Interesting Graphic On GT and College Fanbases

cthenrys

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But he doesn't have to be. Shuttles from their campus, organized tailgates - inclusion in the pageantry and pomp of campus life might just wrap up some additional fans.
OK, maybe. But I don't think you're being very realistic. It's not what the crowd is interested in. You could make it free and provide transportation and I think you'd be underwhelmed.
 

MidtownJacket

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OK, maybe. But I don't think you're being very realistic. It's not what the crowd is interested in. You could make it free and provide transportation and I think you'd be underwhelmed.
Could be you're right. I am not suggesting it is the only way, or even the best way to grow the fanbase. Just that it could be an option and offer something more to tighten our ties to the city.
 

cthenrys

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Could be you're right. I am not suggesting it is the only way, or even the best way to grow the fanbase. Just that it could be an option and offer something more to tighten our ties to the city.
understood and I understand the motivation, but we are what we are. Hoping for throngs of sidewalk fans just seems a waste of time to me but I'm sure others will keep trying. Emory students are not a reservoir of pent up demand for GT football, IMHO.
 

Northeast Stinger

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But he doesn't have to be. Shuttles from their campus, organized tailgates - inclusion in the pageantry and pomp of campus life might just wrap up some additional fans.
We were able with a student ID to buy discounted tickets at our student center for sporting events around town. If Tech tickets had been available there are students who would have gone.
 

Northeast Stinger

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understood and I understand the motivation, but we are what we are. Hoping for throngs of sidewalk fans just seems a waste of time to me but I'm sure others will keep trying. Emory students are not a reservoir of pent up demand for GT football, IMHO.
I think you are missing the point. There was zero pent up demand for Tech to represent the ATL but Collins understood that you fake it until you make it. An all out push to make Tech an Atlanta institution again is worth a try.
 

cthenrys

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I think you are missing the point. There was zero pent up demand for Tech to represent the ATL but Collins understood that you fake it until you make it. An all out push to make Tech an Atlanta institution again is worth a try.
Based on that we are likely a few years away from the product being better to make that effort. Would be a waste of time today...
 

GTBlaze

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Unfortunately i'm not so sure I agree with this.
Atlanta is such a transient city, that there isn't a strong connection to a local team like in many cities.
GT has only something like the 9th largest alumni base in Atlanta. Heck, I believe Ohio St has more alums in Atlanta than GT does. So people in this city already have strong attachments to other teams.

Winning will certainly improve the size of the fanbase, but the transient nature of the city makes it much more difficult for GT to grow its fanbase locally.
This sounds like a college football problem. Any city that has a winning team no matter what sport gets support from transient fans.

If you live in Atlanta and grew up an Ohio state fan and GT was in the national championship game, they would be huge supporters.

I know Baseball fans who live in Atlanta (Mets, Yankees, etc fans) that jumped on the Braves train and they now love the Braves after last season
 

Northeast Stinger

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This sounds like a college football problem. Any city that has a winning team no matter what sport gets support from transient fans.

If you live in Atlanta and grew up an Ohio state fan and GT was in the national championship game, they would be huge supporters.

I know Baseball fans who live in Atlanta (Mets, Yankees, etc fans) that jumped on the Braves train and they now love the Braves after last season
I think this is right. I was a life long Braves fan, moved to the Boston area about the time they made a run for the World Series and it was surprisingly easy to jump on the bandwagon. But those are perhaps the best baseball fans in the country.

So, yeah, once again winning is important. People look for reasons to become connected to the place they live and a winning sports team is a quick way.
 

MidtownJacket

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I grew up in Atlanta with parents from the north side of Chicago.

Have been a lifelong cubs and braves fan - despite living in Houston for the last 7 years, and DC for two years before that. In the 7 years I’ve lived here, I’ve been to more games at Wrigley and the Ted (though not yet suntrust park) than minutemaid and flew a braves flag at my house when we played them in the playoffs last fall. I just don’t have space in my mind for another baseball team and won’t drop my two.

Still pay Texas for a GT plate on my car to represent because it’s a part of who I am and what I’m about. I met my wife at Tech, learned my limits and how to push past them at Tech.

I guess my point is more that GT has a certain gravity - most of us know this already - that once you’re exposed to, if you’re wired that way, you find follows you through life.

Exposing more young people to the brand and the ideals can’t be a bad thing.
 

GTRambler

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This sounds like a college football problem. Any city that has a winning team no matter what sport gets support from transient fans.

If you live in Atlanta and grew up an Ohio state fan and GT was in the national championship game, they would be huge supporters.

I know Baseball fans who live in Atlanta (Mets, Yankees, etc fans) that jumped on the Braves train and they now love the Braves after last season
I agree more with what RamblinRed pointed out, though. In January of 1991 (amost 32 years ago), the City of Atlanta threw a downtown parade for the Georgia Tech football team after they beat Nebraska in the Citrus Bowl and won the UPI Coaches Poll as National Champions. I went to the parade on Peachtree Street and saw there were few people along the route, which surprised — and disappointed — me.

Yet during the 1990 football season, Grant Field was either full or almost full for every home game.

So, the lack of a large parade crowd in downtown Atlanta for the 1990 UPI National Championship Georgia Tech football team was a major surprise — and eye-opener — to me.
 

g0lftime

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This sounds like a college football problem. Any city that has a winning team no matter what sport gets support from transient fans.

If you live in Atlanta and grew up an Ohio state fan and GT was in the national championship game, they would be huge supporters.

I know Baseball fans who live in Atlanta (Mets, Yankees, etc fans) that jumped on the Braves train and they now love the Braves after last season
The higher the team ranking, the bigger the car decals become.
 

Northeast Stinger

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Atlanta may actually be a B10 town with all the transplants
Would be interesting to find out.

The problem Tech began to face several years ago was that the AJC changed from treating Tech as the hometown team to barely mentioning Tech compared to all the “local” teams of “national interest” that they began to cover.

But I quit reading years ago so I don’t know what it’s like now.
 

bobongo

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Atlanta is a uga town. They play home games at HGF@BDS every other year.

That's a reality that we have not been able to change regardless of our record.
Not exactly. Look at this video of the 2001 Tech - Ugag game at Bobby Dodd after three wins in a row over the mutts. At 36:58 look at the pan shot of the east stands. You'll see more gold than red. It's not where we would like it to be, but it's a lot better than in recent years. Winning does make a difference.

 

Augusta_Jacket

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Not exactly. Look at this video of the 2001 Tech - Ugag game at Bobby Dodd after three wins in a row over the mutts. At 36:58 look at the pan shot of the east stands. You'll see more gold than red. It's not where we would like it to be, but it's a lot better than in recent years. Winning does make a difference.


Pulling out a video from 20+ years ago doesn't really apply to today. We've had winning seasons since then and slowly we've seen our attendance shrink and the SEC teams begin playing home games at BDS.
 

bobongo

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Pulling out a video from 20+ years ago doesn't really apply to today. We've had winning seasons since then and slowly we've seen our attendance shrink and the SEC teams begin playing home games at BDS.
I'm talking about the effect of three in a row over Georgia. If and when that happens again, you'll see a marked change in the gold/red mix at Bobby Dodd.
 
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