Wake up Bison Nation!

[Vet70]

I really like the little derigibles that drop coupons. Ndsu needs to get one of those next year.

The used to have one years ago. It is probably in mothballs.

[fmfantasy]

if SDSU comes to town we will go from 2k tickets available to 100 dollar plus tickets up top behind the band on the secondary market...

[bisonfanette]

if SDSU comes to town we will go from 2k tickets available to 100 dollar plus tickets up top behind the band on the secondary market...

I hope you're correct!!!

[unbison]

if SDSU comes to town we will go from 2k tickets available to 100 dollar plus tickets up top behind the band on the secondary market...

What if kennesaw comes

[Professor Chaos]

Thanks for doing this research on playoff attendance. Your position seems to be that there is quite an alarming downward trend, but I think it’s hard to state firmly that attendance at Bison playoff games is firmly trending lower, and here’s why:
2017 did see fewer fans than 2016, but attendance at the 2016 playoff games were ALL higher than the corresponding games in 2014 and 2015. In fact, we could have had a thread at the end of 2016 stating that Bison playoff attendance was trending upward.
According to the data, the second round games have traditionally been about on par with attendance at the semi-final round games with a slight dip in attendance in the middle for the quarter-final games:

2013-2017 Bison attendance at Fargodome
Second round games: 91,172 total – average of 18,234 per game
Quarter-final round: 89,602 total – average of 17,920 per game
Semi-final round: 91,385 total – average of 18,277 per game

Last year, attendance for the second- and semi-final round games was not much different from the previous three years.

Yes, the attendance for the second round playoff game last year was 1.3% lower than 2016, but remember that the 2016 game trailed only 2013 for the highest second round attendance. If you compare last year to 2014, the decline was a miniscule quarter of a percent, and that was with San Diego as an opponent for the second straight year, which might have kept some fans away.

Last year’s semi-final against Sam Houston State drew only THREE people less than the year before, and that 2016 semi-final against James Madison had more folks attend than either of the 2014 or 2015 semi-final games.

Granted, there was a 7% drop off in the quarterfinals last year compared to the previous year, but that 2016 contest against South Dakota State drew the highest attendance of any quarter-final game, so a drop off from that level could have been expected. Will we have another reduction this year? I think it is quite possible, simply because from year to year, attendance can be greatly influenced by who the opponent is. With Colgate as the opponent, I suspect we may have another somewhat sparse quarter-final attendance like last year. If James Madison would have been coming to the dome on Saturday, I think there would have been much more excitement and buzz and we may have been looking at a crowd that, combined with a normal-sized semi-final crowd December 15, might have put the Bison on track to even surpass last year’s playoff total.

The playoff games last year were down 2.8% from 2016, which seems like a lot, but keep in mind that the 2014 playoff games were down 2.2% from 2013 but rebounded to be higher again in both 2015 and 2016.

Is attendance at Bison playoff games trending downward overall? Maybe, but I think it is too soon to say for sure. It is apparent that attendance is volatile and varies from year to year – lower in 2014, higher in 2015 & 2016, and lower in 2017. Considering that the best year for playoff attendance, 2013, is only two thousand fans more than the worse year, 2017, and considering that the price of tickets has risen quite a bit over that time, I’d say that the Bison are continuing to draw well in the post-season. In my opinion, there is just not enough evidence yet to say for certain that playoff attendance is on an overall downward trajectory.

Last year could've been considered a blip for that Wofford game. This year looks like both these first two playoff games are going to be down 1000+ from the next lowest attended game (a little under 2,000 tickets available now for tomorrow's game) in either round from 2013-2017. It's a definite downward trend.

Looks like section 13 just opened up. Loooot of tickets now.

*sigh* I guess it was too much to hope for that the students would pick up more than 1,500 tickets or so.

if SDSU comes to town we will go from 2k tickets available to 100 dollar plus tickets up top behind the band on the secondary market...

Idk... if it does I think it'll be because of a couple thousand tickets sold to Jacks fans.

EDIT: Which now that I think about it might not be the worst thing to happen. Nothing would breathe life into a lifeless crowd like a couple thousand opposing fans trying to compete with us. Just as long as our fans know better than to "compete" when the Bison are on offense.

[Mr Meaty]

Question for the "I love FCS tournament and playing for a championship" crowd. at what point would you not care? 9 out of 10, 14 out of 15? lets say we win the next 5 in row and go 11 for 12.. is that an accomplishment or just beating up on inferior schools we shouldn't be playing?


no one in town I know cares about the games anymore. at work everyone used to talk about the games or wear jerseys on Fridays. now no one even brings it up more than a "how much did they win by this week" and everyone laughs....

I would much rather have them doing this than asking how much did Michigan kick our ass by, but hey we are FBS and in the Big Ten.....
I sold two of my extra tickets to a couple that have not been to a bison game. They are excited to go. We as some of the diehard fans need to help stop this complacency within the fan base. We might be ND and MN nice up here to visitors, but really most like to bitch about something all the time. We win by too much, The game was too close. Stick stayed in too long, My ice cream is too cold, Air I breathe is to clean, People wake up and enjoy the run this program is on. I know everyone loves a winner, but it appears our fan base does not anymore or at least as much. WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Mfergy4]

Zero, since there would be no game to be played this weekend.

BAM!! Hit it right on the head...FBS has no "Real" Play-off set up, done at the end of the conference season, and hope for a bowl game in three to four weeks....never a home bowl game either. I wonder if the NCAA has ever really sat down and played the dollar numbers game if FBS went to a 24-seed, home field advantage, New Orleans as the Championship site, and TV rights $$$$$$ Thus far in the FCS there have been 16 playoff games played, and 7 left to play counting this weekends games for a total of 23 games. Not sure how many bowl games there but I do not think it is that many....bowl sponsors could bid on which game they want to sponsor at the higher seeds home field. CBS, NBC, ABC and ESPN bidding wars on game coverage. Image Tennessee vs USC for a quarter final game, or UFC at Portland for a 1st round game. Might return the FBS back to a more level playing field across all the conferences if there was really something worth playing other than a stupid Tostitos Bowl or Hallmark Bowl trophy. Make the FBS Playoffs really mean something.

[heffray]

BAM!! Hit it right on the head...FBS has no "Real" Play-off set up, done at the end of the conference season, and hope for a bowl game in three to four weeks....never a home bowl game either. I wonder if the NCAA has ever really sat down and played the dollar numbers game if FBS went to a 24-seed, home field advantage, New Orleans as the Championship site, and TV rights $$$$$$ Thus far in the FCS there have been 16 playoff games played, and 7 left to play counting this weekends games for a total of 23 games. Not sure how many bowl games there but I do not think it is that many....bowl sponsors could bid on which game they want to sponsor at the higher seeds home field. CBS, NBC, ABC and ESPN bidding wars on game coverage. Image Tennessee vs USC for a quarter final game, or UFC at Portland for a 1st round game. Might return the FBS back to a more level playing field across all the conferences if there was really something worth playing other than a stupid Tostitos Bowl or Hallmark Bowl trophy. Make the FBS Playoffs really mean something.

The pundits think it will be an 8-team playoff soon... doubt they will go to 16...

[Vet70]

BAM!! Hit it right on the head...FBS has no "Real" Play-off set up, done at the end of the conference season, and hope for a bowl game in three to four weeks....never a home bowl game either. I wonder if the NCAA has ever really sat down and played the dollar numbers game if FBS went to a 24-seed, home field advantage, New Orleans as the Championship site, and TV rights $$$$$$ Thus far in the FCS there have been 16 playoff games played, and 7 left to play counting this weekends games for a total of 23 games. Not sure how many bowl games there but I do not think it is that many....bowl sponsors could bid on which game they want to sponsor at the higher seeds home field. CBS, NBC, ABC and ESPN bidding wars on game coverage. Image Tennessee vs USC for a quarter final game, or UFC at Portland for a 1st round game. Might return the FBS back to a more level playing field across all the conferences if there was really something worth playing other than a stupid Tostitos Bowl or Hallmark Bowl trophy. Make the FBS Playoffs really mean something.

Try 39.
https://www.cbssports.com/college-fo...s-tv-channels/

[MankatoBison]

Zero, since there would be no game to be played this weekend.

that's a great complete dodge of the question.

"FCS is automatically better because there is a game on 12/8 and none in the FBS!" now that's an argument I've never heard before. points for originality at least!