404 and ATL signage and logos

[Vespidae]

Was the top guy also providing team free food as well

I suspect not. Ever traveled with the basketball team? It's box lunches and set menus at Cracker Barrel. Pretty sad really.

 

[ibeattetris]

I’m still trying to wrap my head around this sorry. If cities are such a draw, then why are there only a handful of good teams in big cities?

I am not saying we can’t recruit the fact that GT is in Atlanta (it’s legitimately one of the reasons I picked tech), but focusing the majority of of branding and marketing around it seems silly, when it’s apparent that the majority of top athletes aren’t picking where they go to school based on whether it’s a town or city.

 

[Vespidae]

I’m still trying to wrap my head around this sorry. If cities are such a draw, then why are there only a handful of good teams in big cities?

I am not saying we can’t recruit the fact that GT is in Atlanta (it’s legitimately one of the reasons I picked tech), but focusing the majority of of branding and marketing around it seems silly, when it’s apparent that the majority of top athletes aren’t picking where they go to school based on whether it’s a town or city.

Attendance correlates highly with non-urban schools. And many athletes want the “college” experience which is more prevalent in college towns than urban ones.

 

[JacketFan137]

Attendance correlates highly with non-urban schools. And many athletes want the “college” experience which is more prevalent in college towns than urban ones.

in athens, tuacaloosa, auburn, clemson etc they are the only show in town. the athletes basically get free admission into all the bars and are the town rockstars. everything in the city revolves around keeping the football players and coaches happy. atlanta is too big and has too much money outside of georgia tech to let our program rule the city like that

 

[cpf2001]

Without really rigoursly inspecting the number of schools in P5 in cities vs number of schools in P5 in college towns, which I'm too lazy to do myself right now, I don't know how skewed the ratio is of contenders in cities vs college towns. USC, Miami, UCLA, Texas have all done well for themselves at times recruiting-wise; TCU starts to feel borderline city-wise but Fort Worth feels a lot more like Austin than it does College Station or Lubbock, and it's bigger than all but a few of ACC cities.

Just in the ACC, you've got city schools (BC, GT, Miami, Pitt, Louisville) dramatically outnumbered by college town schools. (Is Louisville -> Syracuse the population change separating "city" from "town" here? I dunno.) The SEC is even more lopsided. You might say that that's a result of historically the towns being more appealing, which I wouldn't necessarily argue with (but it's also history and how a lot of large state universities were founded), but even then I don't think that means cities are unappealing today.

Maybe the appeal of the city just "generally" counteracts the un-appeal of the smaller crowds... but then in that case, marketing more on the city elements to recruits to emphasize the positives and de-emphasize the negatives could be a good move.

 

[Vespidae]

in athens, tuacaloosa, auburn, clemson etc they are the only show in town. the athletes basically get free admission into all the bars and are the town rockstars. everything in the city revolves around keeping the football players and coaches happy. atlanta is too big and has too much money outside of georgia tech to let our program rule the city like that

Most students have no interaction with athletes. Other than class, they largely operate 100% outside of "normal" students. Separate gyms, separate dining, etc.

Bars are free to all. In my time here, I've never encountered an athlete at a bar or heard of one. The practice schedule is intense. Honestly, there isn't time for a lot of foolery. I'm only speaking for Auburn though.

 

[forensicbuzz]

I’m still trying to wrap my head around this sorry. If cities are such a draw, then why are there only a handful of good teams in big cities?

I am not saying we can’t recruit the fact that GT is in Atlanta (it’s legitimately one of the reasons I picked tech), but focusing the majority of of branding and marketing around it seems silly, when it’s apparent that the majority of top athletes aren’t picking where they go to school based on whether it’s a town or city.

I think (for me) the thought was we were trying to put as much a fence around Atlanta to keep local talent (Atlanta Metro area is one of the richest hotbeds of football talent) here as possible. Get these kids to resonate with the "hometown" vibe. We know uga(g) tried to incorporate Atlanta too.

 

[forensicbuzz]

Attendance correlates highly with non-urban schools. And many athletes want the “college” experience which is more prevalent in college towns than urban ones.

meh, this is overrated. Anyone who's ever stepped on GT's campus understandings that GT is an isolated campus that happens to be in Atlanta. There's a lot of "college town" feel on GT's campus even though it's nestled in Midtown.

 

[forensicbuzz]

in athens, tuacaloosa, auburn, clemson etc they are the only show in town. the athletes basically get free admission into all the bars and are the town rockstars. everything in the city revolves around keeping the football players and coaches happy. atlanta is too big and has too much money outside of georgia tech to let our program rule the city like that

Again, this isn't really true. Those haunts around GT campus give players extra special treatment.

 

[forensicbuzz]

Most students have no interaction with athletes. Other than class, they largely operate 100% outside of "normal" students. Separate gyms, separate dining, etc.

Bars are free to all. In my time here, I've never encountered an athlete at a bar or heard of one. The practice schedule is intense. Honestly, there isn't time for a lot of foolery. I'm only speaking for Auburn though.

Been to a ton of Auburn parties where there were plenty of football players. I still remember in 1988 being at a fraternity/sorority party in Auburn (Caroline Draughon Village Extention) and Benji Roland drunk off his *** calling out to the pretty coeds (there were many) "Come give Benji some sugar!" Don't know about now, but back then I partied with a bunch of Tech football players, NC State football players that came to visit friends, and Aubrun football players.

 

[Vespidae]

meh, this is overrated. Anyone who's ever stepped on GT's campus understandings that GT is an isolated campus that happens to be in Atlanta. There's a lot of "college town" feel on GT's campus even though it's nestled in Midtown.

It's your opinion. It has been studied ad nauseum for decades.

 

[orientalnc]

I can think of only one land grant university in the South that's in a big city and you might argue Raleigh is not a big city. That accounts for quite a few.

 

[Richard7125]

meh, this is overrated. Anyone who's ever stepped on GT's campus understandings that GT is an isolated campus that happens to be in Atlanta. There's a lot of "college town" feel on GT's campus even though it's nestled in Midtown.

I agree with this, but you really only learn this after going to Tech. I've told so many people once you are on the Tech campus you could be anywhere USA. I've had the conversation countless times even with people who have gone to Tech games, they nod their head yes, but then say, but i don't want my kid going to school in downtown Atlanta.

 

[Vespidae]

I agree with this, but you really only learn this after going to Tech. I've told so many people once you are on the Tech campus you could be anywhere USA. I've had the conversation countless times even with people who have gone to Tech games, they nod their head yes, but then say, but i don't want my kid going to school in downtown Atlanta.

The campus has nothing to do with it. The research says it's heavily dependent on the number of alumni within 5 miles and 10miles of the school. Almost every urban school fails this.

 

[Richard7125]

The campus has nothing to do with it. The research says it's heavily dependent on the number of alumni within 5 miles and 10miles of the school. Almost every urban school fails this.

I guess I don't know what we're discussing.

 

[cpf2001]

I think Vespidae is talking about game attendance.

I looked a bit more, though didn't try to fully count "all P5 city schools" vs "all P5 college town schools" and there's usually at least one or two city schools in the top 10 for recruiting (UT and USC most frequently recently) which doesn't necessarily seem under- or over-represented. There's just not as many schools in cities that do P5 sports in the first place.

In the 20 years from 2002-2021 there have been national championships for USC, USC (half), and Texas. And if we count LSU (I haven't been to the campus, but I've been to Baton Rogue and on the map it looks like it's fairly central in the city) we add on the other side of that half one and two more (and then you have at least one in the last ten years). Which makes 5; 25% seems pretty good considering how the frequency of city vs college-town schools.

 

[forensicbuzz]

It's your opinion. It has been studied ad nauseum for decades.

Not sure what you're saying has been studied ad nauseum for decades, but Tech's campus is isolated within its own environment within the Midtown Atlanta area since inception. Everyone I've ever known (including recruits and recruits' parents) who steps foot on campus cannot believe it's an "urban" campus. What point are you trying to put forth?

 

[forensicbuzz]

The campus has nothing to do with it. The research says it's heavily dependent on the number of alumni within 5 miles and 10miles of the school. Almost every urban school fails this.

I see. You're correlating football game attendance. Probably correct. My comment was focused on people and their desire for a "college town" feel versus an urban campus. Maybe we were talking past each other. To me, Georgia State is an urban campus, Georgia Tech (although in Midtown Atlanta) is not really an urban campus (to me).

 

[GCdaJuiceMan]

“Hey, let’s pose for the photo bro”

“Sure… For, the uhhhhh.. forty four.”

 

[Vespidae]

“Hey, let’s pose for the photo bro”

“Sure… For, the uhhhhh.. forty four.”

The problem with using slogans like "404" is that Tech DOESN'T own the 404. Slogans and brand identities decoupled from reality aren't very effective and in fact, can be counterproductive.

As one poster pointed out, that type of "area code" branding might have been effective 30 years ago, but mobile phones have all but eliminated it.

To be clear, Collins did not come up with any of this. A marketing firm, hired by Tech did. And they can revisit their research and make adjustments.