DePaul Bball Attendance Hits A 37 Year Low

[Tugg Speedman]

This would be embarrassing for a Chicagoland High School.

How many of those 1824 are away fans?  When I was at the Mu/Depaul game I counted maybe 50 Depaul students in the student section.



Basketball attendance sinking as DePaul heads downtown

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20170303/BLOGS04/170309946/basketball-attendance-sinking-as-depaul-heads-downtown?AllowView=VDl3UXlKTzZDdmVCa0IvREEvSHlmMXlvaUV3WEN1OVVIUnc9#utm_medium=email&utm_source=ccb-on-sports&utm_campaign=ccb-on-sports-20170303

The once-great college basketball program that debuted at Allstate Arena with a roar 37 years ago is saying goodbye with a whimper. And the timing is bad for Illinois taxpayers.

Attendance at DePaul University men's basketball games this season is on track to finish at one of its lowest marks in nearly four decades playing at the Rosemont venue.

With tomorrow's finale against Xavier University still to be played (the school expects a strong turnout for that game), 14 Blue Demons home games this year have drawn an average of 1,824 people. That's down 24 percent from last season's final average and on pace to mark the first attendance dip for the program in three years.

This year saw more sparsely-attended games than normal, according to Allstate Arena ticket records obtained by Crain's. Seven DePaul games saw attendance of less than 1,000 people, including two games attended by fewer than 600 people.

Paid attendance has totaled 75,316 so far this year, or an average of 5,380 people per game. That figure includes free tickets given to charities and at least a couple thousand seats the school buys to block out space for students, regardless of whether they actually go.

But the actual number of people who walked through the Allstate Arena turnstiles was a third of that total, arena ticket records show.

[#UnleashSean]

Yep. Depaul. yep.

[Coleman]

At least they track butts in seats. I don't think MU does that. The only number I ever see is paid attendance.

[Herman Cain]

Unless they had a long term contract with Rosemont, they would have been better off financially to have played in the on the McGrath on campus arena for this last season. Seats 3,000. The games would have been sold out and loud most of the time No rent and no cost of transporting out to Rosemont. More chance for student interest etc.

[Galway Eagle]

That is just pathetic. But don't worry a new arena will solve all the problems!

[JamilJaeJamailJrJuan]

I sincerely hope Depaul figures it out. 

[GooooMarquette]

#sleepinggiant

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

At least they track butts in seats. I don't think MU does that. The only number I ever see is paid attendance.

Its pretty easy to do when the number is this low....

[The Lens]

DePaul averaged 9,100 and 9,700 the two years Quentin Richardson played there.  But keep telling yourself the issue is the arena.  Good work JLP.

[Bocephys]

#sleepinggiant

#hibernatinggiant

[nyg]

My goodness, those figures are just horrible and embarrassing. 

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

That info doesn't usually get leaked. Someone wants JLPs head.

[drewm88]

Its pretty easy to do when the number is this low....

Just spend a TV timeout asking everyone to count off.

[🏀]

That info doesn't usually get leaked. Someone wants JLPs head.

Bingo. Every school knows this number, but they don't make it public.

[Mr. Nielsen]

At least they track butts in seats. I don't think MU does that. The only number I ever see is paid attendance.

Everyone tracks butts in the seats. Only DePaul is stupid enough to release that info to the public. All attendance numbers pro and college, is paid attendance. Which it should be!

[Mr. Nielsen]

That info doesn't usually get leaked. Someone wants JLPs head.

Correct. It's been two years in a row this has happened to DePaul.

[Coleman]

Everyone tracks butts in the seats. Only DePaul is stupid enough to release that info to the public. All attendance numbers pro and college, is paid attendance. Which it should be!

Fair enough.

[oldwarrior81]

Unless they had a long term contract with Rosemont, they would have been better off financially to have played in the on the McGrath on campus arena for this last season. Seats 3,000. The games would have been sold out and loud most of the time No rent and no cost of transporting out to Rosemont. More chance for student interest etc.

They played a game against UIC in McGrath this year.  Paid attendance was listed at 2,099.

Looking at the picture of the crowd:  there are five sections of seats on each side of the court.  Three larger sections in the middle and smaller sections on either end.  One of the end sections had three people and the section on the other end had 11.  The three middle sections maybe 50 in each.   No way that side of the court had over 300 in the seats.

[Galway Eagle]

#hibernatinggiant

#deadgiant

[Bocephys]

#deadgiant

[Dawson Rental]

Unless they had a long term contract with Rosemont, they would have been better off financially to have played in the on the McGrath on campus arena for this last season. Seats 3,000. The games would have been sold out and loud most of the time No rent and no cost of transporting out to Rosemont. More chance for student interest etc.

Playing in a 3,000 seat arena could very well be against Big East requirements.  I don't see how anyone could fault your logic for playing there for a financial standpoint, though.

[GooooMarquette]

Just spend a TV timeout asking everyone to count off.

I truly laughed out loud....

[GooooMarquette]

Unless they had a long term contract with Rosemont, they would have been better off financially to have played in the on the McGrath on campus arena for this last season. Seats 3,000. The games would have been sold out and loud most of the time No rent and no cost of transporting out to Rosemont. More chance for student interest etc.

They would have been better off simply keeping Alumni Hall.  On campus, 5,300 seats, and a total deathtrap for opponents.  I get the desire to always look for bigger and better, but bigger only mattered for a few seasons, and Rosemont was certainly not better by most measures.  Alumni Hall was a nightmare for opponents; Rosemont was a nightmare for DePaul's own fans. 

They should have done something like SJU did - keeping Carnesecca Arena for games where they expect smaller crowds, and using a larger, existing arena for the few marquee games.  Carnesecca is about the same age and size as Alumni Hall was.

[Herman Cain]

They would have been better off simply keeping Alumni Hall.  On campus, 5,300 seats, and a total deathtrap for opponents.  I get the desire to always look for bigger and better, but bigger only mattered for a few seasons, and Rosemont was certainly not better by most measures.  Alumni Hall was a nightmare for opponents; Rosemont was a nightmare for DePaul's own fans. 

They should have done something like SJU did - keeping Carnesecca Arena for games where they expect smaller crowds, and using a larger, existing arena for the few marquee games.  Carnesecca is about the same age and size as Alumni Hall was.

Here is a story on Alumni Hall.  They were originially going to build it for 10,000 but they spoke with Northwestern who convinced them to make it smaller, big mistake.
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1999-11-19/sports/9911210141_1_alumni-hall-blue-demons-ray-meyer/2

I do think the new on campus facility could have been made larger and given them more flexibility.

The Johnnies updated Carnesecca a few years back so it is has a good long future viability.

[chapman]

That info doesn't usually get leaked. Someone wants JLPs head.

That person has a clue.  The rest are busy giving her another award.