Fans in their Seats at Kickoff

[SubbaBub]

This is still a young program, so here are a few unsolicited observations from.someone who's been to other stadiums and is seated 30 min before kickoff. I like to watch the warm ups and the band.

Getting to your seat early is not a contest or group activity that can be.organized. It is a measure of fan enthusiasm for the game.

Our pregame is counter-productive. It is decidedly unexciting and does not warm up the crowd like it should.

This is no reflection on the performers, just what they are asked to do. At.Michigan fans are in their seats to see the banner leap, at Ohio State the dotting of the I, at FSU the flaming spear, at OU the Sooner Schooner, at PSU the drum major flip and the floating lion, and at USC they have Traveler and the Song Girls.

We had O fortuna and the flowering color guard? The block C has a stagnant beginning and they march in a straight 30 yds. Then after the fight song the momentum screeches to a halt for America the Beautiful. Overall, it is a not much of a show.

I also think there should be another song written in addition to Fight On Connecticut to spice up the repertoire.


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[businesslawyer]

I'm curious. Have you ever seen our band march up the field in Block C to "Fight On Connecticut"? It's pretty stirring stuff. Wouldn't it be cool to have a full house waving Blue and White Pom Poms in the stands as the Husky Band performs? Instead, this is what all the media members sitting in the press box get to see, as do all the early arriving visiting fans. They get to experience firsthand the passion that Husky fans display during pre-game and draw conclusions about the big time nature of Husky football. Watch this. I'm sure you'll be inspired by the rabid nature of the cheering throng. And don't think, well, this is Fordham. All the games look like this. Makes you proud to be a Husky, doesn't it?

Out of all the things to be "proud" of, why would I want to be proud of getting to games not on time but early? Not attendance. Not donations. Not contributions to the charitable coat collections at the gate? Not winning football games? Not having relatively problem free student athletes on the team. But showing up early?

I respect your opinion, but I absolutely do not care whether someone is in their seat at 11:45 versus 12:00

 

[John Greene]

Reading this thread set off a pure genius moment. If people are tired of the fight song let's steal the music from the BC song and put the following words to it:

For Uconn, For Uconn
We raise our Keystones high
For Uconn, For Uconn
There is always Bud Lite neigh
For never in their seats will our fans be found
Till empty are the kegs and the ribs are gone
For Uconn, For Uconn
we Tailgate with the best.

 

[mattp]

Reading this thread set off a pure genius moment. If people are tired of the fight song let's steal the music from the BC song and put the following words to it:

For Uconn, For Uconn
We raise our Keystones high
For Uconn, For Uconn
There is always Bud Lite neigh
For never in their seats will our fans be found
Till empty are the kegs and the ribs are gone
For Uconn, For Uconn
we Tailgate with the best.

BC has a fight song?

 

[Nostical]

Biz, let me be clear here. I would be thrilled if the stadium was filled by kickoff. When my daughters were married, we set the wedding time on the invitations 20 minutes earlier than actual to better assure that everyone was in their seats by "kickoff". It worked.

 

[Nostical]

SubbaBub, that' sure seems like a pretty weak argument. So our pregame isn't exciting enough for your tastes? Really? Well I understand we don't all see things in the same light, but if we had a Dog Sled pulled by Jonathan, you'd show up earlier? If the Block C was run instead of marched you'd be there to watch it? If we had fireworks bursting at 11:45, you'd be there?
The fact is our pregame is fine. It's even inspirational. But I don't care what it is-- you've got to WANT to be there by kickoff--- let alone earlier. And for those who don't, well they're simply deceiving themselves if they think they're supporting UConn football to the fullest.

 

[MilliniumPrince]

Discount beer won't work. Most people have a ton of brew in their car (if beer is important to them), so paying reduced rate won't make you show up earlier. If by chance it did....the seats would still be empty because those wanting the beer will stay in the concourse to chug a few before the price goes up.

The answer to the question is obvious and simple: Strippers. Have 40 strippers do a show on the field 30 minutes before kick-off. Short of that.....this is Connecticut and fans here are what they are.

 

[HuskyBandDad]

Discount beer won't work. Most people have a ton of brew in their car (if beer is important to them), so paying reduced rate won't make you show up earlier. If by chance it did....the seats would still be empty because those wanting the beer will stay in the concourse to chug a few before the price goes up.

The answer to the question is obvious and simple: Strippers. Have 40 strippers do a show on the field 30 minutes before kick-off. Short of that.....this is Connecticut and fans here are what they are.

I have posted about this many times and as you can tell I am a band parent so I will always support the band and be there for pregame. As a season ticket holder I think you have a great idea but even this won't work. It is going to take time and winning.

 

[Sean]

The answer to the question is obvious and simple: Strippers. Have 40 strippers do a show on the field 30 minutes before kick-off. Short of that.....this is Connecticut and fans here are what they are.

Are we talking Connecticut quality strippers, or Vegas quality strippers? Just 10 years ago, we were in trailers!

 

[SubbaBub]

SubbaBub, that' sure seems like a pretty weak argument. So our pregame isn't exciting enough for your tastes? Really? Well I understand we don't all see things in the same light, but if we had a Dog Sled pulled by Jonathan, you'd show up earlier? If the Block C was run instead of marched you'd be there to watch it? If we had fireworks bursting at 11:45, you'd be there?
The fact is our pregame is fine. It's even inspirational. But I don't care what it is-- you've got to WANT to be there by kickoff--- let alone earlier. And for those who don't, well they're simply deceiving themselves if they think they're supporting UConn football to the fullest.

I would invite you to watch other schools' pre-games. I'm sure they are on youtube. You will see better pacing, more dramatic entrances, more interesting marching drills, more crowd interaction. The UCMB performances are fine, it's the material I find lacking.

The addition of the fireworks was a positive, so someone is at least trying.

And, it is not so much about wanting to be there as it is not wanting to miss seeing it. Make it something that people don't want to miss, rather than something that happens before the game.



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[uconNYC]

Just play The Good The Bad and The Ugly theme song

 

[SAMCRO]

All these great pre-game traditions out there took time to get where they are today. Like decades/generation(s) worth of fans. It will get better over time, but I'm not holding out expectations that we'll be as FB crazed as schools are in the south and midwest.

This being said, some of my favorite pre-games (outside of the actual tailgate) that I've been lucky enough to see are:
The Cadet March before Army - Navy game. It's pretty moving and impressive.
USCe take the field to the theme song from 2001 A Space Odyssey. The upper decks are literally swaying ("If it ain't swaying, we ain't playing").
Script Ohio. tOSU band is amazing taking the field, and there is 90,000+ in their seats to see it.
Ralphie the Buffalo run the field at Folsom Field in Boulder. That is a BIG animal.
The "War Eagle" fly around the stadium at Jordan-Hare - crowd goes nuts
ND's band take the field pre-game. That was pretty cool as well.

 

[SAMCRO]

And, it is not so much about wanting to be there as it is not wanting to miss seeing it. Make it something that people don't want to miss, rather than something that happens before the game.

This right here!!

 

[MilliniumPrince]

Are we talking Connecticut quality strippers, or Vegas quality strippers? Just 10 years ago, we were in trailers!

In this economy??? Vegas "quality" is out of the question. Connecticut "quality" won't be enough. Settle for Florida "quality"...maybe not Maimi/Dade County, but Gulf Coast....Tampa Area, not pan-handle.

I hope my lady never reads this reply

 

[Nostical]

So what is it exactly that would make you not want to miss it. Remember we have no cadet corps, no war eagle, our band can't walk through campus, our stadium has no great portal for the band to emerge from. Script UConn?, dogsled?, those would bring you in?
I've seen many of those YouTube videos you mentioned, and have been in stadiums with a lot of the passion you long for. Guess what, it's a little chicken and egg dilemma. What makes those pregames more exciting is as much a product of the rabid nature of the cheering fan base than what is actually displayed on field. Those fans are all there to react to whatever tradition happens to occur. Put our exact pregame in a packed stadium and there would be a lot of excitement.

 

[SubbaBub]

Chicken and egg to some extent, but it should be entertaining. It's not. As I said earlier, I am in my seat 30-35 minutes before kick-off for warmups.

There have been a thousand posts worth of suggestions. The big ones are.

Involve the guy/girl in the costume, at other schools this is a scholarship position. Find the next Phillie Fanatic if you can.

Choreograph something better for the band. There is a band director. An entrance, an intricate march.

Update the playlist that has more oomph.

Harness the power of the student section. All student sections arrive late, but that is where new traditions are hatched. Is there a leadership group within the dog pound?

Dump the DJ....?

There have been some changes, good.bad and meh? So, someone is trying. They stopped talking after touchdowns right?

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[SubbaBub]

Ooh, some inspiration. Have the band enter the stadium through the main tunnel playing the battle.hymn of.the.republic. Section march into their block positions and then unveil the flowering.color guard. Move directly into the anthem. U C O N N, Fight song, team entrance.

Or something like that.


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[SAMCRO]

So what is it exactly that would make you not want to miss it. Remember we have no cadet corps, no war eagle, our band can't walk through campus, our stadium has no great portal for the band to emerge from. Script UConn?, dogsled?, those would bring you in?
I've seen many of those YouTube videos you mentioned, and have been in stadiums with a lot of the passion you long for. Guess what, it's a little chicken and egg dilemma. What makes those pregames more exciting is as much a product of the rabid nature of the cheering fan base than what is actually displayed on field. Those fans are all there to react to whatever tradition happens to occur. Put our exact pregame in a packed stadium and there would be a lot of excitement.

Strippers! We've already got the DJ and goal posts for poles! That, and I'd dump the sideline interview girl (unless she was one of the strippers). I kid, I kid.

Not sure if your post was in response to mine or others (or everybody), but if it was for me, where did I say "I longed for" that passion of other games I've been to? I was just sharing some of the coolest pre-games I've had a chance to see. For me, I don't have a huge problem w/ our pre-game. Could it be better/more interesting? Absolutely. Do I still enjoy it? For the most part, but I am there. I generally don't miss the team coming onto the field, and for the most part am in my seat for that. I was not implying we need to have a husky dog pulling a sled through the script UConn formed by the band while the driver was singing O Fortuna out of his arse while shooting arrows at a flying hawk of some sort (althought that would get people to their seats early, especially if the driver was either a little person, a monkey, or on fire - people love little persons, monkeys, and fire).

The point of my inital reply was it will take time for a culture of arriving early (on time, really) to evolve/develop. I do believe gradually we will have a much better showing at kickoff. I also believe, now that we are under new management so to speak, we will see some improvements and concerted efforts made to make the pre-game more interesting for the fans.

 

[Johnbuoy]

Other than the support it shows our team, could someone please reiterate why it's so important to have a fan's BITS (butt in their seat) before the game starts?
Note: I do arrive early and stay for the whole game...no matter what.

 

[EdgewoodNHV]

Other than the support it shows our team, could someone please reiterate why it's so important to have a fan's BITS (butt in their seat) before the game starts?
Note: I do arrive early and stay for the whole game...no matter what.

I believe part of the idea is that when the TV pans to show the stadium before the game starts, it's all very impressive-looking and whatnot. You can make your own judgment as to how much that matters to the program.

 

[ZooCougar]

SubbaBub, that' sure seems like a pretty weak argument. So our pregame isn't exciting enough for your tastes? Really? Well I understand we don't all see things in the same light, but if we had a Dog Sled pulled by Jonathan, you'd show up earlier? If the Block C was run instead of marched you'd be there to watch it? If we had fireworks bursting at 11:45, you'd be there?
The fact is our pregame is fine. It's even inspirational. But I don't care what it is-- you've got to WANT to be there by kickoff--- let alone earlier. And for those who don't, well they're simply deceiving themselves if they think they're supporting UConn football to the fullest.

Do we still have a series with Tennessee in the future? If so you NEED to see that pregame. It's pretty epic.

 

[Nostical]

It wouldn't look so epic in an empty stadium.

 

[HuskyBandDad]

In this economy??? Vegas "quality" is out of the question. Connecticut "quality" won't be enough. Settle for Florida "quality"...maybe not Maimi/Dade County, but Gulf Coast....Syracuse Area, not pan-handle.

I hope my lady never reads this reply

Mine too