East Stands were embarrasing

[SteamWhistle]

Reset button.

 

[ctcjb]

The upper east was at least 95% Clemson fans. The lower east was mostly Clemson fans on either side of the club section. In true club section tradition those who have tickets either stay under the stadium or don't show up cause there are a lot of empty seats there.

You can't say the East stands were 95% Clemson fans, then change it to the upper East was 95% Clemson fans, and the lower was mostly Clemson fans (if you take out the two big sections of Tech fans).

There were lots of Clemson fans there. There were not 95% Clemson fans in the Upper East or Lower East. That is just not true.

 

[wvGT11]

Again the problem is that football for a lot of techies is not a priority. I still remember seeing the library full on homecoming , where as from what I saw at the Clemson game last year at Clemson , the library was empty and fans still showed in the rain.
Same can be said about Athens.
It's a completely different mentality at Tech, esp when are you are smack in the middle a of a major city.

I guess your seats were the 2 empty seats 2 rows down from me then. Glad to see you support these guys no matter what the temperature is.

I understand what you’re getting at but that’s a flawed logic. The problem with the teams you mentioned is that they could care less who they let in to play football. It’s also the reason why Tech fans are the worst and dumbest fans in the world. No other fan base in college football thinks like that. Win and then the fans will come???

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[BootsCostMoney]

Again the problem is that football for a lot of techies is not a priority. I still remember seeing the library full on homecoming , where as from what I saw at the Clemson game last year at Clemson , the library was empty and fans still showed in the rain.
Same can be said about Athens.
It's a completely different mentality at Tech, esp when are you are smack in the middle a of a major city.

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Which is fine and all. But if football is not gonna be a priority then the expectation has to match the commitment. I just wish the school would come out and say something one way or the other so we could all stop wasting our time.

 

[Supersizethatorder-mutt]

The East stands were 95% Clemson fans. A complete embarrassment. Attendance has been a problem since 2008 with the recession and with changing from points to a donation system on tickets in my opinion. Even in our best years with Johnson the attendance has been disappointing.

There is zero vibe or buzz on campus or in the stands on game days. To me filling the stadium is job 1 for Todd. We can have a beautiful AA building but if the stands are empty who cares.

I know it is a chicken or egg problem and the hope is that new building will bring in better recruits but I fear the stadium will be empty by the time a new building is impactful.

Poor attendance started before 2008, but it was indeed due to the change from points to a donation system on tickets. I'm not sure what year DRad made this change, but, although it's a change that virtually every other school in the country uses, he definitely handled it badly. I have sat in the upper east (originally on the 50, now on the 45, after the shift in the field) since 1967. The year prior to the change, my section (225) and the one south of it (224 or 226) were solid Tech for every game. The first year of the ticket fee, the number of Tech fans in those two sections decreased by a good 50%, and it's gone down every year since then. I don't know if there were 95% Clemson fans in those two sections today, but there were definitely way more than 50% Clemson fans.

 

[MikeJackets1967]

Poor attendance started before 2008, but it was indeed due to the change from points to a donation system on tickets. I'm not sure what year DRad made this change, but, although it's a change that virtually every other school in the country uses, he definitely handled it badly. I have sat in the upper east (originally on the 50, now on the 45, after the shift in the field) since 1967. The year prior to the change, my section (225) and the one south of it (224 or 226) were solid Tech for every game. The first year of the ticket fee, the number of Tech fans in those two sections decreased by a good 50%, and it's gone down every year since then. I don't know if there were 95% Clemson fans in those two sections today, but there were definitely way more than 50% Clemson fans.

Some schools(like Tennessee)have always used a donation system for season tickets

 

[Supersizethatorder-mutt]

Some schools(like Tennessee)have always used a donation system for season tickets

Like I said, DRad really handled that transition very poorly.

 

[MikeJackets1967]

Like I said, DRad really handled that transition very poorly.

Yeah he effed it up

 

[3Bees]

You can't say the East stands were 95% Clemson fans, then change it to the upper East was 95% Clemson fans, and the lower was mostly Clemson fans (if you take out the two big sections of Tech fans).

There were lots of Clemson fans there. There were not 95% Clemson fans in the Upper East or Lower East. That is just not true.

If the

 

[3Bees]

If the two groups of fans were two armies on a battle field then the side with gold and white flags would have been annihilated in short time. I sit in the west stands I while I can only estimate the fans in the seats let me tell you that if someone did not know where the game was going on they would have thought we were at Auburn by the lake.

 

[Milwaukee]

I purchased season tickets because I believe(d?) in Todd’s vision for Tech football. I still believe in his global vision but I’m not going to subject myself to 90 degree heat with my 3 year old daughter and wife while a babysitter is watching my baby at home. It’s a big effort for no reward. I am extremely emotionally attached to my sports teams. For my personality it’s better to take a step back. I love Georgia Tech. I love Tech football and basketball. My mood generally waxes and wanes with football — although not at all after USF.

I'm sorry but you kind of sound like a loser if I'm being honest. We don't need fans like you. If your life is altered by our results then you have some stuff you need to get worked out.

 

[wvGT11]

Well I remember years like 2014 us actually selling out games . I don't know how the school changes this. But when we win we fill the stadium, when we are bad people make alternate plans or just study

Which is fine and all. But if football is not gonna be a priority then the expectation has to match the commitment. I just wish the school would come out and say something one way or the other so we could all stop wasting our time.

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[BootsCostMoney]

Just curious, but have any of you thought about the change in demographics in the student body makeup and how it impacts the fan base as a whole? Especially over time. I know most Tech grads have always had to leave Atlanta and Georgia for jobs post-grad for a number of years, but how has the increase in student admissions from foreign countries and places outside the college football loving-South and the State of Georgia over the last 30-40 years affected our student body and alumni body demographic makeup? Regardless of record, I’ve seen a steady drop in fans over the last 30+ years and more and more people on campus who could care less about sports in general. This has included years from the 1990 natty team, the Little Joe years and O-Leary, and on to CPJ to now. Some ups and some downs.

I’m just not sure many of you oldheads really have a grip on what the school is like in 2018 and who actually makes up the student body nowadays. We’re not breeding many future athletic supporters.

 

[Supersizethatorder-mutt]

Just curious, but have any of you thought about the change in demographics in the student body makeup and how it impacts the fan base as a whole? Especially over time. I know most Tech grads have always had to leave Atlanta and Georgia for jobs post-grad for a number of years, but how has the increase in student admissions from foreign countries and places outside the college football loving-South and the State of Georgia over the last 30-40 years affected our student body and alumni body demographic makeup? Regardless of record, I’ve seen a steady drop in fans over the last 30+ years and more and more people on campus who could care less about sports in general. This has included years from the 1990 natty team, the Little Joe years and O-Leary, and on to CPJ to now. Some ups and some downs.

I’m just not sure many of you oldheads really have a grip on what the school is like in 2018 and who actually makes up the student body nowadays. We’re not breeding many future athletic supporters.

It may surprise a lot of people, but back in the 60s and earlier, Grant Field was filled by non-alum fans from throughout the state. When I was growing up in the 50s, I knew one Tech student and no Tech grads, but I knew 10 - 20 people in Augusta alone who had season tickets for games. THOSE are the fans we no longer get; the problem with graduates is not really much different now than it was back then.

 

[BootsCostMoney]

It may surprise a lot of people, but back in the 60s and earlier, Grant Field was filled by non-alum fans from throughout the state. When I was growing up in the 50s, I knew one Tech student and no Tech grads, but I knew 10 - 20 people in Augusta alone who had season tickets for games. THOSE are the fans we no longer get; the problem with graduates is not really much different now than it was back then.

The problem may not be new but the necessity to change to today’s environment and demands in college football HAVE changed.

You can’t fight the future. Wait... you CAN fight the future, but you’re not gonna win.

 

[lauraee]

https://www.courier-journal.com/sto...sketball-recruiting-2019-big-board/996461002/
No pay wall. Mentions up to 6 spots which I don't get since stripperville supposedly led to them losing some scholarships over the next few yrs while loserville is on probation.

 

[lauraee]

Sorry meant to post in Orlando Robinson.

 

[Supersizethatorder-mutt]

The problem may not be new but the necessity to change to today’s environment and demands in college football HAVE changed.

You can’t fight the future. Wait... you CAN fight the future, but you’re not gonna win.

Every school in the country faces the problem of ticket fees no longer being deductible on taxes. Does anyone know how other schools are approaching this, if at all? And what can Tech do to attract and draw in the non-alum fans who once helped fill the stadium?

 

[BootsCostMoney]

Every school in the country faces the problem of ticket fees no longer being deductible on taxes. Does anyone know how other schools are approaching this, if at all? And what can Tech do to attract and draw in the non-alum fans who once helped fill the stadium?

The answer to how to attract the non-alumni fans lies in answering how to make Tech “relatable” to the average Georgian. That’s the rub. The days of the high school valedictorian automatically going to Tech are over. I know we’re a weak state academically, but you’re not gonna have many Georgia Tech fans if we don’t have many kids from Georgia.

Hence, all the orange in the stands. Or Red every other Thanksgiving.

 

[Supersizethatorder-mutt]

The answer to how to attract the non-alumni fans lies in answering how to make Tech “relatable” to the average Georgian. That’s the rub. The days of the high school valedictorian automatically going to Tech are over. I know we’re a weak state academically, but you’re not gonna have many Georgia Tech fans if we don’t have many kids from Georgia.

Hence, all the orange in the stands. Or Red every other Thanksgiving.

That explains the student population, but not why we no longer attract non-student, non-alum fans like we used to. Way too many inconsistent strings of seasons, some very bad seasons, since Dodd's retirement have turned those people away. And this problem predates Johnson by many years. Ross had started to pull them back in, and O'Leary did as well, but Chan didn't, and obviously Johnson has not.