Attendance of men’s basketball games
Posted at 1:30 pm on Wednesday, January 24th, 2007 by VinceClark Ruhland, Associate Sports Editor at the Collegiate Times wrote an open letter to Jim Weaver regarding the attendance of men’s basketball games. It is well written, and he makes some great points. Check it out here: CollegiateTimes.com – An open letter to Tech Director of Athletics, Jim Weaver.
I just sent in a response to the sports editor email address at the Collegiate Times. I agree with much of what Mr. Ruhland says, but I think before the floodgates are opened up to the students, I think other members of the Hokie Club should be taken care of first. There are many alumni who give enough for tickets to football, but not enough for basketball, who would love to get season tickets to basketball. I am one of these alumni. I had to get my season tickets for this year through a friend who has a very high priority in the Hokie Club.
At any rate, here is my response:
In response to Mr. Ruhland’s letter to Athletic Director Jim Weaver, I wanted to give the CT an alum’s view. I was a freshman in the fall of 1997, and I graduated in 2003 in Computer Engineering. The last few years I was in Blacksburg I worked for the school full time while taking classes part time. I bleed Orange & Maroon.
Sunday afternoon I made the trek from Charlottesville (yes, I presently live in Hoo’ville) to Blacksburg in the snow, sleet, and freezing rain. It took me nearly 4 hours. I thought the decision to open up the games to students was absolutely brilliant, and the showing made by the students made the drive worth it – the fact that we won in OT made it even better.
I agree that something must be done with all of the no shows by season ticket holders. However, before we start opening the doors to the students, the Athletic Department and the Ticket Office need to take care of more of the Hokie Club. I am a member of the Hokie Club, and I am a season ticket holder for football. However, I have too low a priority to get season tickets for basketball. I had to buy this year’s season tickets from a Hokie Club member who was higher up on the totem pole.
The fact of the matter is that many Hokie Club members buy basketball season tickets so they can go to a few of the good ACC games, and so that they have these season tickets when they retire. It’s basically a placeholder for them. The ticket office needs to give the option to those folks to retain the right to buy season tickets in the future while allowing the members of the Hokie Club who will actually show up for games the ability to buy those tickets in the present.
That said, I would also love to see more students at the games. They bring so much energy. However, the students need to prove that Sunday night was not a fluke. Other than the UNC game, I have yet to see the student sections full to the brim. (I admit, I have yet to see Cassell full to the brim this season.)
Also, everyone needs to keep in mind that this is new territory for the Athletic Department. During my years in Blacksburg there was very little interest in basketball. The good thing is that Seth Greenberg is actively working with the Athletic Department to maximize attendance.***
Finally, I would like to say Thank You to all of the students who attended Sunday night’s game. I had an absolute blast, and I hope that kind of environment will be experienced again at Cassell. You made Sunday afternoon’s treacherous drive, as well as Monday’s pre-dawn return trip, worth every minute.
Regards,
Vince
*** See TSL’s Hokie Hotline notes:
http://subscr.techsideline.com/news_archive/showArticle-2631.php“The administration is having some conversations about student attendance. Greenberg thinks he has a plan that makes sense, and he will present it to Jim Weaver later in the week.”