Email This Story

Lariat Letters: Possible athletic attendance incentive?

Nov. 5, 2009

Baylor football message boards are abuzz this week about the disappointing student turnout at the Nebraska game.

I look back at the first game vs. Connecticut and remember wave after wave of Freshman Line members descending upon the field, and how packed the stands were.

Then, as the season progressed, fewer and fewer students have attended games. I think about my own daughter, and I wonder why she attends Baylor when she could have easily attended CowU or WhoopU at half the price.

Is she at BU for football, or academics? She's attended every game as a member of BUGWB, but what would she do if she were a regular student, or her Mom and I had not purchased season tickets?

I hope she attends Baylor for the rich academic tradition and would still attend a game or two, but I completely understand that she, like many students, has her own list of priorities.

Football games may not be high on the priority list.

(As a side note, I also noticed that there were a lot of empty seats in non-student sections, too, but the message boards fail to mention that. They focus only on the lack of students and the empty stands on the east side.)

Still, the attendance situation at BU football games is what it is, and has not changed dramatically over the years.

The fundamental question is: How can the athletic department attract students who are more focused on academic success than athletics to a Big 12 home football game?

As an outsider to the athletic department and the Baylor Bear Foundation, I see those two organizations benefiting the most from a full house. Large student body participation attracts positive attention and good will, especially for TV games that are broadcast across different regions.

It helps with recruiting efforts, and improved recruiting produces a better product on the field.

High student attendance attracts facility, staff and parents to campus and to weekend games. If Baylor would like to fill the stands, what could Baylor Bear Foundation and the athletic department do to help that occur?

One thought would be to offer up non-athlete students who attend home football games a chance at a financial reward. A $1,000 scholarship raffle immediately comes to mind.

Scholarship raffles occur at many universities now under a variety of different scenarios. Baylor Bear Foundation or the athletic department could fund three-six scholarships per game ($1,836,000 for the season), and any student who enters the game before kickoff (and swipes their ID's), would have a shot to win a raffle for an extra grand during the fourth quarter to help fund their education.

Parents would insist their kids get down to Floyd Casey Stadium and support the home team, especially with the impending 6.5 percent tuition increase in 2010. Students who participate in organizations like BUGWB or non-scholarship cheer squads that attend games would also be eligible. I believe that students who believe they have a reasonable chance for a payout would come out and attend the game just for the potential award, and once they are there, would support the home team.

If attendance dropped, the higher the odds to win would attract the students back to the games.

Would the non-athlete student population support such an incentive, and if offered, come out in mass for the games? Would the Baylor Bear Foundation or athletic department fund such a program? How large of a program should they fund? Can this be implemented prior to the CowU game on Nov. 14?

David Shafer
Richmond

More News ...