[qwerty49]

Attendance at the Gonzaga game:  2863.  A great opponent, a weekend game, a promising star-studded team, plenty of great plays and excitement, and not even 3k turned out. 

Until someone convinces me that Stanford works hard to get publicity on the "other" sports, I will believe a large reason the sports aren't getting attendance is because Stanford isn't getting the word doesn't out to the public.   Stanford must have their reasons.  Someone want to ask the AD?

Honestly I don't believe Stanford has the proper level of commitment to put in the kind of professional (repeat -- professional) marketing that is needed for the mission of competing for live attendance in a local market where there are so many options.  (i.e. Nebraska sells out WVB without blinking because there aren't many other options in Lincoln in late fall).  It's a brobdingnagian mission that needs to recognize the role of TV and other publicity in encouraging live attendance, and I'm not convinced Stanford is willing to commit the resources and budget to take it on.  It's more than just a Facebook page from Stanford Football.  I don't believe the AD thinks attendance is an issue.  I think Stanford is content to be a niche player in terms of sports and attendance.  

Times have changed.  For example IIRC Bob Murphy et al did little to "sell" Plunkett's H-man campaign; it pretty much was self-generating. In the last 10 years we've arguably had 5 more opportunities to follow-up on that, and the results speak for themselves.

Now that the rising tide of Stanford football has receded from the national scene, I believe the other "boats" like WBB have lost a big chance to bump attendance up to another level.  Fan enthusiasm is incredibly contagious, and we're kidding ourselves if we believe it also doesn't affect recruiting to some degree.

In another thread, Biketoc posted a photo from the Gonzaga game.  What strikes me about that photo is the 45 or so fans sitting in the background.  I think I see 2 kids, and 2 adults who look under 50.  That's not a recipe for a growing fan base.

[qwerty49]

Attendance at the Gonzaga game:  2863.  A great opponent, a weekend game, a promising star-studded team, plenty of great plays and excitement, and not even 3k turned out. 

Until someone convinces me that Stanford works hard to get publicity on the "other" sports, I will believe a large reason the sports aren't getting attendance is because Stanford isn't getting the word doesn't out to the public.   Stanford must have their reasons.  Someone want to ask the AD?

Honestly I don't believe Stanford has the proper level of commitment to put in the kind of professional (repeat -- professional) marketing that is needed for the mission of competing for live attendance in a local market where there are so many options.  (i.e. Nebraska sells out WVB without blinking because there aren't many other options in Lincoln in late fall).  It's a brobdingnagian mission that needs to recognize the role of TV and other publicity in encouraging live attendance, and I'm not convinced Stanford is willing to commit the resources and budget to take it on.  It's more than just a Facebook page from Stanford Football.  I don't believe the AD thinks attendance is an issue.  I think Stanford is content to be a niche player in terms of sports and attendance.  

Times have changed.  For example IIRC Bob Murphy et al did little to "sell" Plunkett's H-man campaign; it pretty much was self-generating. In the last 10 years we've arguably had 5 more opportunities to follow-up on that, and the results speak for themselves.

Now that the rising tide of Stanford football has receded from the national scene, I believe the other "boats" like WBB have lost a big chance to bump attendance up to another level.  Fan enthusiasm is incredibly contagious, and we're kidding ourselves if we believe it also doesn't affect recruiting to some degree.

In another thread, Biketoc posted a photo from the Gonzaga game.  What strikes me about that photo is the 45 or so fans sitting in the background.  I think I see 2 kids, and 2 adults who look under 50.  That's not a recipe for a growing fan base.