Why are some "football only" fans either apathetic or anti-hoops?

[yesrutgers01]

I used to love CBB years ago and NBA up into the 90's. While I love sports in general and will go to any live sporting event and have a great time if the opportunity presents itself, I just no longer go out of my way for basketball at either level and even now, my interest in baseball is almost gone as well.
So, it partially has nothing to do with Rutgers.

On the other hand...the last couple of years, I wanted to become a fan of Rutgers basketball but they have given me nothing for my effort. So, while I would go to a game with friends if I am called and there is an extra ticket, I have no other interest. And even the couple of times I have gone o the game- I had a great time with friends at the RAC, enjoyed being there as it was a sporting event, cheered the team like a mad man and then I took a walk to concessions...I have seen a better environment at county fairs.

My time is extremely valuable and I have very little of it free. There is nothing compelling enough about or BB team to give up time I can use elsewhere.

Caveat - I did not go to Rutgers and was never a fan of Rutgers or Rutgers sports before Kevin came here to play football. And while most parent players in the same situation move on once their sons are done playing, I became a huge Rutgers Football fan. If the football team and program showed me so little interest in improving or make themselves worth my time, I would not be watching them either.

 

[knightfan7]

I was a 20+ year season ticket holder for BB until I gave it up in 2012. It was mainly a financial decision but also because my schedule made it tough to attend a lot of games. I have to say I don't miss it at all.

 

[Dpgru]

For what it is worth I do not believe this is limited to RU. the NCAA tournament has absolutely taken any meaning out of regular season games in the major conferences for most fans. Playing 30 games to determine seeding in a conference tournament the outcome of which which means very little because 5, 6, or 7 of the teams are going to the big dance anyway makes the season hard to get into. Granted, if you are in the MAAC, or the NEC then it might be different but even then only the tournament champ goes so, for the most part the regular season is an afterthought. As a result college basketball's regular season is a joke. So i can see why some people aren't that excited about it. I personally want to see RU succeed in all sports and think it is disgraceful that a plan for improvements has not been formulated already. I understand the need to be fiscally responsible, but it doesn't take that much money to formulate the plan. It should have been priority number one for Julie but apparently Barchi disagreed.

 

[RUaMoose]

Originally posted by krup:

Originally posted by applesktrack:
I just don't like watching basketball. I am apathetic, I mean I hope they do well as I do with all Rutgers sports. I just can't stand watching it.

Same for me. I never cared about the NBA, in recent years I don't even bother watching the NCAA tournament.

Add me to this list. I used to look forward to "March Madness" but the last several years I've haven't even paid much attention to that. I now look forward to "March Madness" because when it ends, MLB season begins. When RU Men's BB is doing pretty well, like when Bannon was the coach, I was on the band wagon.

This post was edited on 3/4 3:31 PM by RUaMoose

 

[R1776U]

you kinda answered your own question already with your thread title.. using "football only" and "apathetic" in regards to bball

 

[knightfan7]

Look, I admire the dedication to the team shown by BK, Bac and others. It hasn't exactly given much back to them. It's a shame so many look at it as an either/or situation. I'd hope everyone here roots for RU above all others for every sport.

 

[brista21]

I think we can make do with the RAC with additional cosmetic-type upgrades for another 8 to 10 years, PROVIDED the University builds a proper training and office facility for the basketball squads in the very near term. Ideally a new arena built to accommodate basketball, ice hockey (no actual plans for teams are needed, but build it in the hopefully someday case) and events (wrestling, gymnastics, concerts, etc.) and a proper training and office facility for basketball would happen at the same time, but short of a massive donation that's not happening. We need new facilities for basically all of our sports not named football, but basketball is the other major revenue sport and needs to be addressed first.

 

[bethlehemfan]

I had season tickets in the 1970's. All basketball needs is a pulse. Even after all these years.

 

[rutgersguy1]

I like CBB but I'm basically in agreement with derleider. It actually wouldn't bother me if the school decided to borrow money to update the facilities but I don't find it unreasonable for the administration/BOG being reluctant to do so considering our subsidy for the athletic department and the 100M stadium debt. We spend about 6M every year to service that stadium debt. If those conditions weren't there I don't think the reluctance would be as great.

I also agree that our basketball program is in as sorry a state as our football program was but we got one bite at the apple and used it on football. It was prudent considering that was what would get us into a better conference and has the most potential of lifting the entire athletic department. Ideally, it would have been nice to get it all done at once but that would have been too big a bite of the apple, just as it was we had to cutback on some of the stadium renovation.

So now have we have to wait because we're not going to get another bite of the apple until B10 revenues start flowing in for awhile. That's just the reality regardless of how frustrated, angry, pissed, hopeless you feel about it. I don't even blame those that do feel like that. Longtime diehards like bac and others, it's perfectly reasonable and understandable for them to feel like that after decades of misery. In the same token, it's perfectly reasonable for the admin/BOG to act like they do.

I'm always about coaching and like derleider I think the best opportunity to hasten the timetable is to throw whatever resources at that if EJ doesn't work out. It's a smaller figure to deal with in hiring a coach and good staff than it is a facility. A good coach that can win some here is what can help fundraise for a facility and possibly change the tune of the admin/BOG. Without that little bit of winning to spur this whole thing on, kickstarting the process becomes more difficult.

As for fans, well they will come if winning happens just like football. We used to get 20K a game when we sucked at football and now we usually get more than twice that coming to our games and it's not like we've won at that high a level even. We had one really good season and the rest so so and the fans showed up. I can see the same happening in basketball if we ever win.

Eventually, this will get done and I think it will be with athletic revenue bonds. Maybe some portion with private donation but I think still largely with athletic revenue bonds. But those bonds are only going to be floated when the financial conditions of the athletic department improve and the full share of B10 funds start flowing for a few years. I don't begrudge those that are frustrated but it's just reality and sometimes reality sucks but you still have to deal with it.

 

[Knight Shift]

Traveling 40-60 minutes for 6-7 football games on a Saturday to watch what is to our group a more visually interesting and dynamic event is easier than going to games on weeknights and Sunday evenings that are less visually interesting and dynamic to our group. I doubt our interest level would change if the basketball team became perennial winners. Perhaps if we lived close to campus, it would be different.

 

[MoreCowbellRU]

Originally posted by famousbill19:

Originally posted by krup:

Originally posted by applesktrack:
I just don't like watching basketball. I am apathetic, I mean I hope they do well as I do with all Rutgers sports. I just can't stand watching it.

Same for me. I never cared about the NBA, in recent years I don't even bother watching the NCAA tournament.

+2. I simply dislike the game.

NBA basketball is worse than a dentist chair.I wouldn't go if I got courtside for free. I used to be a big NCAA BB fan back in the day. The problem I have is that all of the sloppy playground basketball that is the entire NBA seeps more and more into the college game every year.

As to the poster above who laments the lack of fans @ BB games, I looked at buying a couple of MBB season tix and when I saw the price I literally laughed out loud. I understand the whole "it's a donation" thing but come on.... All in it's as much or more than football. Not happening here. An empty seat never roots for the home team or buys a hot dog. If RU is not willing to invest even marginally, why should I. If they had a program like deep discount for FB ticket holders I probably would buy a couple. Even if I didn't go. I would just give them away and at least there would be bodies in the seats. I bet I'm not the only one either.

 

[RCTrooper]

I went to school from 88-92 when RU BB had four straight NCAA-NIT appearances. I had season tickets for both football and basketball while at school and maintained football season tickets off and on for the last 20 years. I just need either:

-Football to be good
or
-Basketball to be excellent

I'd love to have both RU FB and BB be good but frankly don't have the time to attend basket ball games or watch them if they are below a 15 win team. Basketball has had so many setbacks since the Bannon teams that it's hard to sit through decades without an NCAA appearance. Moreover, basketball has had any stars since Douby left. What RU player since him wopuld make you want to tune in or drive to the RAC. Rosario? Carter maybe? Neither were here long enough to generate buzz.

The thing is football will usually be king at a state school, all things being equal. With RU, football and basketball have moved and plateaued at divergent levels in the last 15 years. What do you expect?

 

[NotInRHouse]

I think Der raises a great point that many people are overlooking.

A practice facility is not going to generate revenue. The stadium expansion did.

This is why I have repeatedly said new arena > practice facility...make the RAC a practice facility...new arena will generate revenue.

As to me personally, I want RU to exceed at everything. If I could only see one sport win an NC it would be football but I might even pick RU becoming a top 5 public school over that.

I also agree football requires much less of a time commitment...getting to the RAC on a weeknight is a non starter.

 

[e5fdny]

Originally posted by Knight Shift:
Traveling 40-60 minutes for 6-7 football games on a Saturday to watch what is to our group a more visually interesting and dynamic event is easier than going to games on weeknights and Sunday evenings that are less visually interesting and dynamic to our group. I doubt our interest level would change if the basketball team became perennial winners. Perhaps if we lived close to campus, it would be different.

+1

Want RU to be good at everything. On the field and in the classroom.

 

[RUinPinehurst]

OntheBanksReply3/4 11:51 AM

Re: Why are some "football only" fans either apathetic or anti-hoops?

Just wondering. Where is Nuts? I was off the board last week due to some surgery and I came back to this.

Ask NoLondonBroil aka NoLoBro.
Posted from Rivals Mobile

 

[HeyHuey]

Am I Apathetic or Anti-Hoops? I'm "Anti-Pathetic Hoops"

Am I a Mod or a Rocker ...Uh...No - I'm a Mocker

"R" Starr

 

[bac2therac]

Originally posted by RUskoolie:
The problem with waiting 5 years is that it is a big middle finger to people who continue to donate money and go. Why bother if the school isn't going to attempt to really invest in the program?

Furthermore, interest rates are at MULTI-generational lows. Not your parents, your grandparents rates. In 2021 are we building this place with all cash and no loan? I doubt it. So we're taking out a loan regardless. You're telling me we can't start the building sooner and borrow against our own income that we will generate from TV? I don't see why we can't. I don't think we need a 30 million dollar facility, I think Julie's idea is great but everyone is out of their mind if they think she is going to raise that money ($80m) privately. So basically, if you want to wait 6 years to care about hoops then why should people spend their hard earned money and more importantly waste their time supporting a product that the school doesn't care about?

this

I see some have blamed the fans but how can you blame the fans when the school has never been serious about investing in basketball. RU entered the Big East and RU did not ONE thing to help the program out.

RU wants to be big time but is still acting small time. The Big 10 is more than football, these schools take all their sport seriously.

 

[Knight_Light]

Originally posted by jmc11201:

For me, I am a football fan first...so a preference to Rutgers football vs. basketball.

Second, I didn't attend Rutgers and went to a school with Division 1 basketball, but no football, so minimal conflicts rooting for Rutgers football.

Third, Rutgers sports to me, is in some ways like following the Giants or Mets in the sense that I am a fan of the team. The recruiting aspect and local aspect of the kids on the team makes it more enjoyable than professional sports, but I am a fan of the team more than the university.

Lastly, all else equal, I would prefer to see Rutgers basketball be good, but I am not nearly as passionate about that as football.

I think that is actually pretty common place at most big state schools, especially in football (i.e. plenty of season tix and even major donors are not alums).

A few schools are the opposite (i.e. Memphis Basketball...they get a lot of other local SEC Football fans that support Memphis Basketball).

Regular Season College Football is much more popular than Regular Season College Basketball.

 

[rurichdog]

Never liked basketball, always been a football guy and a hockey guy.

Do I want all RU sports to be good? Yes. Do I really care about our basketball team though? No.

If we had a hockey team, and it was as bad as our basketball team, I'd be angry and posting about it.

 

[DJ Spanky]

I'm not going to get into the overall argument, but it's hard to take basketball seriously when the last coach to generate any excitement around the program was run out of town on a rail. Look at the track record: over the last 30 years, 7 coaches with records spanning mediocre (Waters (79-75)) to putrid (Littlepage (23-63), Hill (47-77)); 8 winning seasons; only 1 season with 20 or more wins (2003 20-13); 2 NCAA appearances with no victories; 6 NIT appearances with 8 victories.

 

[bigbirdRU]

I understand that in order to get anything done politically we must convince people all problems vanish with a recruiting facility, but that just isn't true. The greatest argument being recited for the practice facility, laughably, isn't even that it will make the players better- its that it's something shiny for recruits to see. That's a fairly expensive move just to get better recruits. And while it certainly helps, how do you explain Rice's top 15 rated class in the country?

The biggest problem here is that we used all our political capital on the football expansion. That received so much negative publicity, got various people fired, that doing anything of the sort again is basically impossible. Whereas Mulcahy and Schiano force fed the improvements, that just won't fly anymore. Hermann is at a big disadvantage there, and will have to rely mostly on private funds, especially in this state economic climate.

 

[Jonny S]

I'm not anti-hoops, but football is suffering big time right now. We are backsliding into a mickey mouse program. Basketball would be nice to have but it's not an essential like football.

 

[Ru2bnj]

I think it's much easier to become relevant in basketball than in football. if 2 or 3 difference makers are recruited, there can be a very big turnaround. Football is a whole other story, an entire infrastructure and system has to be put in place. RU obviously needs more investment in basketball. I'm not apathetic, when I was young I liked to play basketball more than any other sport and come from a "basketball town" so to speak. Over the years I have gotten away from the sport. I don't enjoy watching it as much as football and baseball. Baseball has a special place in my heart..it just reminds me of summer, sun and warm weather and I really need that right now.

 

[bac2therac]

Spanky....and the constant in that time was lack of investment

 

[vm7118]

Originally posted by MozRU:

Originally posted by Purple-Ed:

Originally posted by famousbill19:

Originally posted by krup:

Originally posted by applesktrack:
I just don't like watching basketball. I am apathetic, I mean I hope they do well as I do with all Rutgers sports. I just can't stand watching it.

Same for me. I never cared about the NBA, in recent years I don't even bother watching the NCAA tournament.

+2. I simply dislike the game.

+3

+4 - I don't like the game. But good luck trying to get it going.

This post was edited on 3/4 1:33 PM by MozRU

+5.

maybe it's because i attended RU in the last 10 years, but i've never cared about basketball and i probably never will. NBA is honestly boring to me. NCAA ball is boring too - only RU would get me interested, but watching our team is just painful.

if we do well at some point, great. but i doubt it will happen for a long time. and for fans like me (of which there are many), we understand that money is in short supply at RU and in NJ at the moment, so the men's bb budgetary concerns are on the backburner, and i'm mostly ok with that.

i like that lesniak is supporting the team. great to finally have someone vocal in our corner in trenton. but his particular choice of issue (the men's bb team) is just laughable, considering NJ state funding for RU overall has been getting worse and worse. he can do much more to help the university by pushing NJ to fund higher education (pays off in so many ways), rather than trying to push JH/barchi to take on debt in order to fund basketball.

 

[Jumba72]

I like all sports but hold football high above all. I realize that hoops will take a while and I'm ok with it. The B1G $$ isn't here yet. As far as going to the games, I prefer not to drive. The RAC and the surrounding area isn't yet conducive to mass transit. Maybe if there was a pub I could visit before or after games, and the campus bus sched was more reliable I'D go see a subpar team. Until that's fixed I'll wait.

 

[herdof3]

I am not a big basketball fan to start with. Add in a ridiculous stretch of futility and voila...apathy.

 

[rutger80]

I like both sports and want to see all Rutgers sports do well.
Clearly, there were a number of factors that have led RU to being a 'football' school, but football and basketball do not have to be mutually exclusive.
Like any business, an organization is defined by who's on top of the org chart.
Those making basketball related decisions have been defined by ineptitude and neglect.
It will take a change at the top to resurrect basketball, which can be done, preferably with a practice facility.
To those who say a basketball practice facility isn't a revenue producer, are missing the point, If a practice facility helps recruiting, then recruits coached properly turns into a winning team. A winning team sells more tickets, concessions, parking, etc.
Hence the 'non-revenue' producing practice facility, has become a factor in revenue production.

I've gone to see road games all over the Southeast, in both football and basketball, and will always do so.

 

[BoroKnight]

Originally posted by RUich:
Although I will watch a game from time to time, I really am not all that enamored with the game. I grew up in a small town that excelled in BB when I was in HS but still liked football more. I never really played it so that plays a big part too. The fact that this program is and has been lousy for decades just makes it a joke for many. I think throwing money at it will not do much. The entire program has been unstable for so long, how can any kid with real talent take it seriously? The fact that we have pretty much had a top womens program for years and they still play to empty seats may be telling about support for a winning mens program. I know many will dispute this statement, but many of the other top womens programs have great followings.

You are seriously going to compare men's attendance to women's attendance? Really?

VERY few top women's programs have "great" followings, and all of them have been better than Rutgers in recent years. After UConn and Tennessee, there are a few here and there, some Midwestern schools have solid support, Montana (go figure), but not a huge number. Take a break from watching things most people watch on a Sunday and flip over to a women's game on TV and just look at the stands. You can have two ranked teams playing and it looks like you don't have to share a vendor. And when you listen to the crowd, it's apparent a good chunk of it is made up of high school girls.

A .500 men's team against a Big Ten schedule would FAR outdraw the women's team at its current level of success. That's not right or wrong -- you can't make people like a sport -- but it is true.

Remember the first time Rutgers women's basketball had really good crowds? During the Littlepage era. Sure, Theresa had that team as high as No. 2 in the nation, but the real draw was the fact there was an alternative to the freak show we had on our hands, the one whose losing streak our current team is threatening to match. So you had to have both a really bad men's team AND a really, really good women's team to see the crowds come out.

Do not think for a minute that even a half-decent men's team against a Big Ten schedule wouldn't fill the RAC. That's nonsense.

 

[wheezer]

I started out as big a basketball fan as a football fan.....but years and years of losing in bb has taken its toll and I no longer care as much for the bb program......

it is to the point that I leave games with 7 or 8 minutes left on the clock if we are way behind...and I forget totally about watching away games on tv, where in the past if a game was on tv I would never miss it.

 

[yesrutgers01]

"I'm not anti-hoops, but football is suffering big time right now. We are backsliding into a mickey mouse program. Basketball would be nice to have but it's not an essential like football.
3/4 7:43 PM | IP: Logged"

Jonny- confused, did you mead BB is slipping or our 8-5 B1G football team is slipping?

 

[SanFranRutgers]

I'd reject the OP's premise, but Debbie Downer has been on the Ignore list for so long, I don't really know what he said to back it up.

 

[mildone]

Since you asked...

I didn't go to RU, but two of my kids do, my sister and my mom both did
grad school at RU, my ex-wife, her sister and mom went to RU, her dad
was a professor at RU, her aunt and uncle went to RU, a couple of my cousins go to RU, about half my
closest friends either attended or do research or teach at RU - so there's a pretty strong RU tie-in.

I've been to some men's and women's basketball games over the years, but it never really caught on with me. I just don't find the overall experience to be compelling enough to go to those games very often.

OTOH, I'm a pretty big fan of RU FB. I find RU FB games to be a vastly better experience then BB because FB has tailgating (often in nice weather), more comfortable seating, and a more consistently winning team (lately, at least). And more of my friends go to FB games. So there's the whole social aspect.

Also, I only have so much free time available for entertainment and RU FB consumes a pretty large chunk of that free time.

 

[WGLTAUD]

I'm sure part of it is the snobby basketball fans that will chastise you as a football guy if they don't like your opinion. Basketball board is full of them.


In all honesty, I wish Greg Schiano was the athletic director, because he didn't take shit from anybody in regards to infrastructure and facilities. I think if we upgraded the facilities and brought in better players, you'd see the arena packed and sold out a lot more with RU fans.

Lets be honest, we are in Yankee country, and if you aren't winning today, people won't show up. That's one big hurdle that RU has always had to contend with regardless of the sport. If football starts to lose, people will start wearing blue and red, or green and white pretty quick because there are just too many shows in town, and Jersians only like winners.

 

[SanFranRutgers]

Originally posted by yesrutgers01:
"I'm not anti-hoops, but football is suffering big time right now. We are backsliding into a mickey mouse program. Basketball would be nice to have but it's not an essential like football.

Johnny- confused, did you mead BB is slipping or our 8-5 B1G football team is slipping?

More to the point, did YOU mean our 8-5 football team is slipping?

 

[yesrutgers01]

SF- are you asking me or jonny?

 

[newell138]

Originally posted by Jonny S:
I'm not anti-hoops, but football is suffering big time right now. We are backsliding into a mickey mouse program. Basketball would be nice to have but it's not an essential like football.

I'm sorry, but this makes little to no sense. We just came off a pretty successful year in BIG season #1.


To answer the OP, I was a HUGE fan of both, graduated in 1985. I actually loved college basketball back then more than football and had season tickets for years after I graduated. Traveled to a lot of the away games that were within driving distance too. It has gotten to the point though the team has become unwatchable and they have ruined my love for the game. This is the first year I have not watched any games on TV, other than a few minutes here and there. I used to sit and listen to the away games on the radio, start to finish. I actually have more free time now that my kids are older but I am not going to waste my time when they are just not fun to watch.

So I think for most of us if they become competitive people will come, just like any sport. Look at football during the Shea years, the stadium was mostly empty. People here are dying for a winner, for god's sake, people were even talking about Corey Crawford competing in the NCAA long jump last year when he finished 2nd. Any sport that does well generates a buzz on the board. Wrestling attendance is up because they are good. Its not that complicated to figure out why people are apathetic about a team thats not competitive.

 

[seels2662]

This very thread proves exactly what Shill is saying...every day of doing nothing hurts the basketball program

30 years ago this institution was a basketball-first college....
10 years ago who's commitment press conference brought the most people logged in at one time on THIS VERY SITE, a record that stood for a long long time, not a football player, but a basketball player (Lance Thomas)....
5 years ago even though football clearly took center stage basketball was still prominent enough that everyone here still knew the first class Rice brought in and how good it was supposed to be...
Here we are in a thread talking about how noone cares about basketball....Did you guys even know that this man is coming to town in a few months? Who is probably the best player we have gotten in a long long long time?
The spiral will continue if nothing is done...we went from a problem take would take a good season or two to fix to now JH quoted as saying that it will be 5+ years before we START to fix the problem (bet you didn't know that one either)....
Hoops is in real trouble right now....real trouble.....

 

[cRURah]

If MBB just starts showing some progress, the Rutgers fanbase, especially the students, will go NUTS for the team. Rutgers was a basketball school decades before it was a football school. In the late 60's and 70's, RU students filled the garden whenever Rutgers played there. And the atmosphere in the BARN was unbelievable! We waited in line outside the Barn ticket office and pulled all-nighters just to get tickets for the NIT. When the garden tickets were gone, the students watched the semi-final against Frazier and Southern Illinois thru a live video feed on a large screen in the Barn and it was sold out! Win and they shall come, especially the students.

 

[DJ Spanky]

Originally posted by bac2therac:
Spanky....and the constant in that time was lack of investment

No, the only constant I see was hiring coaches that were a bad fit. Hell, the woman's team hired a home run, HOF coach CVS, following Grentz leaving. We followed Tom Young with Craig Littlepage. UGH!