Dual Attendance

[Gladiator Dad]

So with Boise St dropping their program there's been a lot of chatter on different wrestling forums about dual attendance. I am not sure how much or how little that played into the Boise St decision but the discussion has once again raised the question of what those of us who love this sport can do to promote it to the main stream better. according to The Open Mat dual attendance is at a 15 year high but for the duals that I attended around the country I'm not sure outside of the top 5 or 6 schools on the Open Mat list that dual attendance is really up. Iowa lead the list followed by Penn St, tOSU, OSU and Rutgers. Here is the link to the Open Mat story

http://http://news.theopenmat.com/college-wrestling-news/college-wrestling-dual-attendance-15-year-high/62725 (http://news.theopenmat.com/college-wrestling-news/college-wrestling-dual-attendance-15-year-high/62725)

So looking at the four home duals that NDSU had here is what the "Paid Attendance" was listed at. I say Paid because NDSU does not count anyone on the Pass List or Students who attend. In the case of Students/Student Athletes the admission cost is figured into their fees that they pay to go to school. I don't necessarily agree that attendance should be figured this way but it is what is at this point until they change it.

1) IA State = 1,371
2) Northern CO = 452
3) Boise St = 491
4) Utah Val = 795

That averages out to around 777 per home dual, again not counting students or people on the pass list. My wife and I also attended a few of the away duals at OU, Northwestern and SIUE/Indiana. The SIUE/Indiana dual along with the Northwestern dual might have had 200-300 max at each one of them. The OU dual was probably around 800 or so. So the question is what can we do to better promote our sport? I feel that wrestling has the best athletes that train harder than every other sport out there and nobody on their campuses no who they are in most cases. Look this isn't just at the collegiate level either, this is an issue at all levels of our sport. Crap Jordan Boroughs is more well known in Iran than in the US. High Schools are having trouble fielding teams around the country and I firmly believe it's because kids today don't want to work their butts off for no recognition for their efforts, I know you can say they're out there for the wrong reasons then but let's be real in this instagram, facebook, twitter society we live in these kids like the attention and that bus has already left the building and we better get on board or this sport will be a distant memory if we don't come up with ways to promote it.

Just trying to get the conversation started and interested to hear your thoughts on this.

[HerdBot]

I would say this... I'm not a huge wrestling fan so my opinion may be geared more towards people like me but our biggest marketing strength is the SHAC and this...

http://cbsdallas.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/big-12-logo.jpg?w=770

[El_Chapo]

if NDSU wrestling wants better attendence... get to Frazee, Perham, Wadena and get them coming up somehow.

[Big Bird]

Scheduling better teams goes a long way to boosting attendance in Fargo. It isn't the only answer, but it is a start. Casual fans come out to see big name top 10 teams, even in wrestling. Remember the national duals matchup vs MN a few years back? That was the best NDSU dual crowd I've seen in quite some time and the atmosphere was great. It helped that there were a bunch of MN fans in attendance, but so what. Even though not all of the fans would be cheering for NDSU, it would still be a big draw. DGF organizes a coach bus(es) every year to a Gophers match and it fills up in a hurry. Hosting them in Fargo gives local Gopher fans a chance to see them without traveling 3+ hours. I would do whatever I can to ensure that MN is on the schedule every year. Getting John Smith and OK State on the schedule would be a huge draw and with them being a conference foe, they SHOULD be on the schedule every year.

Outside of just a better schedule, I think it's just a culture thing. I can remember going to NDSU matches regularly since the early 90's and it's never been a consistent huge draw. SDSU has changed their culture around in the last few years and now their duals are spectacles and the place to be in Brookings. I'm not sure how best NDSU wrestling can do that, but there are options.

#1 culture change has to be getting the general student body engaged in the duals. Getting the general student body excited about a wrestling match is hard to do, but it would really help with a better atmosphere. I have no clue how to get the student body more involved, but I think it needs to happen if we're to take the next step.

I'd like to see a new announcer brought in, as I think Joel does a poor job. I appreciate all that he does in the FM community and all that he has done for NDSU, but he is not a good announcer IMO. I have friends who are wrestling fans (but not NDSU fans) who would come to duals, but their distaste for his announcing honestly keeps them away. He is constantly talking over the action, mispronouncing names, and just getting basic information wrong. I'm sure it isn't an easy job, but there are better options (which I have no idea if it is a paying gig or not). I'd love to see Pike from Big 98.7 take over. I'm biased because I've known him since he was in Kindergarten, but that isn't the only reason. He is a former wrestler and is great at speaking/announcing. He was in the running for the in-stadium Redhawks gig the last time it was open, and he was great at it. Plus he's a local celebrity with a very large following, which would give a lot of free press to the team and events. I have no clue if he'd be interested or if his schedule would allow it, but he'd be a big step up.

I'd like to see cheap season tickets for elementary kids who are in local programs. Charge $2 a ticket and try to get these kids hooked early on. Plus if you have an elementary kid there, you'll have parents there too.

This is a very social media heavy generation and I guess more could always be done in that realm. I love Coach Garnett's online presence, but do non wrestling folks follow him? Not a knock on him, but I just assume that the casual NDSU sports fan isn't paying attention to his accounts. I think the NDSU Athletics and general NDSU social media accounts (the ones with massive followings) do a good job of showcasing the wrestling accomplishments. Maybe ask if they could promote upcoming events more. That's free and reaches a ton of eyeballs.

[HerdBot]

Scheduling better teams goes a long way to boosting attendance in Fargo. It isn't the only answer, but it is a start. Casual fans come out to see big name top 10 teams, even in wrestling. Remember the national duals matchup vs MN a few years back? That was the best NDSU dual crowd I've seen in quite some time and the atmosphere was great. It helped that there were a bunch of MN fans in attendance, but so what. Even though not all of the fans would be cheering for NDSU, it would still be a big draw. DGF organizes a coach bus(es) every year to a Gophers match and it fills up in a hurry. Hosting them in Fargo gives local Gopher fans a chance to see them without traveling 3+ hours. I would do whatever I can to ensure that MN is on the schedule every year. Getting John Smith and OK State on the schedule would be a huge draw and with them being a conference foe, they SHOULD be on the schedule every year.

Outside of just a better schedule, I think it's just a culture thing. I can remember going to NDSU matches regularly since the early 90's and it's never been a consistent huge draw. SDSU has changed their culture around in the last few years and now their duals are spectacles and the place to be in Brookings. I'm not sure how best NDSU wrestling can do that, but there are options.

#1 culture change has to be getting the general student body engaged in the duals. Getting the general student body excited about a wrestling match is hard to do, but it would really help with a better atmosphere. I have no clue how to get the student body more involved, but I think it needs to happen if we're to take the next step.

I'd like to see a new announcer brought in, as I think Joel does a poor job. I appreciate all that he does in the FM community and all that he has done for NDSU, but he is not a good announcer IMO. I have friends who are wrestling fans (but not NDSU fans) who would come to duals, but their distaste for his announcing honestly keeps them away. He is constantly talking over the action, mispronouncing names, and just getting basic information wrong. I'm sure it isn't an easy job, but there are better options (which I have no idea if it is a paying gig or not). I'd love to see Pike from Big 98.7 take over. I'm biased because I've known him since he was in Kindergarten, but that isn't the only reason. He is a former wrestler and is great at speaking/announcing. He was in the running for the in-stadium Redhawks gig the last time it was open, and he was great at it. Plus he's a local celebrity with a very large following, which would give a lot of free press to the team and events. I have no clue if he'd be interested or if his schedule would allow it, but he'd be a big step up.

I'd like to see cheap season tickets for elementary kids who are in local programs. Charge $2 a ticket and try to get these kids hooked early on. Plus if you have an elementary kid there, you'll have parents there too.

This is a very social media heavy generation and I guess more could always be done in that realm. I love Coach Garnett's online presence, but do non wrestling folks follow him? Not a knock on him, but I just assume that the casual NDSU sports fan isn't paying attention to his accounts. I think the NDSU Athletics and general NDSU social media accounts (the ones with massive followings) do a good job of showcasing the wrestling accomplishments. Maybe ask if they could promote upcoming events more. That's free and reaches a ton of eyeballs.

Iowa state just sounds like something big time to the casual fan who doesn't follow wrestling very closely. Of course it helps when they show a kick ass hype video during the football game for 19K fans to see.

Utah Valley and Northern Colorado sounds about as exciting as Valley City State to a casual observing fan like myself. Honestly I couldn't even tell you if they are great or terrible.

To me it's about the competition. I would want to see Minnesota, Iowa State, Oklahoma because they are the big dogs.

Another thing for a casual wrestling fan... has to be on Friday Saturday or Sunday obviously not competing with football.

I think wrestling has some big time potential. I mean the city hosts the big dog of tournaments and it's basically on campus of a team that now plays in the Big 12.

[MAKBison]

Iowa state just sounds like something big time to the casual fan who doesn't follow wrestling very closely. Of course it helps when they show a kick ass hype video during the football game for 19K fans to see.

Utah Valley and Northern Colorado sounds about as exciting as Valley City State to a casual observing fan like myself.

To me it's about the competition. I would want to see Minnesota, Iowa State, Oklahoma because they are the big dogs.

Another thing for a casual wrestling fan... has to be on Friday Saturday or Sunday obviously not competing with football.

I think wrestling has some big time potential. I mean the city hosts the big dog of tournaments and it's basically on campus of a team that now plays in the Big 12.

Well a start would be to get them on the BISON more and do more advertising when there is an actual dual. Maybe get the kids out in the community more. There is all sorts of storiers about FB players doing this and that. You never hear about the Wrestling team doing this and or that....I am sure they do things, its just who knows about it? And Yeah, no ones even knows they are B12. The only reason I know is BV and cuz my nephews back in MT want to Wrestle for NDSU.

[HerdBot]

Well a start would be to get them on the BISON more and do more advertising when there is an actual dual. Maybe get the kids out in the community more. There is all sorts of storiers about FB players doing this and that. You never hear about the Wrestling team doing this and or that....I am sure they do things, its just who knows about it?

Yeah they get pretty crappy media coverage. Even Bison 1660 does a shitty job. Heck they give softball more coverage than our Big 12 wrestling program.

[1998braves64]

I think having more visibility on youth camp would help. They have one but it isn't well attended by younger kids was what I was told. Also think that with the rural schools barely hanging on to their programs most kids are focused on other sports. I went to one dual at ndsu hope to get back to more but it's hard with so much competition on your attention now days.

Sent from my VS988 using Tapatalk

[RadioBison]

I get the sense that some teams don't try that hard to win every dual meet. It's not like teams are competing for playoff opportunities or conference championships. I don't recall us doing that too much, but I can think of a few meets where our opponents put out a lineup that I couldn't understand, like UNI last year. I don't know if teams sit guys because they are hurt, or to save a weight cut, or whatever else. But I think it makes it hard to get too excited for a dual meet when you can't count on seeing the best match ups.

[Gladiator Dad]

Some great feedback so far. I can tell you that next season will be the first season since joining the BIG XII that the conference will dictate part of the conference dual schedule. I am not 100% on who will be coming to Fargo next season, so I don't want to start throwing out names of schools as of yet but going forward some of the bigger named schools in the BIG XII will not have a choice but to come up to Fargo for duals going forward. This year I believe the conference will dictate 6 duals total, 3 home and 3 away. The following year I believe that number goes up to 8, with the same format of 4 home and 4 away. I know when we first made the switch to the BIG XII that some got on these boards and said that some of the bigger name wrestling schools would never come to Fargo to wrestle.

I went back and looked at the attendance for the home duals for the 2015/16 season and this year's numbers showed some good growth now we need to start promoting attendance for 2017/18.

2015/16 Attendance
UVA = 376
VA Tech = 307
UNI = 373
AF = 374
WY = 403
SDSU = 534

2015/16 Average = 395

When you compare the 2015/16 average with this past season it's nearly doubled from year to year. I think it would be great to double it again in 2017/18. I also went backed and looked at the attendance from the Minny dual in Feb. 2015 and the attendance for that dual was was 1,465, that's only 94 for more in attendance when you compare it to the IAST attendance number.

[CoachGarnett]

Great feedback everyone. This is a great discussion and one that is very important to us. The Iowa State dual this past November and the dual vs Minnesota in 2015 shows that this program CAN put 1,200-1,500 fans in the stands per dual with probably a spike for some of the major programs that may come to town. Would love to break the 2,000 mark next season. Right now, we hope that happens the 4th weekend of November this upcoming season ;). Your ideas and thoughts are noted and we plan to have even more stock put into the social media and marketing categories in 17-18. I think we saw a pretty good spike in it this year but it is still a work in progress until the perfect blend of techniques is found and we can then use that system year after year to start filling up the arena! I will say this about the 2017-2018 schedule.... It will be VERY exciting! Lets keep this discussion going. GO BISON!

[Tony Almeida]

DGF organizes a coach bus(es) every year to a Gophers match and it fills up in a hurry. Hosting them in Fargo gives local Gopher fans a chance to see them without traveling 3+ hours. I would do whatever I can to ensure that MN is on the schedule every year. Getting John Smith and OK State on the schedule would be a huge draw and with them being a conference foe, they SHOULD be on the schedule every year.

Outside of just a better schedule, I think it's just a culture thing. I can remember going to NDSU matches regularly since the early 90's and it's never been a consistent huge draw. SDSU has changed their culture around in the last few years and now their duals are spectacles and the place to be in Brookings. I'm not sure how best NDSU wrestling can do that, but there are options.

#1 culture change has to be getting the general student body engaged in the duals. Getting the general student body excited about a wrestling match is hard to do, but it would really help with a better atmosphere. I have no clue how to get the student body more involved, but I think it needs to happen if we're to take the next step.


I'd like to see cheap season tickets for elementary kids who are in local programs. Charge $2 a ticket and try to get these kids hooked early on. Plus if you have an elementary kid there, you'll have parents there too. Agree with all of this^^^
Why isn't there a program set up already with area wrestlers and their parents?? This is a no-brainer. Let every wrestler in free and charge parents a few bucks and get the word out! This pays off in the long run.
There is absolutely no excuse for any kid in wrestling, elementary to high school, living in the area not to be at NDSU wrestling matches! I would have killed for DI wrestling where I grew up, but NAIA is what we had and I attended plenty of those matches. Parents need to kick their kids off the computers and gaming consoles once in a while...

[1998braves64]

Agree with all of this^^^
Why isn't there a program set up already with area wrestlers and their parents?? This is a no-brainer. Let every wrestler in free and charge parents a few bucks and get the word out! This pays off in the long run.
There is absolutely no excuse for any kid in wrestling, elementary to high school, living in the area not to be at NDSU wrestling matches! I would have killed for DI wrestling where I grew up, but NAIA is what we had and I attended plenty of those matches. Parents need to kick their kids off the computers and gaming consoles once in a while...

Especially since youth wrestling seems to be a pretty big deal in the area, almost all the tournaments I've attended (which are rural but reasonable distance from Fargo) are always well attended deals. Seems the youth wrestling is spreading out west too as I see classmates kids from Western ND are starting to go to tournaments too.

[HerdBot]

Agree with all of this^^^
Why isn't there a program set up already with area wrestlers and their parents?? This is a no-brainer. Let every wrestler in free and charge parents a few bucks and get the word out! This pays off in the long run.
There is absolutely no excuse for any kid in wrestling, elementary to high school, living in the area not to be at NDSU wrestling matches! I would have killed for DI wrestling where I grew up, but NAIA is what we had and I attended plenty of those matches. Parents need to kick their kids off the computers and gaming consoles once in a while...


Especially since youth wrestling seems to be a pretty big deal in the area, almost all the tournaments I've attended (which are rural but reasonable distance from Fargo) are always well attended deals. Seems the youth wrestling is spreading out west too as I see classmates kids from Western ND are starting to go to tournaments too.

With the USA Wrestling Tournament here, we should figure out a way to cross market better. Not only are their great potential recruits on campus of a Big 12 program... tons of wrestling fans in general. How do we get them to see some Big 12 wrestling?

[Big Bird]

Just to be clear, NDSU has offered cheap tickets for local programs in the past. Iowa State was the notable example this past year. I'd just like to see that expanded quite a bit. Get with Tech Team, DGF, everyone else to offer up cheap tix at practices. I think it's potentially even better now with local guys like Cam, Metz, and Shearer as high visibility young guys in the program.