Empty seats sending UK a message?
- Thread starter rick64
- Start date
It's not just one thing, but all of these (& probably more) I'm sure contribute:
- 65" high quality TVs (vs 25" low quality
- growth in popularity of sports bars
- last season still stings
- horrible non-conference home schedule
- concern over Covid
- cost of tickets (I assume gone up over time)
- society as a hole has much shorter attention spans
- more difficult for casual fans to become more hardcore when they don't get to know the players since most are only there 1 year, 2 max.
Can't the same be said to you?
Win a title lol
I don’t have the ability to go to games very often and would do so despite the circumstances that we are discussing, but thinking aloud as a devil’s advocate…
1. Ticket Prices
2. Downtown Lexington traffic
3. Masks
Why endure all of that when one can sit at home (or go to a local bar) and watch the game with no traffic headache, no recycled bandana over their face, and save money in the process?
I hate to say it but it is what it is
Big games will still draw people, but at some point you have to consider value and though Cal’s scheduling has proven to be great for our teams in the long run, it’s just not good for fans.
1. Ticket Prices
2. Downtown Lexington traffic
3. Masks
Why endure all of that when one can sit at home (or go to a local bar) and watch the game with no traffic headache, no recycled bandana over their face, and save money in the process?
I hate to say it but it is what it is
Big games will still draw people, but at some point you have to consider value and though Cal’s scheduling has proven to be great for our teams in the long run, it’s just not good for fans.
Cawood above, loves it
Exactly.
Regardless of where people even stand on the kneeling debate, the people who flipped out
over it and said that they
"Would never support the program again/Would throw away a lifelong fandom" also "Couldn't handle people having opposing views".
I don't have a problem with opposing views. I have a problem with people only wanting their views allowed. Cal and the team chose to be political last year. People didn't like and still don't like it.
I don't care what their political views are and didn't want to know. But they told us. They chose to make it known so people chose to respond.
If you want to include politics into your sport, be prepared for pushback. Yet people get on here and want to disparage people for daring to not agree with the politics the team chose.
I don't expect everyone to agree with my view. But don't tell me I'm not a fan and can't celebrate if the team wins a title because I didn't like some things they did last year.
They have a right to express themselves. O have a right to express myself. That's how that works.
Most people have reached the conclusion college and professional sports are just not that important any longer. Attitudes of athletes and maybe a little COVID have helped push it along. As many mentioned, it’s just an easier and in some cases better, experience than going to the trouble.
Cawood probably spent the last 15 years calling everyone a "snowflake" and now he won't go watch Kentucky because the coach stood by his team and it hurt his political feelings.. Cawood quite literally became the embodiment of "snowflake".
You hate to see it.
It's actually the opposite. THis country affords everyone the right to speak how they feel.
I never said I wouldn't watch them anymore. Never said I am no longer a fan. I didn't like some things that were said and done. I ain't apologizing for expressing my views just like they did theirs.
From my personal perspective, the kneeling doesn’t matter. My Dad refuses to watch the NFL due to kneeling but would be dead before he misses watching the Cats on TV. I could hand deliver him tickets for tomorrow’s game and he’d be there as soon as the doors open.
I think the game has changed slowly but noticeably over the last several years. And I’m 35. Rare are the role players who bust their @sses off in order to get a win. It’s all about TV, the NBA and the chance of getting a pro contract. I don’t blame the kids, if I got the ball on the elbow in today’s game, I’m thinking of the rim and nothing else. It’s turned a lot of “purists” away from the game.
I’m watching this Big East - Big Ten challenge deal tonight and it’s the closest I’ve seen to the game I fell in love with a long time ago. I won’t lie, Friday was fun to watch and I hope it continues, but the past few years have been torture as a fan of the program and the game. Hopefully Cal saw the light and we get our “swag” back.
I think the game has changed slowly but noticeably over the last several years. And I’m 35. Rare are the role players who bust their @sses off in order to get a win. It’s all about TV, the NBA and the chance of getting a pro contract. I don’t blame the kids, if I got the ball on the elbow in today’s game, I’m thinking of the rim and nothing else. It’s turned a lot of “purists” away from the game.
I’m watching this Big East - Big Ten challenge deal tonight and it’s the closest I’ve seen to the game I fell in love with a long time ago. I won’t lie, Friday was fun to watch and I hope it continues, but the past few years have been torture as a fan of the program and the game. Hopefully Cal saw the light and we get our “swag” back.
No. People would rather stay at home to watch a crap opponent. Football sold out three straight home games. So people still go to games.
There are other contributing factors, but the last few years cal took the fanbase for granted by screwing season ticket holders in favor of all big games at neutral sites.
Sad thing is a lot of people have quit watching. Just ask around people will tell you. They don’t watch UK basketball anymore.
I do watch.
I do watch.
Big difference between opposing views and disrespecting this country and the ones that have served and died in defense of this country.
Who though? Do you actually know people that have literally stopped watching UK to this day?
I mean the guy above has whined about Calipari here for YEARS! Probably spent days of his life hand-wringing over him.. and yet, he told us he still watches the games, still supports the team.
I think some people just got pissy about differing political opinions., but aside from the extremists, no one just gave up what they love, at least not for long.. My dad said he'd never watch the NFL anymore.. well, the kneeling stopped and there he is, enjoying his Buffalo Bills.
You can thank the string of sold out home football games for a lot of the attendance dip for bball games. The vast majority of folks that attend games are middle Class workin folks. A lot of them have chosen to soak up this way better than average football run we are having. Game day experience is not cheap. I think a lot of people have just chosen to go to Kroger field instead of rupp. It’s kinda tough to swing both. In years past many of them probably spent their expendable income at rupp, as evident by the attendance numbers for both sports.
I dont love the football comparison either.
I think with how good we were looking, not just this year but the last few, we've created a huge buzz in the state. UK football is now exciting. People want tickets to the hot show. The state doesn't have pro-football. And it's still the sport that dominates viewership and ratings.
football has already drawn a good crowd except the years of joker.also tailgating is a big thing
How do you honestly pushback against something that you refuse or, fail to understand.
One thing I've learned about myself over the last year and a half, I like spending money doing things more than I like spending money watching other people do things. Not just sports, but all spectator entertainment.
I think any attendance "issues" we may have at the moment mostly boils down to money and level of competition in the end.
Tickets (along with everything else) get more expensive and I understand if people don't think it's worth it to pay to see Kentucky play against competition that they ::should:: blowout.
(Though I do think it's important to have those cupcake games to give the team time to figure things out and gel together.)
I think attendance will be just fine for higher-profile games/if Kentucky is doing well.
Tickets (along with everything else) get more expensive and I understand if people don't think it's worth it to pay to see Kentucky play against competition that they ::should:: blowout.
(Though I do think it's important to have those cupcake games to give the team time to figure things out and gel together.)
I think attendance will be just fine for higher-profile games/if Kentucky is doing well.
Calipari and the team were cowards. When they did that during the National Anthem IN FLORIDA, they chose to disrespect the University of Florida, as well as all military/law enforcement officers who willingly risk their lives every single day. If that doesn't bother you, so be it. But it did upset a lot of people.
Why didn't they do it at a home game? We know why. They would have been booed off the floor and hundreds (if not more) would have left Rupp Arena right then.
I am a UK Grad. I want UK to win every game in every sport. That will never change.
And I will always remember what Calipari allowed on an opposing team's court. Do it at a home game and see how it goes over.
Why didn't they do it at a home game? We know why. They would have been booed off the floor and hundreds (if not more) would have left Rupp Arena right then.
I am a UK Grad. I want UK to win every game in every sport. That will never change.
And I will always remember what Calipari allowed on an opposing team's court. Do it at a home game and see how it goes over.
I agree. Covid might affect some, but the cost of it anymore is ridiculous.
Like going to a baseball game. I can buy a damn 30-pack for the same price I can buy 2 beers. 20 dollars to park? Ridiculous. I'd rather just watch from home. Between tickets and all else you can be looking at 150-200 bucks or more for 2 people. Just not worth it.
Lol ok. It also takes 3x more capacity to sell out and is outdoors. By any comparison, it should be much easier to sell out rupp. Use any music concert you want as direct comparison.
There was a time when UK basketball could've sold out commonwealth stadium. After being taken advantage of via schedule, those days are over. Noone wants to show up to watch east/west a&m state and noone should blame them
If anthem kneeling is a real reason for the lack of fans(news flash it’s not), then I say good riddance to those folks. With their apparent intelligence level it’s quite remarkable they ever made it to the arena anyways. Our veterans put their lives on the line so that our citizens can have the freedom to kneel down when they want to it’s a free country. This isn’t China we shouldn’t be scared of the state when we don’t obey.
But in reality it really is just a few yokels that keep bringing it up there’s no legitimacy to that claim what so ever
But in reality it really is just a few yokels that keep bringing it up there’s no legitimacy to that claim what so ever
Just out of curiosity.. what schedule in year's past would you like to see?
The FIRST one I googled was 89/90.. At home, in OOC, we played Ohio, Tennessee Tech, Furman, Portland, Louisana, UNC and Louisville? Is that schedule any better than what we've seen in recent years (This schedule this year is admittedly not great).
In the very next season, we played Penn, Kansas, Chattanooga, WKU, Louisville.. Ok, SLIGHTLY better. But not sure I see THAT much of a difference between these home OOC schedules and the ones of today.
And the experience. We have 60 inch HD televisions that honestly give us fans a BETTER look of the game, than if we were in all but the most premier seats.
For me, it's not so much the cost, as it is the convenience. It's just easier to watch these at home or at the bar. Oh you mean at home I can get a better angle of the game, and not have to go "excuse me" 8 times just to get out of a packed row with ****** seats? Yeah, I'll take that.
This isn't politics, and it's not our schedule. This is the state of TV media consumption giving us endless content at our finger tips.
I would agree. For me I kind of think of the OADs as conducting a "drive-by". They hardly even unpack, take what they want and gone before you even know their names. Who benefits and in what way? I know that OADs are probably here for now but my biggest concern is Cal's "wholesale" version of OAD "every" year. If Cal cared about the PROGRAM, he would back off the wholesale replacement of players at every position every year and work on cultivating multi-year players with 2 or 3 OADs each year. It would require that that he actually COACH and it also eliminates his built-in excuse for losing (they're too young) so not gonna hold my breath.
The protest was never about veterans or active soldiers. That was stated immediately after the game. Many of us on this board have served and do not share your thoughts.
So what if families and recruits who agree with what Cal did (and I'm going to go out on a limb here and say 90% of them do), all the sudden think they'd rather play somewhere else? What then?
You want to tell black/young players you hate when they make a political statement of ANY means... yet you applaud when they come here? How long do you think that lasts for? You realize how far off SOME of this fanbase is for the type of players we recruit?
I'm conservative, as evident by the political thread.. but what's the end game here? We're just going to recruit a bunch of Bobs, Taylors and Chets?
(Chet was not the best name to use presently lol)
Show me where I said anyting about veterans or active soldiers. I served as well. So don't assume to speak for me. You do not.
I know what the protest and the video was about. You seem to think your view is the only view. YOu are free to have your view.
I am free to have mine. I don't look for your approval or need it.
You're making aasumptions you know nothing about.