11-08-2012, 03:41 PM
If you look at the college teams that draw the most fans to their games, they tend to have several things in common:
1) Consistently good teams over a long time (at least a generation, not just a few years)
2) Lots of local alumni
3) No NFL team nearby
I can't think of any college team that really draws a lot of fans and doesn't have at least 2 of those 3 factors. Stanford has none of them (it's headed toward having #1, but still has a long way to go).
It'd be nice to have better attendance. Folks in the Bay Area should realize that they're missing out on some really good football. But the negative spin that some people put on the low attendance (e.g., calling it a " sad commentary" or blaming it on "boring football") seems unwarranted. Given the hurdles Stanford faces in drawing a good crowd, it's doing pretty well.
1) Consistently good teams over a long time (at least a generation, not just a few years)
2) Lots of local alumni
3) No NFL team nearby
I can't think of any college team that really draws a lot of fans and doesn't have at least 2 of those 3 factors. Stanford has none of them (it's headed toward having #1, but still has a long way to go).
It'd be nice to have better attendance. Folks in the Bay Area should realize that they're missing out on some really good football. But the negative spin that some people put on the low attendance (e.g., calling it a " sad commentary" or blaming it on "boring football") seems unwarranted. Given the hurdles Stanford faces in drawing a good crowd, it's doing pretty well.