MU's Overall Attendance Since 1988 ...

[Tugg Speedman]

During the game, the Kelley (the color guy on ESPN FC) said that Marquette had 4.5 million see a home b-ball game since 1988 (the last 20 years and I presume, how long they have been at the BC).

He said that since 1988 MU is the only non-football school in the top 20 in overall attendance.

Has anyone heard that before?  Anyone have a list? Thoughts?

[Badgerhater920]

That's great, but if that was Mike Kelly on ESPN FC, I wouldn't trust anything he says...

[wadesworld]

That's great, but if that was Mike Kelly on ESPN FC, I wouldn't trust anything he says...

Why?  I understand he's from Wisconsin, but he does a great job on ESPN FC.  He is very knowledgeable and very, very complimentary to the Marquette program.  Talked once about how great of friends he was with one Marquette player (forget which one, I think Pieper?).

[ChicosBailBonds]

During the game, the Kelley (the color guy on ESPN FC) said that Marquette had 4.5 million see a home b-ball game since 1988 (the last 20 years and I presume, how long they have been at the BC).

He said that since 1988 MU is the only non-football school in the top 20 in overall attendance.

Has anyone heard that before?  Anyone have a list? Thoughts?

Was he saying overall in the top 20 or each year in the top 20?  Each year, the answer would be no.

Here's the relevant information

http://www.ncaa.org/wps/wcm/connect/resources/file/ebbe964a5740725/top25.pdf?MOD=AJPERES


1989 we finished 23rd.
1990 21st
1991 18th
1992 outside top 25
1993 20th
1994 12th
1995 25th
1996 24th
1997 outside top 25
1998 outside top 25
1999 outside top 25
2000 outside top 25
2001 outside top 25
2002 21st
2003 11th
2004 12th
2005 21st
2006 18th
2007 9th
2008 14th 

Someone would have to run all the numbers to see if we get into the top 20 cumulatively....my guess is we probably do because in 4 of the last 6 years we finished in the top 15 and the other two years not that far out.  It would be close.  Dayton, Creighton, St. Louis would be the only ones really in contention against us because they have capacities that allow them to finish in the top 20 if warranted.

[Badgerhater920]

Why?  I understand he's from Wisconsin, but he does a great job on ESPN FC.  He is very knowledgeable and very, very complimentary to the Marquette program.  Talked once about how great of friends he was with one Marquette player (forget which one, I think Pieper?).

Ha, i know - I don't really have a problem with him. Just a joke.

[MR.HAYWARD]

3 of the 6 years we finished out of the top 25 were under Crean...wait I thought when we had this discussion a week or so ago many stated MU never drew before Crean and probbaly would not after wards...BTW 17000+ today.  Remember the BE only invited MU becuase of Creans relationship with Tranghese and they were only comfortable with Mu with Crean at the helm.  Cream also claims to have increased attendence at MU by 70%

[77ncaachamps]

That's great, but if that was Mike Kelly on ESPN FC, I wouldn't trust anything he says...

Was he the one who said, "I enjoyed watching Wade in his 4 years at MU"?

[IAmMarquette]

Was he the one who said, "I enjoyed watching Wade in his 4 years at MU"?

Ha. Glad I wasn't the only one who noticed that.

[muarmy81]

Was he the one who said, "I enjoyed watching Wade in his 4 years at MU"?

Interesting that you guys caught that...I wasn't even paying attention and my wife was the one who caught that.

[Norm]

3 of the 6 years we finished out of the top 25 were under Crean...wait I thought when we had this discussion a week or so ago many stated MU never drew before Crean and probbaly would not after wards...BTW 17000+ today.  Remember the BE only invited MU becuase of Creans relationship with Tranghese and they were only comfortable with Mu with Crean at the helm.  Cream also claims to have increased attendence at MU by 70%

Wow, another anti-Crean post from Mr. Hayward. Who would have thunk? Give it a rest, we already went through this stuff the other day.

[MR.HAYWARD]

i know we did but Chocs was so adamantly defending Crean and then shows the stat where 3 of our worst attendence years were under crean ...yet he elevated the Team to another level and we only got in the BE because of Crean!!

[The Man in Gold]

Please stop the Crean non-sense.  Anyone looking at that chart sees we were outside the Top 25 before Crean got there, and then attendance began trending up.  But I'm sure it had nothing to do with what Crean was doing with the team or the increased presence he helped bring to MU within the state and nationally.

[cheebs09]

Was he saying overall in the top 20 or each year in the top 20?  Each year, the answer would be no.

Here's the relevant information

http://www.ncaa.org/wps/wcm/connect/resources/file/ebbe964a5740725/top25.pdf?MOD=AJPERES


1989 we finished 23rd.
1990 21st
1991 18th
1992 outside top 25
1993 20th
1994 12th
1995 25th
1996 24th
1997 outside top 25
1998 outside top 25
1999 outside top 25
2000 outside top 25
2001 outside top 25
2002 21st
2003 11th
2004 12th
2005 21st
2006 18th
2007 9th
2008 14th 

Someone would have to run all the numbers to see if we get into the top 20 cumulatively....my guess is we probably do because in 4 of the last 6 years we finished in the top 15 and the other two years not that far out.  It would be close.  Dayton, Creighton, St. Louis would be the only ones really in contention against us because they have capacities that allow them to finish in the top 20 if warranted.

This might be a really dumb question, but woun't Georgetown be the most likely competition? If I remember right they play in a big arena and have no football. Sorry if I'm really missing something.

[Chili]

This might be a really dumb question, but woun't Georgetown be the most likely competition? If I remember right they play in a big arena and have no football. Sorry if I'm really missing something.

for a while they didnt play all their games at the mci center

[cheebs09]

OK, thanks. I figured I was missing something. Either way, for a small private school with a big state school that has a lot of support not too far away, it is pretty impressive, no matter how you feel about the coach that accomplished it

[ChicosBailBonds]

i know we did but Chocs was so adamantly defending Crean and then shows the stat where 3 of our worst attendence years were under crean ...yet he elevated the Team to another level and we only got in the BE because of Crean!!

At least I post the facts Haywire....and note that you're also completely wrong...they weren't 3 of our worst years, but three years where we didn't finish in the top 25...but they were also inherited Mike Deane years as well.  Go figure.  What surprises me...oh wait, it doesn't...is that 5 of the 7 best years in MU's history in attendance were under Crean but some how you didn't mention that...wait...does that surprise me?  No.

Because you use facts only to further your agenda, while some of us use facts to show both sides....that's the difference.

[ChicosBailBonds]

This might be a really dumb question, but woun't Georgetown be the most likely competition? If I remember right they play in a big arena and have no football. Sorry if I'm really missing something.

Well yes, Georgetown has football however.  Then again, so does Dayton so I shouldn't have included them.

Wasn't the original post about not having football....G'Town and Dayton both have football.

[Marquette84]

3 of the 6 years we finished out of the top 25 were under Crean...wait I thought when we had this discussion a week or so ago many stated MU never drew before Crean and probbaly would not after wards...BTW 17000+ today.  Remember the BE only invited MU becuase of Creans relationship with Tranghese and they were only comfortable with Mu with Crean at the helm.  Cream also claims to have increased attendence at MU by 70%

Well, first, that is a lie.  Nobody ever said that MU would never draw well again.  
 
Next, who was coach for the 1999 season again?  That would be MIKE DEANE.  HE was the coach with three low attendance years--1997, 1998, and 1999.  Crean wasn't hired until the 2000 season.  Of his 9 seasons, only two--2000 and 2001 were outside the top 25.  And I think it's pretty obvious that attendance was low in 2000 and 2001 because of the decline in recruiting that Mike Deane left behind.  I think even YOU would have to admit that the low attendance in 2000 was more because the roster consisted of 4 returning starters from the team that finished 10th in CUSA and less because of who the head coach was. 

Just to make your day, four of the five times we have been in the top 15 were under Crean.  Were you aware of that? 

Frankly, you could say a prayer ever day thanking God we we had the guts to fire Mike Deane and hired a coach that could put a team on the court that the Big East was willing to take.  Without Crean, we'd be a bottom fishing CUSA team.  And you're damn straight we're in the Big East becuase of Crean.  Frankly, 10th place finishes in CUSA wasn't going to get us there.  And Krunti Hester is not the type of guy that would have led us back to the middle pack in that conference.

Sorry you don't like Crean personally.  I don't know what petty complaints you have--you STILL will neither put up nor shut up.  

But can you at least TRY to limit the lies and misrepresentations?

[Pakuni]

3 of the 6 years we finished out of the top 25 were under Crean...wait I thought when we had this discussion a week or so ago many stated MU never drew before Crean and probbaly would not after wards...BTW 17000+ today.  Remember the BE only invited MU becuase of Creans relationship with Tranghese and they were only comfortable with Mu with Crean at the helm.  Cream also claims to have increased attendence at MU by 70%

If you insist on incessantly bashing Crean at every turn, at least be honest in your criticism. Those three years Crean was outside the top 25 were the direct result of the state in which Mike Deane had left the program. And, frankly, the reason attendance is high today is the result of Crean's efforts to rebuild the program to a respectable level.
Seriously, man, you're shameless when it comes to this stuff.

[bork]

for a while they didnt play all their games at the mci center

From 99-05, Georgetown drew less than 9000 a game, with a couple years under 8000.  Even with their recent success, they drew under 13,000 last year.

I was amazed to see that Crean's first year was the only time in the past 40 years that MU drew less than 10,000 a game.

FYI, MU has average about 13,000 a game since the BC opened.