The last thing we need is for security to be lax enuf to allow protestors (you name the protest) to infiltrate the College Game Day event, or Memorial Stadium. Last year law enforcement allowed a ridiculous sit in at the 50yd line (protesting the firing of an anonymous teacher). The last thing we need is to allow the perpetuation of the Cal Berkeley image of high profile protests by allowing the disruption of a college sporting event. I’m sure the University and Athletic Department are well aware of this risk. Let’s hope for a break from all the turmoil worldwide to allow for some good, clean sports fun! Go Bears!
Free tix to all berkeley/oakland/el cerrito public schoolchildren with 1 paid adult ticket. Hell, just make it free for the whole family. Open it up on Tuesday based on availability for that Saturday. They'll pay for themselves with concessions and get hooked on the best entertainment value in the Bay Area. Those of us attending will LOVE the full stadium.
Or is that too obvious? Cuz right now those families are discovering the Roots, Ballers, and Soul.
As an Oakland kid, I mourn all our losses. For Cal to be adopted we need a deliberate strategy to do so, not just hope and wait. We also need to up the game day experience with more tailgating and social opportunities...ie, turn Memorial Glade into a tailgate site with the ability to rent space, set up stuff, food trucks, beer wagons, etc...Facilitate corporate rentals of venues for a whole day experience, etc, etc, etc. While we alums love the whole thing, we need to appeal to a broader market and give them a bigger reason to show up, particularly given the logistical challenges of our location and varying kick off times. I wrote an overly long guest column about this right before we reopened Memorial. Much of what I said then still holds.
I’ve had this exact conversation and proposed these exact ideas to anyone left in cal athletics who will answer my bitching emails, and the response is consistently some variation of “we’d love to, but central campus and the city of Berkeley…” Maybe this all changes with Chancellor Lyons, but our gameday environment is a disaster. It’s a travesty when UC Davis and sac state have a massively superior tailgating scene compared to ours.
I took it a step further...I pitched this and more to Sandy Barbour over a lunch she invited me to as a result of my post. She listened politely and shortly thereafter left to Penn State. This is a leadership issue. If this is going to happen it needs to come from the top, not mid level Cal Athletics staff. It 100% can happen, if the leadership, supported by the Cal football fan community gets behind it. Just look what the Calgorithm just did...GO BEARS!
Gosh, one would love to think that a football team that's been around for 138 years, far longer than the invention of pro football, in the most populous state in the Union, could have a *base* of million and millions of football loving residents in this state. How come Cal never grew its fanbase like the the Alabamas, Texases, Michigans, Wisconsins, and even the Oregons of the football world?
Don't answer that. But I'd like to think that it's still possible. And it is right to first start with the Bay Area. This is the giant. Is it waking?
Regarding the departure of the A's. Nothing against the Ballers, but they are an independent league team, meaning that they are not even associated with a major league team. Which is fine, but the players will come and go and are quite unlikely to make it to MLB. But I think this is an opportunity for Cal baseball. Going to Cal baseball games is great, and I think that Cal should take the opportunity to better market this team to East Bay baseball fans. It's a great location, you're sitting close to the action, tickets are cheap. You're pretty likely to be watching a future MLBer or two. Personally, I'd much rather go to see Cal baseball game than the Ballers. Where is the marketing department on this??
I'd also rather go see Cal soccer than the Roots or Soul. When my girls were younger, we went to Cal women's soccer games and they were a lot of fun. I think going to Berkeley is a more fun day than going to see the pro teams, but there's a lack of promotion for the Cal teams.
The people living near those colleges have no immediate pro teams to take the interest away from the college team. In other words Michigan, for instance, is the only team in town. Cal has the 49ers, Warriors, Giants, Sharks, San Jose State, Furd, etc. This spreads out the fan bases pretty thin.
Additionally, Cal football and Basketball, have, in the previous 15 years, fallen into mediocrity. That causes fan disinterest- Giants are a good example.
Our average view rating is 450K. We need marketing and an entertaining product both on the field and surrounding the game. Expanded areas for tailgating and vending would help.
Like it or not. We need to employ some time tested PT Barnum tactics and strategies to get butts in seats by creating such a compelling atmosphere that more and more want to be part of it all, if, for not other reason than fear of missing out (FOMO).
One thing which might help attendance is NO LATE NIGHT games. For many of us who have to travel around 100 miles to games, night games are problematic. I realize that TV networks determine a lot of these starting times and that sucks.
Not really on the same academic caliber, but i don’t disagree with overall sentiment that it’s possible. But only because of NIL and the ability to pay for players.
Michigan to me has alway been the ideal model. National brand recognition/tradition without compromising their identity as an elite school. They’re proof you can have it both ways.
The Bears are either going to rip my heart out (again) or give me a heart attack with a win.
Not sure which is better / worse.
Either way I’ll be there watching, because I just can’t stop myself.
The last thing we need is for security to be lax enuf to allow protestors (you name the protest) to infiltrate the College Game Day event, or Memorial Stadium. Last year law enforcement allowed a ridiculous sit in at the 50yd line (protesting the firing of an anonymous teacher). The last thing we need is to allow the perpetuation of the Cal Berkeley image of high profile protests by allowing the disruption of a college sporting event. I’m sure the University and Athletic Department are well aware of this risk. Let’s hope for a break from all the turmoil worldwide to allow for some good, clean sports fun! Go Bears!
I’m quite certain that winning will be better. Be ready to call 911 for your heart. GO BEARS!
JUST. FILL. THE. SEATS.
Free tix to all berkeley/oakland/el cerrito public schoolchildren with 1 paid adult ticket. Hell, just make it free for the whole family. Open it up on Tuesday based on availability for that Saturday. They'll pay for themselves with concessions and get hooked on the best entertainment value in the Bay Area. Those of us attending will LOVE the full stadium.
Or is that too obvious? Cuz right now those families are discovering the Roots, Ballers, and Soul.
Free tickets => person foul by fans?
Prepared to risk it! Plus we won't hand them cards for the stunts. That's the rule.
As an Oakland kid, I mourn all our losses. For Cal to be adopted we need a deliberate strategy to do so, not just hope and wait. We also need to up the game day experience with more tailgating and social opportunities...ie, turn Memorial Glade into a tailgate site with the ability to rent space, set up stuff, food trucks, beer wagons, etc...Facilitate corporate rentals of venues for a whole day experience, etc, etc, etc. While we alums love the whole thing, we need to appeal to a broader market and give them a bigger reason to show up, particularly given the logistical challenges of our location and varying kick off times. I wrote an overly long guest column about this right before we reopened Memorial. Much of what I said then still holds.
I’ve had this exact conversation and proposed these exact ideas to anyone left in cal athletics who will answer my bitching emails, and the response is consistently some variation of “we’d love to, but central campus and the city of Berkeley…” Maybe this all changes with Chancellor Lyons, but our gameday environment is a disaster. It’s a travesty when UC Davis and sac state have a massively superior tailgating scene compared to ours.
I took it a step further...I pitched this and more to Sandy Barbour over a lunch she invited me to as a result of my post. She listened politely and shortly thereafter left to Penn State. This is a leadership issue. If this is going to happen it needs to come from the top, not mid level Cal Athletics staff. It 100% can happen, if the leadership, supported by the Cal football fan community gets behind it. Just look what the Calgorithm just did...GO BEARS!
I would love to believe that it can happen, but how are we feeling about the prospects with Jim Knowlton at the helm?
Gosh, one would love to think that a football team that's been around for 138 years, far longer than the invention of pro football, in the most populous state in the Union, could have a *base* of million and millions of football loving residents in this state. How come Cal never grew its fanbase like the the Alabamas, Texases, Michigans, Wisconsins, and even the Oregons of the football world?
Don't answer that. But I'd like to think that it's still possible. And it is right to first start with the Bay Area. This is the giant. Is it waking?
Maybe a turning point for the program.
In terms of X's and O's let's run the darn ball. Having the run set up the pass might pave the way for victory.
A win will show the world 🌎 finally that Cal is a force to be reckoned with.
Regarding the departure of the A's. Nothing against the Ballers, but they are an independent league team, meaning that they are not even associated with a major league team. Which is fine, but the players will come and go and are quite unlikely to make it to MLB. But I think this is an opportunity for Cal baseball. Going to Cal baseball games is great, and I think that Cal should take the opportunity to better market this team to East Bay baseball fans. It's a great location, you're sitting close to the action, tickets are cheap. You're pretty likely to be watching a future MLBer or two. Personally, I'd much rather go to see Cal baseball game than the Ballers. Where is the marketing department on this??
I'd also rather go see Cal soccer than the Roots or Soul. When my girls were younger, we went to Cal women's soccer games and they were a lot of fun. I think going to Berkeley is a more fun day than going to see the pro teams, but there's a lack of promotion for the Cal teams.
"but there's a lack of promotion..."
Exactly. The simple fact is that people are TALKING about the Roots and Soul, and they're catching on.
I hope it sells out.
When I checked a few ticket websites last night, they all said less than 3% of seats available.
Let’s hope it’s us in the seats. Been a lot of other team fans in big OOC games recently…
That's a plus.
It can be a tricky thing, being an elite academic institution and a top athletic power. But WHY NOT!
Texas, Michigan, Wisconsin all seem to make it work.
The people living near those colleges have no immediate pro teams to take the interest away from the college team. In other words Michigan, for instance, is the only team in town. Cal has the 49ers, Warriors, Giants, Sharks, San Jose State, Furd, etc. This spreads out the fan bases pretty thin.
Good point.
Additionally, Cal football and Basketball, have, in the previous 15 years, fallen into mediocrity. That causes fan disinterest- Giants are a good example.
Our average view rating is 450K. We need marketing and an entertaining product both on the field and surrounding the game. Expanded areas for tailgating and vending would help.
Like it or not. We need to employ some time tested PT Barnum tactics and strategies to get butts in seats by creating such a compelling atmosphere that more and more want to be part of it all, if, for not other reason than fear of missing out (FOMO).
One thing which might help attendance is NO LATE NIGHT games. For many of us who have to travel around 100 miles to games, night games are problematic. I realize that TV networks determine a lot of these starting times and that sucks.
Yes, we have handed our souls over to the media.
A prefect example is how, now, suddenly, once we are in an ESPN conference, we get College Game Day and national broadcast. We're bing conditioned.
All that being said, we need to play the media game to rebuild our brand.
Not really on the same academic caliber, but i don’t disagree with overall sentiment that it’s possible. But only because of NIL and the ability to pay for players.
Those three universities typically join us and FUCLA for the Top Ten academic schools.
They were doing well with football long before NIL and such.
The more I live in east coast, the more I realize how really elite and special our school is. It’s on a different level than those others
Michigan to me has alway been the ideal model. National brand recognition/tradition without compromising their identity as an elite school. They’re proof you can have it both ways.
100%
Central Michigan staff agree. 😝
Marshawn's been trying so hard.