USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

[Alumguy]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

If you haven't gotten your tickets to the game yet, don't wait. Yes, the reserved seating section has been sold out for quite some time. However, the general admission seating has been going fast, too. I'm sure the athletic department officials have to make a big time guess as to the number of students who will attend. This will be factored as to how many general admission tickets they will put up for sale. Either last year or the year before, the athletic folks had to turn away hundreds of fans. This will top that ... count on it. Literally, don't be left out in the cold.

[89rabbit]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

I think classes resume on the 7th or 8th, The timing of this game is perfect. few students will return home after spending the past two weeks on Christmas break. I hope they have a lot of energy that they have been saving up to unleash on the Yotes on Friday night. Get in line early, the students will be getting in on their ID's- not a set #of tickets dispensed (first come first serve) we could concievably have 6-7,000 STUDENTS alone attending this game. The arena opens at 5:00 pm. I assume they wont allow more than 9,000 in Frost due to fire marshal orders.  It's almost time!! I wouldnt be shocked if conference officials are in attendence for this one.

That is a great point Texas. I know other people have talked about getting recruits in for this game (as we always do), but wouldn't it be nice to show the Big Sky, Mid-Con, Horizon, and or MVC what we bring to the tabel.

Go State!

[Alumguy]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

Unfortunately, the NCAA national meetings are being held during this same time. Dr. Oien will be attending those meetings. I'm sure he would love to show off Frost Arena to prospective conference officials but I believe he will have his hands full at those meetings. Maybe some real good things will come about from his discussions.

[89rabbit]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

Unfortunately, the NCAA national meetings are being held during this same time.  Dr. Oien will be attending those meetings.  I'm sure he would love to show off Frost Arena to prospective conference officials but I believe he will have his hands full at those meetings.  Maybe some real good things will come about from his discussions.

That is good info, nice post Alumguy.

Go State!

[jackmd]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

I agree that polls, especially early season and smaller divisions, mean little when it comes to playing an individual team on a given day.

I also agree that being ranked #1 in the region does not necessarily mean hosting the regional. Especially, if your school is located on the geographic edge of the region or there are real concerns about attendance. For SDSU this will never be the case. We are centrally located and have the best crowds in the region and the nation. If we finish #1 in the region (which we should) then it would be held at Frost.

I think the polls are important especially when it comes down to Nebreska-Kearney and SDSU for the top spot in the region, as I anticipate it will. It certainly won't hurt our regional rankings to be ahead of Kearney in the national polls.

Secondly, it provides some national exposure for the program which would otherwise not be present. This becomes more important with our move to D1. Perhaps I am mistaken, but I think intelligent fans recognize that despite the fact that SDSU has not won a national championship in basketball for 40 years we are consistently ranked in the top 25 and deserve respect even as a fledgling D1 program.

Maybe I'm wrong and its just a popularity contest or foder for discussion. I would love to be #1 in the nation in the next DII poll.

[JACKGUY]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

I spoke with the ticket office this afternoon and they indicated if the pace continues they will sell out by the end of the day. I never thought about inviting potential conference represenatives to the game, but I'm sure the Jacks have. Even if the AD's and conference officials are all at the NCAA Meetings I'm sure you could get someone else on the foodchain to attend. If we keep going at the way we are we could potentially host the Mens and Womens Regionals and that also would be a great setting to show these folks the excitement around the Jacks Athletic Programs. If the men duplicate the womens feat from last year a lot of the Jacks fans who do not support the move to DI will say see how much this can mean to a university. While I will be estactic if we can win a National Championship I will feel the same exhiliration over competing in the Big Dance even if it might be a quick exit!

[Texas_Jacks_Fan]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

Even if there are no conference officials there (and I think there will be). I guarantee that someone in the Mid Con, BSC, or Horizion conference will read the box score and see the little line at the bottom that says....
attendence- 9,000  (9,000)  AKA... SELL OUT!!!

[Texas_Jacks_Fan]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

Are there any Jack fans on this board who are'nt going to this game? (jackmd-you are excluded-great excuse). I find it amazing that we are from all over the country and everyone seems to be going to this game.

[filbert]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

I'm coming in from Kansas City...unfortunately I'll probably get there just in time for the tip of the men's game. (I hope no Missouri, Iowa, or S.D. highway patrol officers are reading this . . .)

I'll probably have to park in Aurora.

It's going to be some kind of evening.

The really interesting box score for the D-I conferences will be the UNO game. If that one draws 5 or 6 thousand after pulling in 9,000 the night before, Fred Oien's phone just might start ringing.

[Alumguy]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

There seems to be a persistent thought that somehow State's basketball attendance figures would sway potential conferences to ask us to join. This is not the case. All of these potential conference officials already know we have great fan support.

In addition to concerns about travel expense (which is an enormous concern to today's AD's) there is another underlying factor which does not make it in the press. It's something that is talked about in quiet conversation. Many ADs fear that athletic programs like SDSU and NDSU will come in and have an immediate impact on their conferences. There is potential embarrassment when a DII team moves into a conference and immediately becomes a "force" within the conference. Look at what UNC did last year in football.

Take that to the issue at hand ... getting conference officials to come to Frost Arena. Do you think athletic directors from potential conferences want to hear, "You should see all the people they get to come to game in Brookings, SD!"? Ask the AD at Sac State (Terry Wanless, former AD at UND) if he wants to hear there were 8.500 people at a basketball game when his arena only seats 1,300. He's human and he doesn't want to hear about it. Let's face it, ADs don't really give a darn about somebody else's program. And, they sure don't want some "upstart" to come into the neighborhood, do well, and have students and fans come down on them.

Both SDSU and NDSU have athletic programs which will do well at the DIAA level and this concerns some folks.

[filbert]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

One thing that the big attendance numbers will do however is give SDSU the ability to offer guarantees to visiting D-I teams in future seasons...something which is essential in order to get the home-and-home agreements vs. the usual D-I newbie two-away-and-one-at-home (if you're lucky) against more established programs.

It's probably (and sadly) true that a sold-out Frost Arena is intimidating to Mid-Con and Big Sky schools. Unfortunately, the Big XII isn't looking to expand right now (big, big I'm joking GRIN).

Ironic that NDSU football success and SDSU basketball success may conspire to make the two schools less attractive to D-I conferences. That's something that the NCAA really should address (yeah, right...)

[Texas_Jacks_Fan]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

I agree that AD's are the the last people who want to know about Frost sell out's. But I think Some of the officials in the Commisioner's office in some of these respective confrences DO care about our attendence figures.

[Texas_Jacks_Fan]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

filbert,
I hope you have reserved tickets, I have a feiling that the doors will be closed by 8:00 with The arena already at its capacity. If tons of students show up, some individuals with GA tickets may not get in the doors. My advice- leave earlier, meet up with us at Cubbys at about 1:00, enjoy a number of adult beverages, and then go to the game.

[Alumguy]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

People who work in conference offices (commissioners, assistant commissioners, etc.) work day in and day out with athletic directors of their respective conferences. Just like the NCC, conference commissioners get enormous pressures from athletic directors within their conferences. In fact, they listen to them. It's part of their jobs. These conference offices are not as independent as one would think. The key to our getting into a conference is NOT to wine and dine conference commissioners or their surrogates. The key is to wine and dine key schools within a prospective conference. After all, it is the member schools within a conference who vote to have us join. It is not a decision by any commissioner.

[Alumguy]

Re: USD/UNO...#1 At Stake

After reading my previous post I felt bad as it seems to come off a little harsh and for that I apologize. But, the need to "schmooz" athletic directors from various conferences is a reason why this whole process is taking longer than expected. We need to identify schools who will go to bat for us. Ultimately, they (ADs from prospective conferences) will be the ones who will not only vote but help carry our water.