The size of our home basketball stadium

Reff, did you go to the game last night? Didn't see you.

Your post wrote: "We had no problem filling it in the GDO days when we were good with Timmy & Randolph. No problem filling it in the Prosser days when we were good with JHo or CP3. No problem filling it with Dino & Jeff Teague/James Johnson."

Do you contend that the stadium was full last night as well? I am sorry, brother, you are my friend, but you are smoking crack cocaine if you think that what you posted is true. Heck, you were sitting right with me for many of these games. I just don't get it.

Of course, there was always a game or two it was full (UNC '05, UNC '08, UNC & Duke, '96 &'97) but you could count them all on your hands how many times our stadium was jammed full for a hoops game.

There are many arguments to not build a smaller stadium. But let's not lie or use revisionist history to justify your position. One of the main reasons I started this thread (& others through the years) right before a game like this is so everyone can take a look around right then and there & that way we never have to hear again "that stadium was full no problem for UNC."

Big win for the Deacs last night. Even though the stadium was only 2/3 full, it felt great to have it even that full again.

I would love to have a modern fieldhouse-style stadium. Would be so boss, and so perfect for us.

We are lucky to have what we've got. Even in its old age it's still a nice facility.

That said, I know Deacon Club members got a questionnaire about how to "Deaconize" and improve the Joel, and one of the options for ranking of importance was seat removal/capacity reduction. I ranked that a 10.

So the Athletic Department and Administration are aware of the issue.

I think there is serious consideration to making one of the upper level sides into a box and leisure club seating area like Phillips arena in Atlanta. Would reduce seating capacity by 2-3 thousand. Plans are being studied.

FWIW mean/median attendance by year

2008-2009 12,122/12,445
2009-2010 11,833/11,241
2010-2011 9,199 / 9,249
2011-2012 8,675 / 7,998
2012-2013 9,614 / 9,949

If you believe the numbers for last two years, the check is in the mail.

Fewer people attend games now. People are busier; the quality of watching the product on TV/Internet has massively improved; people have more varied interests, and there are so many more entertainment options (ACC basketball is not the only game in town now). It's not just WF that has less people attending games. It used to be that it was very difficult to get seats to a game at MD, UNC, State or UVA. You can now show up at any of those places for any game and get a ticket for face or less. That was unheard of. It's not even that hard to get a ticket to Duke basketball game (other than UNC) now. I know that there a many reasons for it, but you can't give away tickets to the ACC tournament now. It was not that long ago that those tickets were gold. Attending games is not the attraction that it once was.

People's habits change, and yes, during the Tim Duncan era, and even the Josh Howard era, WF could fill a 15K arena. Even if WF became a top 25 program, again, I don't see those crowds coming back to the same numbers. Again, this is not a WF issue; this is a "society has changed" issue. Obviously the economics need to be studied, but WF would be better off with a 8 to 10K arena, regardless of the status of the program.

Brangus said:

We are lucky to have what we've got. Even in its old age it's still a nice facility.

That said, I know Deacon Club members got a questionnaire about how to "Deaconize" and improve the Joel, and one of the options for ranking of importance was seat removal/capacity reduction. I ranked that a 10.

So the Athletic Department and Administration are aware of the issue.

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classic LOWF right there, lucky to have what we got? We played in a city-owned arena that was a decent, but not great venue for the past 24 years. We can do a lot better

Imiss,
A new arena would probably run 75-100 million, why don't you cut us a check, we will even let you name it.

Pilchard said:

Fewer people attend games now. People are busier; the quality of watching the product on TV/Internet has massively improved; people have more varied interests, and there are so many more entertainment options (ACC basketball is not the only game in town now). It's not just WF that has less people attending games. It used to be that it was very difficult to get seats to a game at MD, UNC, State or UVA. You can now show up at any of those places for any game and get a ticket for face or less. That was unheard of. It's not even that hard to get a ticket to Duke basketball game (other than UNC) now. I know that there a many reasons for it, but you can't give away tickets to the ACC tournament now. It was not that long ago that those tickets were gold. Attending games is not the attraction that it once was.

People's habits change, and yes, during the Tim Duncan era, and even the Josh Howard era, WF could fill a 15K arena. Even if WF became a top 25 program, again, I don't see those crowds coming back to the same numbers. Again, this is not a WF issue; this is a "society has changed" issue. Obviously the economics need to be studied, but WF would be better off with a 8 to 10K arena, regardless of the status of the program.

Click to expand...

This is true. The SEC, with the possible exception of Alabama (because there is nothing else to do in Alabama) is having a hard time selling out football games, even for good matchups. People have more going on with kids (more organized activities because you can't turn kids loose on a bike anymore due to all the pedos out there), more work and hellaciously better televisions.

As for the "classic LOWF right there" comment...how? LJVM has great bones, good parking and the University now owns it and is going to renovate it. It will be one of the ACC's best venues when they finish. How is that LOWF? We are lucky to have it...before the Joel the team played in Greensboro after it outgrew the little Reynolds gym.

All of you who want to see a better arena, call up the Deacon Club and give a bit of money. You can specifically earmark the money for Joel renovations. I just gave money yesterday. Anything would help.

I think the explosion of traveling youth sports has a lot to do with it. You can't make little Joey's soccer game at 10:00 in the morning and still be free for the local college football game that day or night any more. Now families are out of town for the entire weekend and so having season tickets doesn't make any sense.

This is a LOWF roll call for sure.

I really don't think traveling youth sports have much of anything to do with declining attendance numbers across all sports

In our case, it's because the bball and football teams have sucked.:tear:
#apathy

1. Win Powerball.
2. Contact Hatch and offer to gift the full cost of the Joel if Wellman resigns by the end of the academic year.
3. Money that would have gone to buying the Joel can go to renovations.
4. Profit.

And I still say you block off one end of the upper deck and put in a high end restaurant. Another level of suites ringing the upper deck would be nice too.

I still like the idea of DR winning tens of millions, personally. I think that's the best plan.

Someone who can photoshop needs to supplant John Edwards' name and face with DR's, replace "US Senator, North Carolina" with "Instigator of Hidden Keys," and retitle the book "Four Trials: The Advocate Who Built Wake Forest's On-Campus Arena"

Bluegrass Deac said:

I think the explosion of traveling youth sports has a lot to do with it. You can't make little Joey's soccer game at 10:00 in the morning and still be free for the local college football game that day or night any more. Now families are out of town for the entire weekend and so having season tickets doesn't make any sense.

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May not be in huge numbers but I agree. I had season tickets in football for a couple of years until my boys started playing baseball and now my older boy is starting to do some travel ball. Doesn't make sense for us to buy season tickets anymore because we'll never be able to attend all the games.

Ball State Deac said:

I still like the idea of DR winning tens of millions, personally. I think that's the best plan.

Click to expand...

No kidding, Sherlock, since you'd be jumping on my already full back. Too bad you defense lawyers keep beating us up all over the state. With our present legislature, this seems about as likely as Buzz getting fired.