RU Athletics caught lying about football attendance

[Shelby65]

Encourage friends to attend
Talk to co workers who like sports
Engage neighbors who are looking for an affordable & close option

I’m not yelling at anyone. Those on this board are the fringe 1 % who attend games and donate $

If you think my post is embarrassing, I don’t know what to tell you.


The whole “there’s other things to do arguement” is bs - take the amount of purple living 50 miles from New Brunswick vs Iowa, Nebby etc and your point goes right out the window

I understand game watching habits have changed. Team has sucked for the past 10 years. Wagner is FCS. HS fb and kids activities on Saturdays. I get all that bc it’s true

But what I don’t get is how we can’t get 40k in the stadium, in a state w 9mil, in the tri state w ~20 mil, with NB undergrad population ~30k, 500k living alumni, $10 Tix galore, good weather, winnable game, team doing good, etc

That’s not a big ask. That should be the expectation.

If the program was destined to perennially be an afterthought (Indiana, Maryland, NW) in bball first schools not surrounded by big cities or not being flagship U, and not having NYC close by, I’d be ok w mediocrity

But we have the potential to be so much more. I truly believe that - so it upsets me, and pisses me off, when we accept mediocrity and make excuses

Mediocre ? Heck, we haven’t even been mediocre most of the last 15 years. Who are you pissed at ? You should never judge others on how they spend their money and time.

Be pissed at the university for lousy HC hires and an 8 yr anchor contract we can’t afford to pull out of the muck.

 

[JayDogSmooth]

Mediocre ? Heck, we haven’t even been mediocre most of the last 15 years. Who are you pissed at ? You should never judge others on how they spend their money and time.

Be pissed at the university for lousy HC hires and an 8 yr anchor contract we can’t afford to pull out of the muck.

I never said I was pissed at people not coming

I’m just amazed that we have seven home games a year and a metropolitan area of 25 million people with 500,000 living alumni and 45,000 undergrad students, yet we can’t get 20,000 people to a game

Of course the university has messed up, not happy about some of the hires they’ve had or the contracts they’ve dealt out

Also have said repeatedly, I respect peoples time and opinions, and understand that people have things going on in their life with children’s activities, fall activities, family, work, etc.

With all that being said, it’s absolutely embarrassing. The crowd that we had Saturday was beyond anwful, and we need to fix it ASAP if we hope to get and retain recruits, and play a somewhat competitive, or perhaps elite level.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Mediocre ? Heck, we haven’t even been mediocre most of the last 15 years. Who are you pissed at ? You should never judge others on how they spend their money and time.

Be pissed at the university for lousy HC hires and an 8 yr anchor contract we can’t afford to pull out of the muck.

Defense is half the game. We’ve met the definition of mediocre since Schiano returned. We’ve been in the hunt for a bowl bid every year into November. Came up short, yes but we’re nothing close to what we were under Ash.

 

[Shelby65]

Also - while Wagner is still awful compared to RU and any major conference team, their D definitely improved from last year. Navy isn’t a good team, but for Wagner, being able to hold any FBS team to 24 points means they made strides.

Wasn’t the Navy-Wagner game stopped in the second quarter because of thunderstorms and not continued ?

If you want to hype your new second favorite team and boast of the 247 Sagarin # as evidence of major improvement, go for it.
What was the final # when Schiano scheduled them ? 259 ?

Do me a favor. After the season look at the Sagarin #s. Next year we will play one of the teams below #250.

 

[IMARUFAN]

I'm just glad no other schools lie about their attendance.

How else would I be able to trust the attendance numbers I see reported around the NCAA?

Attendance numbers are very important ... for reasons that escape me.

 

[Shelby65]

I never said I was pissed at people not coming

I’m just amazed that we have seven home games a year and a metropolitan area of 25 million people with 500,000 living alumni and 45,000 undergrad students, yet we can’t get 20,000 people to a game

Of course the university has messed up, not happy about some of the hires they’ve had or the contracts they’ve dealt out

Also have said repeatedly, I respect peoples time and opinions, and understand that people have things going on in their life with children’s activities, fall activities, family, work, etc.

With all that being said, it’s absolutely embarrassing. The crowd that we had Saturday was beyond anwful, and we need to fix it ASAP if we hope to get and retain recruits, and play a somewhat competitive, or perhaps elite level.

it’s not hard. the product isn’t compelling.

 

[JayDogSmooth]

it’s not hard. the product isn’t compelling.

Nobody said we were Alabama

But we’re recruiting agains the likes of PSU, VT, Cuse, etc

Nitts have 50 year track record, but Cuse & VT havent been good in 20 years, and they still have pretty good crowds on the regular

Again, I get it went sucked and it was Wagner. But there’s no excuse for the crowd to be that pedestrian

 

[retired711]

A game with Wagner is a poor test of our ability to attract crowds. I'm not criticizing us for scheduling Wagner; all our peers play similar schools to pad their records and so we have to do the same thing. But it's not a game that will excite people to come.

 

[RAHWAYBOB]

A game with Wagner is a poor test of our ability to attract crowds. I'm not criticizing us for scheduling Wagner; all our peers play similar schools to pad their records and so we have to do the same thing. But it's not a game that will excite people to come.

Retired: You hit the nail on the head!

 

[brgRC90]

doesnt explain the attendance disparity some allege between our games and games elsewhere. in reference to yesterday, Schiano cant have it both ways. Schedule an extreme cupcake and few will care. Cant say i blame them. The Arthur Kill Bowl rematch lost its tremendous, brilliant lustre in Year 2.

My guess is we dont schedule them again next year, but then again the three teams below them in Sagarin may not have any suitable open dates left.

Well, any 1AA opponent is going to elicit a yawn for all but the most popular programs. The lack of winning is the issue, not the opponent.

 

[brgRC90]

Defense is half the game. We’ve met the definition of mediocre since Schiano returned. We’ve been in the hunt for a bowl bid every year into November. Came up short, yes but we’re nothing close to what we were under Ash.

This team was far worse than mediocre.

 

[RUfromNJ]

I don't think Wagner's placement in the schedule helped either. This was the 4th home game in 27 days for RU. For non-diehards looking at which games to prioritize in September, the Wagner game is the obvious choice to skip:

• 12:00p home opener vs. B1G opponent
• 7:30p game vs. winnable FBS opponent
• 3:30p game vs. ACC opponent w/decent cache
• 3:30p game vs. lousy FCS opponent w/zero name or travelling support

If Wagner flipped places w/Northwestern or even Temple, I think both games would've looked different.

 

[Shelby65]

I don't think Wagner's placement in the schedule helped either. This was the 4th home game in 27 days for RU. For non-diehards looking at which games to prioritize in September, the Wagner game is the obvious choice to skip:

• 12:00p home opener vs. B1G opponent
• 7:30p game vs. winnable FBS opponent
• 3:30p game vs. ACC opponent w/decent cache
• 3:30p game vs. lousy FCS opponent w/zero name or travelling support

If Wagner flipped places for Northwestern or even Temple, I think Saturday would've looked different.

I think we are all on the same page. There are more seats than people who care enough to spend 5-6 hours on a Saturday to come see a program struggling to matter, A Catch-22. If we were better, more would come. But it takes more people coming to get better (recruiting & relevance). That's why the Boardwalk, the band, the beer garden, etc. So they are trying.

But, imagine what attendance v Wagner would be if we were in the AAC. 7500 ?

 

[Shelby65]

A game with Wagner is a poor test of our ability to attract crowds. I'm not criticizing us for scheduling Wagner; all our peers play similar schools to pad their records and so we have to do the same thing. But it's not a game that will excite people to come.

Sort of. What peers ? Surely we have far fewer season ticket holders than some schools you see as peers. ST holders are more likely to come than late-buyers.

I'd call Indiana a peer. I doubt IU has more STs than us, and I highly doubt Indiana would attract more fans to an extreme cupcake game on a fall Saturday afternoon.

I'll lay off a "schools similar to Wagner" rebuttal because there are hardly any. As I said in another thread....Wagner is the payday opponent for other payday opponents. That's why Schiano scheduled them 2 years in a row (so far).

 

[RUHotTrumpetMonkeyLove]

@DJ Spanky and other mods:
If it's a known troll and the accounts keep getting suspended, why not delete the crappy threads they start too?

 

[RU#1fan]

Nobody said we were Alabama

But we’re recruiting agains the likes of PSU, VT, Cuse, etc

Nitts have 50 year track record, but Cuse & VT havent been good in 20 years, and they still have pretty good crowds on the regular

Again, I get it went sucked and it was Wagner. But there’s no excuse for the crowd to be that pedestrian

We draw much better than Sara on a regular basis.
As our team improves so will the live gate.
In my opinion our biggest problem in attracting the casual college football fan is the parking situation.
If you are not in one of the 5 prime lots near the stadium it’s probably a major hassle for new fans. Not sure if we can ever resolve that issue.

 

[LETSGORU91]

problem is, it's an issue and when you watch on tv, it looks real bad

we do need to figure out a way to get fans in stadium and get the younger generation involved.

Articles disputing stated attendance vs. actual are a non issue to me at least. Winning will help cure the attendance woes. We are moving in the right direction.

 

[retired711]

Retired: You hit the nail on the head!

Thank you!

 

[RuBird]

Not a political guy. That said wonder if the Dems leaked the story to take the heat off of Biden or the Republicans the same for Trump?😎

 

[retired711]

Sort of. What peers ? Surely we have far fewer season ticket holders than some schools you see as peers. ST holders are more likely to come than late-buyers.

I'd call Indiana a peer. I doubt IU has more STs than us, and I highly doubt Indiana would attract more fans to an extreme cupcake game on a fall Saturday afternoon.

I'll lay off a "schools similar to Wagner" rebuttal because there are hardly any. As I said in another thread....Wagner is the payday opponent for other payday opponents. That's why Schiano scheduled them 2 years in a row (so far).

Your second paragraph is exactly the point. Whether here or at Indiana, people don't come to extreme cupcake games, and so they are a poor test of how well a program is doing in attracting fans.

Your third paragraph, I think, misses the point. Yes, there are few schools similar to Wagner. But, as I think you recognize, what is a cupcake game for Alabama is not a cupcake game for Rutgers. But all schools have cupcake games, and people do not come to those games -- and why should they? Cupcake games are good for the winning team because they help pad the record; they are good for the losing team because they get a nice check. But they are not good for college football because they do not increase fan interest.

 

[retired711]

Not a political guy. That said wonder if the Dems leaked the story to take the heat off of Biden or the Republicans the same for Trump?😎

You're in the wrong thread, methinks.

 

[RuBird]

You're in the wrong thread, methinks.

Why? Jokes aren’t aloud? Never said only Dem or only Republican.

 

[Shelby65]

We draw much better than Sara on a regular basis.
As our team improves so will the live gate.
In my opinion our biggest problem in attracting the casual college football fan is the parking situation.
If you are not in one of the 5 prime lots near the stadium it’s probably a major hassle for new fans. Not sure if we can ever resolve that issue.

disagree....the faraway parking isn't ideal but when we were competitive (in our league) we had big crowds. now, not so much. And all the other places I've been to had remote lots too...you needed to bus or walk at least 20 min at them.

tailgating (most lots) and the Boardwalk is top notch. it's the actual game that is the disappointing and inadequate thing that isn't up to snuff.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Wasn’t the Navy-Wagner game stopped in the second quarter because of thunderstorms and not continued ?

If you want to hype your new second favorite team and boast of the 247 Sagarin # as evidence of major improvement, go for it.
What was the final # when Schiano scheduled them ? 259 ?

Do me a favor. After the season look at the Sagarin #s. Next year we will play one of the teams below #250.

Apparently you missed the part of my text that said very clearly that the quality of the Rutgers win doesn’t change a lick whether Wagner wins or loses out the rest of their schedule. They are completely outclassed playing a team like Rutgers, and everyone they play from here on in is too so again, the outcomes of their games have zero impact on RU perception.

But why the need to make crap up for no reason? The whole Navy game was played, Shelby. Wagner forced 5 punts, held them to a 49 yard FG attempt that was missed, and stopped them on down. Wagner has 2 wins already. We’re talking about a team that had a total of 2 wins combined over the past 4 seasons. In what world is that not the definition of improvement?

 

[DennisHajekRC84]

Rutgers announced a crowd of 40,065 for the Wagner game.

View embedded media

Unfortunately for the RU athletic department, modern day cell phones are equipped with cameras.

View embedded media

Here are a few more pictures showing a vast number of empty seats.

View embedded media

The Rutgers athletic department has been lying about football attendance for years, as proven by the FOIA request made last year by NJ.com that showed the school inflating numbers by as many as 20,000 per game. President Holloway needs to tell Pat Hobbs to stop his department from doing this because it's embarrassing the university. Show some integrity and start telling the truth!

I was there and it got better. I am not going to chime in on the debate but these pics were taken at kickoff and we all know RU fans are late to that and I'm sure especially given the opponent. Bottom line..misleading to actual (by how much I won't guess but I know it was a bit).

 

[DennisHajekRC84]

the OP may be bac’s successor

Plum when you take a shot at a guy out of the blue you should at least put the @ in there..

 

[Shelby65]

Of course I knew the Wagner-Navy game wasn't cut short. Combo poetic license and also to make you question your own post (my sense of humor). Point is the same. Wagner should be a Catholic school bc it needs all the heavenly help it can get just to break the Sagarin Mendoza line, which it probably never has and never will.

So, whether they are 240, 250 or dead last doesn't matter.

So my question to you is, do you think it's just a coincidence that Wagner was ranked in the 250-260 range (out of 261) two years in a row and Schiano picked them to be our opponent twice ?

Or do you think he purposely avoided scheduling a different opponent, say in the 175-225 range to minimize the risk of losing as much as possible. Schools like Maine and Southern U. Answer that.

I believe it's the latter. He won't even let GW throw between the hash marks. No way he schedules a team with even a 0.5% chance of winning.

 

[bwrlaw]

Perhaps if they re-institute "blackout", on TV and not color of uniforms, people would have a reason to come to the games.

While I appreciate the things RU is doing as "entertainment" for game day, the attendance will rise and fall based upon the product on the field. The entertainment people should come to see should be on the field. RU is not creating long term fans by showing them the activities outside the stadium are better than those inside the stadium.

 

[RU#1fan]

Not a political guy. That said wonder if the Dems leaked the story to take the heat off of Biden or the Republicans the same for Trump?😎

Take your political BS nonsense some place else.

 

[gigantor1024]

How many people do you know who got flooded out? Absent of Asbury park and a couple sections other, it was predominantly Brooklyn & Long Island

The student section was not filled, it was not even close to filled. We entered the game with 10 minutes before kickoff and stayed the entire time - again, not even close

I give a ****, because recruits give a ****. And if recruits, give a ****, we will not be getting them.

And if we will not get them, we will continue to be mediocre.

And I do not enjoy watching mediocre football when we have the potential to be so much more.

RU football will never be successful. Just enjoy the game and once you realize we will never be successful it gets a lot easier