The Sound of Silence - AKA The UWM Panther Arena

[BBF]

If only this was funny. Usually when a new coach comes into a program there is a burst of enthusiasm resulting in elevated ticket sales and attendance. If the team performs well in the first year, attendance is maintained or even improved in the second year. If it does poorly, attendance drops off in year two, sometimes dramatically.

Now how do we fit this year's debacle into this paradigm? Notwithstanding the new coach (and I'll keep saying it -- by all accounts a good guy); notwithstanding all the improvements to the Arena -- there was utterly no "burst of enthusiasm." Instead of a ticket sale increase and improved attendance over last year, there has been an obvious drop in sales and an even more precipitous and alarming drop in actual attendance. It is a reasonably good bet that there are several D3 programs in the state of Wisconsin that now draw equivalent or better crowds than our D1 team!!

What accounts for this is simple: the spectacularly bad judgment and execution underlying both the decision to fire Coach Jeter one year before his contract termed (and jettison our best, most experienced players), and the comically inept hiring "process" for our new coach. This sent an irrefutable message to our fan base that the program would continue to be grotesquely mismanaged and under-supported by our administration. Message received.

Now what do you suppose will happen next year from an attendance standpoint? The best case scenario for this year's team is that it may barely escape the basement of the worst Horizon League ever. I'm sure this is not a function of the character or commitment of our players or even the good intentions of our new staff. It is simply a very undertalented team playing for very inexperienced coaches.

So whereas this year we are seeing crowds of hundreds, what will we see next year? Scores? Dozens? Hey, I've got an idea -- free beer!

If you had drawn up a way to more dramatically injure our program, you could not have done it better. Or I suppose it might be more accurate to say, worse.