends a game once over 13 years, the other does not. Everything else the same between them. Can we conclude the one who made the effort to travel to one game is a better fan? Of course not.

These purity arguments are silly. Similar to the you are not a real fan if you do get into the stadium before kickoff. Is the fan who stands and yells on third down more of a fan than his neighbor who remains seated? If a person supports a team should not that be enough?

I have been going for 40 years. If I decide to no longer attend it will be because the program no longer cares about its fans enough to show them it is serious about putting a winning product on the field. It has nothing to do with being a "better" fan.
 
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Let me play devils advocate with you. Two fans living 10,000 miles away. One attends a game once over 13 years, the other does not. Everything else the same between them. Can we conclude the one who made the effort to travel to one game is a better fan? Of course not.

These purity arguments are silly. Similar to the you are not a real fan if you do get into the stadium before kickoff. Is the fan who stands and yells on third down more of a fan than his neighbor who remains seated? If a person supports a team should not that be enough?

I have been going for 40 years. If I decide to no longer attend it will be because the program no longer cares about its fans enough to show them it is serious about putting a winning product on the field. It has nothing to do with being a "better" fan.

Why wouldn't you consider them a better fan? It would cost around $5,000 to go to the game. If I were a better fan, I'd have made that trip for a game.

If you decide to end your support of the team and someone else in the same situation decides to continue their support, then he is the better fan. This is simple logic.
 
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