1981Drakefan
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If you remove a money game from the schedule, it would be a bus ride. Just like the one to Grand Forks, ND the last two times they have played up there. There is only so much money in the travel budget. Have you ever stayed at the Super 8 Motel in Sioux City? Please contact Head Coach Todd [email protected] and ask him if playing at North Dakota and at South Dakota State is a "good measuring stick". Or at Dixie State and at North Dakota State. C'mon, man, live in the real world. Alabama, LSU, Georgia, Oklahoma, or whomever, schedule at least one easier game in the non-conference. You pick your battles, not go to war every week.
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DawgsRus1132
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So who is San Diego’s easier game? Maybe let’s not play Top 10 teams and still have money games, that are more in line... Super 8... come on I’m sure the team and or parents could raise/pony up a couple of bucks to stay at a comfort inn lol
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1981Drakefan
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"while playing a NDSU or SDSU, etc is all fine and dandy it's not apples to apples..."
Comparing Drake to San Diego is the same...not apples to apples. Nobody in the PFL can compare to them
37 straight conference wins. 6 straight PFL titles. 10 full-time assistant coaches (Drake has 6). Better recruiting base. 4 straight FCS playoff appearances. etc. etc. etc.
Yes! I've said for years it's fine to play FCS scholarship teams, but do we always have to play ones that are in the top 10 or the top half of their league? Where are Missouri State and/or Western Illinois when you need them?
Yes, also, to the Super 8 in Sioux City. Nobody "ponied up" anything, and it sucked. If you would like to pony up, let me know...I'll get you in touch with the right people.
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1981Drakefan
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+xSo who is San Diego’s easier game? Maybe let’s not play Top 10 teams and still have money games, that are more in line... Super 8... come on I’m sure the team and or parents could raise/pony up a couple of bucks to stay at a comfort inn lol Just a fact.....None of San Diego's 3 pre-conference opponents finished with a winning record. Cal-Poly 3-8 Cal-Davis 5-7 Harvard 4-6 Drake's 3 pre-conference opponents: North Dakota 7-5 Truman State 10-2 South Dakota State 8-5
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DawgsRus1132
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That’s what I’m saying.. schedule games that are a little more our speed... 1-2 or even 2-1 would be a nice start to the season. No reason why that can’t happen this year!
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LurkingDog
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+x[quote] Drake is going to play two money games on the road against scholarship programs to financially support the program, and a winnable game at home before the conference schedule. That is the way it's going to be.
Thanks, but we don't need a company man to remind us. This is a fan board, and fans will express their opinions on what they would like to see. Without fans, the team is club football, albeit expensive club football. Drake maintains this sport for reasons other than fulfilling the desires of student-athletes on the roster. At least, it should have other reasons. Playing an Ivy League team, Patriot League team, Big Sky team, NAIA National Champion, or anybody else isn't going to make any difference as far as attendance, interest, financial support from boosters, or ranking.
Nonsense. The best attended Drake home game in recent years was Grand View. The NAIA champs from Morningside would draw a similar crowd...basically a Des Moines-sized version of the Twin Cities' Tommie-Johnnie game. A home opener v. an Ivy League team would also create significant fan and local media interest. People have generally heard of Dartmouth, Yale, Princeton, and the other Ivies (not the case with McKendree or William Jewell). Plus the Ivy League and the PFL are the only D-I nonscholarship leagues. Seems logical for Drake to play some Ivy Leaguers. Or just one. Does anyone reading this (not employed by Drake or its radio station) disagree? Games against the Patriot League would be a little trickier. One might need a shred of sports knowledge to recognize Bucknell or Georgetown. Patriot League football has some of the same problems getting games as the Ivy League...mainly because some of the Ivies don't schedule Patriot Leaguers as much as they used to. League champion Holy Cross is one of many from the Patriot that recruits directly against Drake in Chicago, suburban KC, and Texas. And these would be more competitive games for Drake than the state colleges in the MVFC (talk about getting beat up!). Some of the schools I'm mentioning are what Drake aspires to be in some ways. Putting them on the football schedule is therefore, not a bad thing. Give people a reason to come out in September and become fans. I hope Drake wants fans (?).
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DawgsRus1132
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Ivy League and Patriot league games are ideal scheduling partners as you just mentioned.. Who wouldn’t like to see Harvard or Yale come to Des Moines and vice versa.. even Lehigh & Lafayette are well known schools and more in line with the caliber of play.... I would love to see attendance up... that not only creates more buzz and excitement but more $$ too. It’s 2020 a new chapter with a new head coach and his first recruiting class. Let’s change things up a bit and raise the level... btw AD Hardin has a very good reputation and has done good things already..
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LurkingDog
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Agreed. Hardin is a sharp individual. But I think he's taking the safe route with scheduling. Hopefully, he'll have room to innovate eventually.
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1981Drakefan
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+x+x[quote] Drake is going to play two money games on the road against scholarship programs to financially support the program, and a winnable game at home before the conference schedule. That is the way it's going to be.
Thanks, but we don't need a company man to remind us. This is a fan board, and fans will express their opinions on what they would like to see. Without fans, the team is club football, albeit expensive club football. Drake maintains this sport for reasons other than fulfilling the desires of student-athletes on the roster. At least, it should have other reasons. Playing an Ivy League team, Patriot League team, Big Sky team, NAIA National Champion, or anybody else isn't going to make any difference as far as attendance, interest, financial support from boosters, or ranking.
Nonsense. The best attended Drake home game in recent years was Grand View. The NAIA champs from Morningside would draw a similar crowd...basically a Des Moines-sized version of the Twin Cities' Tommie-Johnnie game. A home opener v. an Ivy League team would also create significant fan and local media interest. People have generally heard of Dartmouth, Yale, Princeton, and the other Ivies (not the case with McKendree or William Jewell). Plus the Ivy League and the PFL are the only D-I nonscholarship leagues. Seems logical for Drake to play some Ivy Leaguers. Or just one. Does anyone reading this (not employed by Drake or its radio station) disagree? Games against the Patriot League would be a little trickier. One might need a shred of sports knowledge to recognize Bucknell or Georgetown. Patriot League football has some of the same problems getting games as the Ivy League...mainly because some of the Ivies don't schedule Patriot Leaguers as much as they used to. League champion Holy Cross is one of many from the Patriot that recruit directly against Drake in Chicago, suburban KC, and Texas. And these would be more competitive games for Drake than the state colleges in the MVFC (talk about getting beat up!). Some of the schools I'm mentioning are what Drake aspires to be in some ways. Putting them on the football schedule is therefore, not a bad thing. Give people a reason to come out in September and become fans. I hope Drake wants fans (?). The attendance for the Grand View-Morningside game in the national semi-finals in Sioux City last December was 4,500. https://www.msidemustangs.com/sport/football/2019-20/box-scores/5811/morningside-college-vs-grand-view-universityThe last Grand View game at Drake was a little over 7,000 (7,248). https://godrakebulldogs.com/documents/2014/9/15/du-01.htmI'm guessing 4,000+ people from Sioux City aren't coming down to Des Moines for the game. Drake did play Morningside in Des Moines in 1996 and the crowd was 4,509. https://www.msidemustangs.com/sport/football/1996-97/box-scores/5007/drake-university-vs-morningside-collegeWhen South Dakota came to Drake in 2017 to open the season, the crowd was 3,332. https://static.godrakebulldogs.com/custompages/statistics/football17/du-01.pdfUnfortunately, people in Des Moines do not care enough about Drake football to come to games. The opponent doesn't matter. (Unless you could get Iowa, Iowa State, or UNI to play in Des Moines) As far as the Patriot League, here are last year's attendance figures: ATTENDANCE | Home | Avg | | Away | Avg | | Neutral | Avg | | Total attend | Avg |
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BUCKNELL | 5-13751 | 2750 | | 6-46396 | 7733 | | 0-0 | 0 | | 11-60147 | 5468 | COLGATE | 5-17755 | 3551 | | 7-66271 | 9467 | | 0-0 | 0 | | 12-84026 | 7002 | FORDHAM | 5-17042 | 3408 | | 7-30336 | 4334 | | 0-0 | 0 | | 12-47378 | 3948 | GEORGETOWN | 5-11196 | 2239 | | 6-34169 | 5695 | | 0-0 | 0 | | 11-45365 | 4124 | HOLY CROSS | 5-42067 | 8413 | | 8-91575 | 11447 | | 0-0 | 0 | | 13-133642 | 10280 | LAFAYETT | 5-23321 | 4664 | | 7-41396 | 5914 | | 0-0 | 0 | | 12-64717 | 5393 | LEHIGH | 5-33540 | 6708 | | 6-28809 | 4802 | | 0-0 | 0 | | 11-62349 | 5668 | Totals | 35-158672 | 4533 | | 47-338952 | 7212 | | 0-0 | 0 | | 82-497624 | 6069 |
The average home crowd is 4,533. I don't believe a team from a league that averages 4,500 per home game is going to excite the Des Moines college football fan. Yes, I'd like to play an Ivy League team. But it's not going to happen anytime soon. As far as Drake (the University) not the program, wanting fans...perhaps an increase in the marketing budget for football (currently at $0) would be a step in the right direction.
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DawgsRus1132
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Thanks for the info.. how about more students coming to the games? I think Hardin brought in a marketing agency to help draw more interest in Drake Athletics.
With 800,000 in the Des Moines area hard to imagine you can’t get .005 percent of that to a game at Drake!! Student body almost 5,000 how many come to the games?
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1981Drakefan
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+xThanks for the info.. how about more students coming to the games? I think Hardin brought in a marketing agency to help draw more interest in Drake Athletics.With 800,000 in the Des Moines area hard to imagine you can’t get .005 percent of that to a game at Drake!! Student body almost 5,000 how many come to the games? Student attendance has long been a problem at Drake, whether it football, basketball, softball, or whatever. I honestly believe that the students just don't care about Drake sports. Yes, they might show up for a game or two, but loyal, hardcore, or serious are not words that come to mind. The football program has tried to create interest. They have passed out flyers in the dining hall the week of home games. They have visited the fraternities and sororities to get them to come to the games. They have food at a tailgate before some home games behind the press box. They have tried a lot of things, but not much has worked. By the way, the basketball team is currently 15-8 on the season (and were MVC co-champs last year) and 10th out of 10 in home attendance. |
ATTENDANCE | Home | Avg | | Away | Avg | | Neutral | Avg | | Total attend | Avg |
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Bradley | 13-71051 | 5465 | | 8-41059 | 5132 | | 2-4332 | 2166 | | 23-116442 | 5063 | Drake | 12-34538 | 2878 | | 8-46601 | 5825 | | 3-1643 | 548 | | 23-82782 | 3599 | Evansville | 11-57644 | 5240 | | 9-42861 | 4762 | | 3-900 | 300 | | 23-101405 | 4409 | Illinois State | 11-48440 | 4404 | | 8-31131 | 3891 | | 3-2024 | 675 | | 22-81595 | 3709 | Indiana State | 9-31842 | 3538 | | 8-48661 | 6083 | | 4-3025 | 756 | | 21-83528 | 3978 | Loyola Chicago | 12-35385 | 2949 | | 7-29380 | 4197 | | 4-3740 | 935 | | 23-68505 | 2978 | Missouri State | 11-44830 | 4075 | | 9-49193 | 5466 | | 3-9281 | 3094 | | 23-103304 | 4491 | Northern Iowa | 12-45715 | 3810 | | 8-39231 | 4904 | | 2-2654 | 1327 | | 22-87600 | 3982 | Southern Illinois | 11-45734 | 4158 | | 9-42047 | 4672 | | 3-556 | 185 | | 23-88337 | 3841 | Valparaiso | 9-26243 | 2916 | | 11-50574 | 4598 | | 3-0 | 0 | | 23-76817 | 3340 | Totals | 111-441422 | 3977 | | 85-420738 | 4950 | | 30-28155 | 938 | | 226-890315 | 3939 |
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DawgsRus1132
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There has to be able to change that... what are they doing on a Sat afternoon that they would t want to support their team... have some fun etc
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1981Drakefan
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+xThere has to be able to change that... what are they doing on a Sat afternoon that they would t want to support their team... have some fun etc That probably is the $64,000 question...
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LurkingDog
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Student attendance starts with the first game. We all know those wide-eyed freshmen want to come out for Game #1. If it's against a lower division opponent, however, the attendance will be limited. And if the Dogs lose that game, we'll never see those freshmen again. Needless to say, 77-7 will also kill the fan base. But that's not a scheduling issue.
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InsiderInformation
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You know we all have too much time on our hands talking about scheduling in early February lol. I don't mean to bring politics or McBulldog into this but 1981 hits it on the head. A lot of these students work jobs, have full class loads, social life outside of sports etc. Expecting them to show up just because they go to school at Drake is a tough thing to bank on in my opinion. 70% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck I think for a family it is tough to rationalize spending money on Drake athletics when they need to save money for their necessities. Since I am kind of already on a tangent I will continue...College sports use to be basically a non-profit or run at a break even point back in 60s, 70s, 80s (most of this boards glory days) I wish we could get back to focusing on the school, atmosphere, players, etc. Why do we spend 2k on halftime show when having kids from a YMCA or special Olympics team play a ten minute game would be just as entertaining? I think to solve attendance issues (that are widespread for all schools) radical solutions need to be considered by both the NCAA and athletic departments themselves, but we both know that will never happen as far as the NCAA will go.
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LurkingDog
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+x I don't mean to bring politics or McBulldog into this... Randomly mentioning McBulldog is always appropriate. For example, "I'm going to a football parade with a million people, and none of them are named McBulldog."
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DawgsRus1132
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+x+x I don't mean to bring politics or McBulldog into this... Randomly mentioning McBulldog is always appropriate. For example, "I'm going to a football parade with a million people, and none of them are named McBulldog." While you bring up some good points, I don't believe that the cost of a Drake Football game is going to break the bank for most people...how much are tickets $5 or $8? What happened to school spirit... the Dawg Pound Zone etc.. College Football, Professional Sports are packed every weekend/day... It's a chance to get outside, support your school, have fun, etc. Losing 77-7 is never a good thing... clearly the conference games are much more competitive and usually result in victories... Youth Football teams/Parents/ High School Teams.... there are ways to improve attendance and also attract future Bulldogs in the process. At the end of the day it's D1 Football program and only one of 4 in the state.
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InsiderInformation
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I agree a football game at Drake isn't going to break the bank, but I think at the end of the day-- unless the team is doing something historic -- it is getting harder and harder to keep people engaged. I was at the University of Kansas for a basketball game the other night and the number of students at the game is dwindling every year and they are consistently one of the best teams in the nation. I know comparing them to Drake is a tough argument, but if a team who is constantly in the talks for a championship is struggling with students imagine how amplified the problem is at Drake. Football is popular because of tailgating, drinking, eating, warm Saturdays, etc. for students; people more go to games for social aspect these days rather than the commitment to school and sport. With streaming options people would rather just watch a game on TV rather than drive even if it is ten minutes. Maybe I'm being negative, but I think lower attendance is something that college athletics are going to have to accept. I simply was curious about scheduling because it seems like its the same story every year: get blown out two games do solid in conference, get killed by San Diego.
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1981Drakefan
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+xI agree a football game at Drake isn't going to break the bank, but I think at the end of the day-- unless the team is doing something historic -- it is getting harder and harder to keep people engaged. I was at the University of Kansas for a basketball game the other night and the number of students at the game is dwindling every year and they are consistently one of the best teams in the nation. I know comparing them to Drake is a tough argument, but if a team who is constantly in the talks for a championship is struggling with students imagine how amplified the problem is at Drake. Football is popular because of tailgating, drinking, eating, warm Saturdays, etc. for students; people more go to games for social aspect these days rather than the commitment to school and sport. With streaming options people would rather just watch a game on TV rather than drive even if it is ten minutes. Maybe I'm being negative, but I think lower attendance is something that college athletics are going to have to accept. I simply was curious about scheduling because it seems like its the same story every year: get blown out two games do solid in conference, get killed by San Diego. Just to amplify your point, check out the home attendance at San Diego..... Game By Game ResultsDATE | OPPONENT | RESULT | SCORE | RECORD | DURATION | ATTENDANCE |
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8/31/2019 | at Cal Poly | L | 34-52 | 0-1 | 3:02 | 5779 |
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9/7/2019 | vs UC Davis | L | 35-38 | 0-2 | 2:45 | 2427 |
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9/21/2019 | vs Harvard | W | 31-23 | 1-2 | 2:50 | 2607 |
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10/5/2019 | vs Marist | W | 31-7 | 2-2 , 1-0 | 2:30 | 2763 |
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10/12/2019 | at Davidson | W | 37-17 | 3-2 , 2-0 | 2:42 | 3827 |
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10/19/2019 | vs Valparaiso | W | 42-17 | 4-2 , 3-0 | 2:33 | 1323 |
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10/26/2019 | at Dayton | W | 50-38 | 5-2 , 4-0 | - | 1969 |
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11/2/2019 | vs Drake | W | 49-7 | 6-2 , 5-0 | 2:33 | 1556 |
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11/9/2019 | at Stetson | W | 51-7 | 7-2 , 6-0 | 3:08 | 2027 |
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11/16/2019 | vs Morehead State | W | 52-20 | 8-2 , 7-0 | 2:43 | 1898 |
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11/23/2019 | at Jacksonville | W | 47-28 | 9-2 , 8-0 | 3:11 | 1203 |
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11/30/2019 | at UNI | L | 3-17 | 9-3 , 8-0 | 3:09 | 3743 |
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1981Drakefan
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I know how much Lurking Dog loves facts....
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