UTSA Expecting 50K For 1'st Ever Home Game

NThomas · September 12, 2011

Their attendance dropped by 26k to 31k for this week. They also became the first Div 1 team ever to be defeated by a Div 3 team.

UTSA's attendance dropped from 56,743 to 31,634 this week, but the Roadrunners had a larger crowd than UNT's home opener of 28,075. If they stay above .500 for the season, I wouldn't expect to see UNT outdraw them this season.

UNTFan23 · September 12, 2011

UTSA's attendance dropped from 56,743 to 31,634 this week, but the Roadrunners had a larger crowd than UNT's home opener of 28,075. If they stay above .500 for the season, I wouldn't expect to see UNT outdraw them this season.

UTSA doesn't have years of inertia (aka: losing) to overcome, so it would be easier for them to outdraw NT if they can stay at/above .500.

Edited September 12, 2011 by UNTFan23

PlummMeanGreen · September 12, 2011

I think the WAC will eventually implode once they lose their premier members and then where do its 2 Texas members go?

I also don't think UTSA's upstart football program can have the same kind of success that South Florida had because Texas has so many more FBS schools as compared to Florida. Albeit they are in San Antonio they are still in the long shadow of UT-Austin (as is TSU-San Marcos) and UT to those 2 schools is like the Dallas Cowboys have been to SMU, TCU & to some extent UNT. TCU has finally figured out how to co-exist with the Cowboys but couldn't during its SWC days. SMU has never been the same since Clint & John Murchison opened up for business in 1960 with their Cowboys.

The fact that the city of San Antonio jumped on board with UTSA early on is a testament as to how a city can be so very significant in the success of a large university located within its city limits . That's all I am going to say on that subject.

Playing off campus is never a positive . Ask UH about their days off campus even in the Astrodome and how they knew they had to bring football back to campus to grow as a program & to get student support. North Texas has in its Mean Green Village an athletic plant that most schools would never have such a luxury with real estate adjacent to their main campus and to do what our leaders have methodically done as they build that part of our western campus with a collegiate version of an olympic style village.

I know our OOC on the road games are killers, but we must bring some name schools to Apogee Stadium if we want to build our core support in the next few years and scheduling schools with lesser name recognition than our fellow SBC schools will never foot the bill at Apogee--figuratively and literally. Just sayin'

Edited September 12, 2011 by PlummMeanGreen

NThomas · September 12, 2011

UTSA doesn't have years of inertia (aka: losing) to overcome, so it would be easier for them to outdraw NT if they can stay at/above .500.

I've heard that argument for years and it's nothing but B.S. Since 2005, UNT has had 47 more losses than it has wins. You can't honestly think that UNT needs 47 wins (which would take 4 1/2 seasons of going undefeated) just to bring the program back to the golden era of Dickey days?

Just like UTSA, UNT's 28k crowd is proof that there's more to building a program than simply winning games. A new head coach, new stadium, and new uniforms all help to show there is a change for potential fans away from UNT's recent ways.

ColoradoEagle · September 12, 2011

UTSA's attendance dropped from 56,743 to 31,634 this week, but the Roadrunners had a larger crowd than UNT's home opener of 28,075. If they stay above .500 for the season, I wouldn't expect to see UNT outdraw them this season.

It will continue to drop off no matter how much they win this year. That's not a slight to UTSA, just the reality of the situation. They did sell something like 10k season tickets, though, so I'm sure the totals will stay respectable.

Shof · September 12, 2011

It will continue to drop off no matter how much they win this year. That's not a slight to UTSA, just the reality of the situation. They did sell something like 10k season tickets, though, so I'm sure the totals will stay respectable.

Exactly. I think the season ticket sales, plus decent student turnout will keep their attendance respectable. Lets face it, that first game had people attending that may NEVER return to see a UTSA game. There was definitely a fair amount of novelty with that first game. Heck, that's primarily why I was there; and the only reason I may go to more is due to my kids being grads and I like spending time with them at these kind of events. Regardless, it's too early to really say how well the team will do in the future (WRT attendance). Unlike the metroplex, this is the only game in town (FCS/FBS); so I think they will be fine in the long run. And let's face it, they need to be graded WRT the affiliation they are now part of - - the WeAC; and no one there is setting the world on fire attendance wise.