Per-game attendance for West Virginia football games rose from 54,826 in '15 to 57,584 last year, and student attendance played a "big part" in the increase, according to the Clarksburg EXPONENT TELEGRAM. When all 12,500 student seats at Milan Puskar Stadium are taken, the "look, feel and noise level of the facility is on par with the upper echelon of college football." But when students come late and "bail early, it looks bad in person and even worse on television." WVU AD Shane Lyons said, "You look at our student involvement. They show up late, they leave early. They are multitasking a lot along the way. It’s something we are all looking at because we are all wondering if they are not participating, will their interest be all that great? The answer is it’s hard to project." He added, "They are still showing up, but it’s eight minutes into the first quarter and by the second quarter it’s full. Then all the sudden, at the end of the third quarter, it’s going in the opposite direction." Schools have "tried everything from larger video boards and more frequent in-game score updates and highlights to better entertainment and giveaways." WVU has held a "feedback session over the last few offseasons, using a cross-section of the fan base to get an idea of what’s working and what isn’t." What they found is that "everyone has a different take on the ideal game day atmosphere" (Clarksburg EXPONENT TELEGRAM, 7/15).
CHANGING THE GAME: In Chattanooga, David Cobb noted new Tennessee AD John Currie while attending a Twins game at Target Field a few years ago was "roaming the ballpark and taking mental notes on what drew the attention of the fans." Currie: "Walking around that stadium on a pretty night with a competitive team, half the people -- and it was a good crowd -- were not really watching the game. They were congregating in different areas, or in bars or restaurants and hangout spaces. It was one of those moments when I kind of saw it: Part of what we need to be providing when we have a space is more than just a game." Currie's objective is to "create the nation's best fan experience" at UT. Currie has "rebranded Tennessee's athletic marketing and promotions department as the 'fan experience' department" (Chattanooga TIMES FREE PRESS, 7/17).
