FAM wrote:

Bsduq:  The downside of having a nice crowd is slowness in the garage.  It's like that after home hockey games, and any other large venues nearby.  As far as the Mercy Garage, I parked there a few years ago and it was actually cheaper and you got out quicker.  I don't know what it is now.

I agree with a lot of what has been written about the disorganized presentation of the opener BUT the parking garage????  Have you ever been to a busy sporting event in your life and gotten out of a parking garage quickly?!?!?  I haven't parked in a garage in years!  found a nice spot on 5th ave like i always do.  I taught my children this - parking garages are for the tourists.

Anyone else in the 200 level?   Am I the only dummy who thought those seats included access the the club lounge?   It said pregame, halftime and postgame access on the seating maps online, but now, apparently cause those seats in the club level are sold out, 200 level isnt allowed in the lounge.   
If its my fault, fine, stupid me.   Its so close, just to run and grab a drink, but yet so far away.   :-(

stew wrote:

I am the guy in the red shirt last night.I tried but didnt bring a lot of energy due to having sciatica,the students were great but I wasnt.It would have been nice to have the pep band at game but tremendous show of spirit by the student body.

Well Done Stew!  Loved it.  Keep it up!

I missed the pep band.  Does anyone know if that is gone for good?

That said, my 14 year old daughter preferred the DJ to the Pep Band and thinks the DJ makes it more likely that students continue to attend.  She thinks the party atmosphere in that section due to the DJ is the kind of thing that will make students come out.  That remains to be seen, but, if that is accurate it is indicative of the forward thinking those involved with promoting the Dukes we feel has been lacking.

That was you Stew?! Hell yeah!!!!! You got the whole student section going crazy! You've been a legend on this board in my eyes and now I can put a face to the name

You guys are too nice.If you drive 6 hours back and forth from Columbus with my son in law, who likes the Dukes there is the passionate for Duquesne and had to try something but it was the students that showed up in a big way and were amazing last night.They were the true stars and created a great atmosphere.

Styles1229 wrote:

FAM wrote:

Bsduq:  The downside of having a nice crowd is slowness in the garage.  It's like that after home hockey games, and any other large venues nearby.  As far as the Mercy Garage, I parked there a few years ago and it was actually cheaper and you got out quicker.  I don't know what it is now.

I agree with a lot of what has been written about the disorganized presentation of the opener BUT the parking garage????  Have you ever been to a busy sporting event in your life and gotten out of a parking garage quickly?!?!?  I haven't parked in a garage in years!  found a nice spot on 5th ave like i always do.  I taught my children this - parking garages are for the tourists.

I beg to differ.

There aren't enough neighborhood street spots to handle even a third of the cars. Part of the attraction for new or renewed fans has to be an easy in & out. When parking is a giant pain, casual fans have another reason to stay away.

I have been to scores of events in dozens of cities where parking garages, with much larger crowds, work seamlessly. You have to collect the money on the way in; no exceptions. People will conform.

9:43pm is when I managed to emerge from the deck last night. There were still many cars behind me. That is nonsense.

The sound system was lacking, both the Cooper & halftime presentations were amateurish, the souvenier shop was closed before the end of the game, the IHeart radio listing on the school's website was wrong until being fixed this morning, the replays were horrible, the in game games/giveaways are labha le in their amount & execution, & the mini-ball fiasco is just plain sad.

The operational departments responsible for such things are & for 25+ years have been, awful.The worst part is that they have had years & 2 dry-runs last season to work out the kinks.

The place looks & feels GREAT! The Forbes Avenue presence is impressive as are the views into the weight rooms.

The DJ & choice of music were spot-on for last night's shot at sucking in a new batch of student fans.

A well produced event will have 10-15% of the music geared toward the diehard fogies going forward. THERE IS CROSSOVER BETWEEN THE 2 AUDIENCES!!!

The band was mediocre to bad for decades. Not until a very good to great band can be produced should it reappear.

The attempt to play the fight song over the PA at the end of the game was pathetic beig barely audible/identifiable.

Great atmosphere at the Coop last night despite some of the shortcomings.  Hopefully most of those can and will be worked out.  They need to be.  Want to say WAY TO GO STEW!!!  It was awesome watching you getting the students revved up.  And they over it and responded.  Hope you can keep it up.  Let us know if you need help.

I'm all for a tailgater on the top level.   Pre and/or post game.

stew, there are 3,285 registered users to this forum.  That shows ne there is still passion for this team despite 40 years in the desert.  Sure, many of you are out of town, but the passion is there.  There's also many passionate fans in the local area who aren't registered on this board or even know that it exists.  When we start winning regularly the Coop is going to be rocking and packed.  As Don Maser said to me a decade or so ago, there are at least 7,000 good Dukes fans in the local area and when we get back to where we were when Mase was recruited all of those people are going to want a ticket to the games.

The student section was outstanding Tuesday evening.  It seemed like they were having a lot of fun.  That made it more fun for an old man like me and the enthusiasm that they bring will help get the passion to be reignited in some of us who may have lost it over the years.