https://floridastate.n.rivals.com/news/clark-fsu-exploring-options-to-fill-premium-seats-during-basketball-games
there's an issue that has been raised repeatedly on message boards, on social media and, more importantly, to the decision-makers at Florida State University: What is with the all the empty seats in the lower bowl of the arena? The ones that are so distinctly visible on television? Even during sell-outs?
It's an odd look from an optics standpoint. But it's also a cause of real frustration for fans.
Here's the reality: Jack Chatham, Florida State's director of ticket operations, said their research shows that nearly 85 percent of season ticket-holders for basketball live within a 30-mile radius of the Tucker Center.
But that doesn't mean everything is perfect with the current set-up in the lower bowl. Frustrated fans know it, the TV audience knows it, and FSU’s administration certainly knows it.
"We need to try some way to get those seats filled on a consistent basis," Chatham said.
https://floridastate.forums.rivals.com/threads/student-body-should-be-ashamed.118713/#post-1903242
While the Nole Zone had its flaws, it was much better than what we currently have. If we ever want to have a really good atmosphere at our games we have to give the students the best seats on one side of the court just like UF and Duke. 75% of the boosters with really good seats don't show up for the games anyway so it's not like they can really complain and they'd still have the entire opposite side of the court and behind the baskets.
You don't need to make it as big as the Duke or UF student section, even like 40-50% of what they have would do the job.
If I was the AD that would be my first priority as far as basketball goes. Im not getting my hopes up with Wilcox though.
- Regarding FSU student attendance has been down since the administration made the decision to replace the students standing at court side with the priority seating for its large Boosters. FSU athletics opted for $$$$ and donors over more enthusiasm. I would recommend the athletic dept. per most other ACC schools figure out a way to get its students at or near court side this coming season as too many of our largest donors opt for reading a book or staring and texting with their I phones.
https://floridastate.forums.rivals.com/threads/the-case-for-leonard-hamilton-and-future-of-fsu-basketball.100368/#post-1557585
4) Name the starting FSU players in the NBA? Again, this is a discussion on talent. While you thought those teams were extremely talented, the professional ranks begs to differ. We are doing what we can here at FSU. How many players have Pitt, Cuse, UNC, Duke, ND, Louisville sent? Why do they consistently attract them? Oh, because they spend millions on college hoops. They have built massive arenas. They market the hoops program with a budget that dwarfs FSU. There fans show up. I'm not talking about the 50-100 nerds in the Nole Zone. They have thousands of students and alumni that show every night, and make the sport profitable.
100 geeks in the Nole zone isn't paying for this.
https://floridastate.forums.rivals.com/threads/heres-a-thought-re-students-basketball-games.211881/#post-3525150
It was Spetman's administration that got rid of the Nole Zone. Once FSU has a pretty good season and finally made the tournament they eliminated the student section in order sell prime seats to Boosters and put the big wigs on the floor. In fact, at a meeting I was at when the disappearance of the Nole Zone was brought up, Spetman had the gall to say the "students wanted to move".
I'm pretty sure FSU is the only ACC team where the students have zero presence near the court. It's a crying shame and the current administration needs to figure out a way to put aside at least a few rows on the court for students. It may piss off a handful of boosters that like to get their face time on the floor but it's definitely better for the program as a whole to make the students an integral part of the game-day atmosphere.
https://floridastate.forums.rivals.com/threads/the-nole-zone.259265/
https://floridastate.forums.rivals.com/threads/official-change-the-tuck-thread.251496/
My freshman year was the first year of the "Nolezone" which was Hamilton's first year at FSU 2002. They had it before from what I understand but it called Robinson's Warriors or something along those lines. it did have issues those first few years but so did the entire arena. When I came back to school in 2008-2012 it did a much better job of filling up. Then FSU won the ACC and decided to try to make more money off of it and they got rid of it.
The two biggest issues were the announcer mics picking up kids swearing all game (that was probably me in the hardhat, see picture for reference), the other was lack of knowledge that any students could sit there. I had so many kids who thought you had to sign up and be in club or pay a fee.
![[IMG]](https://floridastate.forums.rivals.com/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fscontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net%2Fv%2Ft1.0-9%2F1923266_554316637903_3376_n.jpg%3F_nc_cat%3D110%26_nc_ht%3Dscontent-atl3-1.xx%26oh%3Dbe6b2b9db176c5d0b24b80ad2c66fefe%26oe%3D5CDBC735&hash=3236a6deda6ce7505bbfa02cb5bd4194 "Click this image to show the full-size version.")
Since you want to see it from TV and also do not want them directly behind the team benches it makes the most sense to flip the camera's to the other side of the arena. Second leave the section right behind the announcers (very small box) as normal booster seating to cut down on what the mics pick up. then make the divider down first few rows student bleachers or standing just as it was with the nolezone. Make both lower sections of the baseline students as well, that is how it used to be. Lastly make the lower bowl on the same section of students based off of season ticket attendance combined with booster points. Earn more points for tickets getting used each game more points allows better seat selection the following season. This would encourage people to have their tickets used each game. If they can't make they have more of a reason to sell them vs letting them just sit vacant.
![[IMG]](https://floridastate.forums.rivals.com/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fscontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net%2Fv%2Ft1.0-9%2F51579144_10113136756521473_3885019805832445952_n.jpg%3F_nc_cat%3D100%26_nc_ht%3Dscontent-atl3-1.xx%26oh%3D5c01a3a61fd37d4d4b118fe6ed5649a8%26oe%3D5CEB3A35&hash=c43ef7f308ec47d841b7be3a1a616eb5 "Click this image to show the full-size version.")
Tan = General Admission
Red = Booster Standard
Green = Booster Attendance Points
Blue = Students
Above is my proposal, I intend to have a packet ready with all the pictures I take each game combined with quotes from here with people complaining, the quotes from Vitale and "my proposal." Thrasher's box is right behind mine and I give him high fives sometimes during the game. I plan on passing it on to him at the last home game. It will probably do nothing but at least it's worth a try.
https://floridastate.forums.rivals.com/threads/for-people-who-pay-way-more-attention-at-games-at-the-tuck-than-i-do-empty-seats-on-tv.243671/#post-4093199
I've been beating this drum for years ever since the Nole Zone was removed. FSU has to find a way to get students on the floor like all the other schools in the ACC, UF and Miami do. At least the first 10 rows or so for the side the cameras focus on.
It also doesn't help matters that the Tuck is a huge arena, nearly double the capacity of schools like Miami. So fans get spread out which makes for bad optics.
Posted this picture from the UF game. This was right at tip off.
![[IMG]](https://floridastate.forums.rivals.com/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fs3.amazonaws.com%2Fcdn.rivals.com%2Fforum-images%2F41%2F5be32195ea006-DSC_1793.jpg&hash=75e8140f48586e0740eb30768c238fb3 "Click this image to show the full-size version.")
https://floridastate.forums.rivals.com/threads/jeff-cameron-rips-fsu-basketball-fans.213645/page-2
Yup, I'm a big proponent of getting the students back closer to the floor. Good idea to do a more detailed story on it with comments from Stan Wilcox or someone else in Athletics who is responsible for seating at the Tuck.
2002 was when the "Nolezone" started, as that my Freshman year and they were trying to rename it after Robinson left (students could vote on what to call it). They may have had it before Hamilton but it was run and called something totally different. From 2002-2007 they tracked games students attended and gave prizes out based on how many you went to, I know because I won the grand prize each year (humblebrag). Also most student didn't even know you could sit in the Nolezone they thought it required something special to be able to go there. 2008 I moved away so not sure how they did it. 2009 I returned for grad school and they had it 1-2 more years and during that time it always full and packed. Then they added the court side seats year of our ACC Championship and it was removed. That first year they at least gave the students the seats behind both baskets. Then sometime after 2012 and before 2015 (I was gone working at the University of New Hampshire) they removed the students to being only upper deck and behind the band.
Now this varies between a lot of schools, but just for comparison as people love to point to UF's success they have one entire half of their lower bowl dedicated to students. Yet ours are behind the band on one end, sure there is are about five seats to the side of band they can sit in but for the most part they are away from the court and the TV cameras. I understand their were issues with the Nolezone and sitting right behind TV and Radio row as they were picking up students swearing all the time, (it was probably me in the construction hat.)
No comments:
Post a Comment