Old Titan Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 Some possible creative solutions for the TV cameras: 1. Partition curtains around the upper sections. 2. Darker seat upholstery in the lower sections. 3. Creative lighting, with a darker arena (ala Laker games). The most recent lighting upgrade in the Mabee Center is not just bad, it's blinding. 4. Open seating (I'm serious: the general admission seating for the CBI game with Cal Santa Barbara last year created a great vibe right behind the benches and scorers table, with a small number of fans). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevy Chase Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 OT, open seating? Not what I'd expect to hear from a former ticket salesman. Golden Eagle Club revenue would go in the tank without donor seating to sell. Plus, imagine our favorite little bald scorekeeper (rhymes with winner) having better seats than some of our big dogs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theeagleman5 Posted February 15, 2016 Author Share Posted February 15, 2016 These suggestions are more like it....TheEagleman knows that ORU will never play in a smaller gym....but as pointed out above, there is ZERO home advantage when you have 2000 people in 10,000 seat arena....and it just looks pathetic on TV.....plus our fans are too far away from the court.....whoever designed Mabee surely wasn't thinking about intimidation....also agree that the MAAC isn't as good as the Summit....but honestly, ORU wouldn't be in the Top 3 in the MAAC...we aren't as good as Monmouth, Iona and Siena this season....but overall our Summit League is better top to bottom....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 3 hours ago, Chevy Chase said: OT, open seating? Not what I'd expect to hear from a former ticket salesman. Golden Eagle Club revenue would go in the tank without donor seating to sell. Plus, imagine our favorite little bald scorekeeper (rhymes with winner) having better seats than some of our big dogs. Didn't I hear somewhere that ORU athletic donors are supposed to give unconditionally for love of the program, and not for media guides, plated dinners, and such? Make it open seating within sections, then. Pay a little extra to be in Sections A-through-D, but within that area, it's first-come-first-seated. Or, make just sections J-through-M open seating, and leave the other side of the arena (that's outside the TV cameras range) reserved seating. I mean, look around the arena: are we really talking about upsetting that many people anymore? Are we really worried that ALL the better seats are going to be overrun by "the jock sniffers"? I mean, c'mon - there's hardly any of 'em left! Desperate times call for desperate measures. The old model is either broken, or simply ineffective. No better time to SHAKE THINGS UP! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ORUIsbig Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 I agree. Do something. At least try something. Doing nothing seems silly. Close off the ends. Close off the top 3 rows. just try something. Until the seats get re-covered it will continue to look like an empty arena. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theeagleman5 Posted February 16, 2016 Author Share Posted February 16, 2016 It's funny....almost every time I am watching an ORU game at Mabee Center, my wife will walk by and invariably ask me why are there so many empty seats?....now she does it just to irritate me...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevy Chase Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 Would love Athletics to tarp the end zones but the department fears looking like a WNBA game. Desperate times do call for desperate measures. Still, the best way to solve it is not to blow up a solid system that raises significant funding for Athletics. It's to find creative ways to put people in the seats. If you don't put people in the seats, it doesn't matter what seating structure you have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oruvoice Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 Yep. More butts in the seats is the answer. Sadly, that is easier said than done. The job of filling up the Mabee Center isn't an easy one, so I can't/won't be critical of those trying to sell tickets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 2 hours ago, Chevy Chase said: Would love Athletics to tarp the end zones but the department fears looking like a WNBA game. Desperate times do call for desperate measures. Still, the best way to solve it is not to blow up a solid system that raises significant funding for Athletics. It's to find creative ways to put people in the seats. If you don't put people in the seats, it doesn't matter what seating structure you have. Yeah, but what I'm saying is that, as a ticket-buying fan, I LIKED the "festival seating" element that the CBI game with UCSB organically created last year. THAT'S the kind of "creative way to put people in the seats" I'm talking about. It was FUN, from a customer experience standpoint, to all be gathered together in a few sections close to the action, and not sprinkled all throughout the Gold Section like row monitors. It was like being back in a packed student section in high school or college. Everyone seemed to be having a REALLY GOOD TIME! Does anyone else who was there agree? Just ask the ORU coaches and players how they felt about having most of the fans in the arena right behind the bench area that night - they responded with one of their best performances of the year! What did they think of it? Were they inspired by it? Is there no way to bottle that environment in terms of seating arrangements, while not drastically affecting the ticket revenue? I'm not talking about blowing anything up; I'm talking about surgical strikes with laser-guided missiles. Think stealthy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oruvoice Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 Yes. When I think of OT...the word "stealthy" comes to mind! LOL!! Seriously though, I like the idea. Maybe not "general admission" across the board, but make some creative changes. I also think working with the student body and up-campus administration, and moving the student section. Despite our criticisms of the students, their attendance numbers have been very good this year. They are just REALLY spread out around the arena. Put them in "prime seats", in a more condensed way, might help their excitement and thus the energy/noise in the building...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theeagleman5 Posted February 17, 2016 Author Share Posted February 17, 2016 Yes....the students need to be close to the action not behind the basket ...too many 70-80 year old season ticket holders who sit on their hands or are asleep well before halftime.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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