Attendance
- Thread starter Cap pitt
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Tarping the stadium is actually not a feasible option in my opinion because we sell enough seats to occupy all parts of the stadium, but not nearly enough to fill it.
Further, the point is not that our own right sized stadium will increase attendance. It's rather an acceptance about the size of our fan base and an attempt to obtain a good home game atmosphere, create some demand for tickets, and finally rid ourselves of these attendance complaint issues.
Accept the fan base for what it is and build a 45K to 50K stadium. When we do, issues relating to student attendance, visiting fan attendance, what the crowd looks like on TV, etc. will be gone. And our typical game day crowd of around 40K will look quite good in such a stadium.
Louisville stadium capacity -- 55,000
Georgia Tech -- 55,000
Syracuse -- 49,000
Boston College -- 44,500
And a lot of the above-facilities (except UL) look as empty or worse than Heinz Field on gameday.
Why are we trying to fill a 70,000 seat stadium? Our fan base is comparable or better than other conference opponents or schools with similar enrollments. It's the venue that's the problem.
Further, the point is not that our own right sized stadium will increase attendance. It's rather an acceptance about the size of our fan base and an attempt to obtain a good home game atmosphere, create some demand for tickets, and finally rid ourselves of these attendance complaint issues.
Accept the fan base for what it is and build a 45K to 50K stadium. When we do, issues relating to student attendance, visiting fan attendance, what the crowd looks like on TV, etc. will be gone. And our typical game day crowd of around 40K will look quite good in such a stadium.
Louisville stadium capacity -- 55,000
Georgia Tech -- 55,000
Syracuse -- 49,000
Boston College -- 44,500
And a lot of the above-facilities (except UL) look as empty or worse than Heinz Field on gameday.
Why are we trying to fill a 70,000 seat stadium? Our fan base is comparable or better than other conference opponents or schools with similar enrollments. It's the venue that's the problem.
For me there are two separate issues. 1. A new stadium doesn't fix the attendance issue. We've always had attendance issues and Heinz Field size only amplifies that fact 2. People want an on campus stadium because they are nice to have and kind of go hand in hand with the college experience.
I don't think an on campus stadium will exponentially grow attendance...it won't. But 40K fans will seem a lot larger in a 45-50K stadium than it will in 68K seat Heinz.
For me, I focus on the game itself but do feel that the atmosphere at Heinz is lacking when we aren't playing a ND, WVU, or PSU. I don't get bent out of shape about it but do miss the days when we could walk up the hill to Pitt Stadium.
And yes, Pitt Stadium was too big for our needs as well. It was time for it to go, given its size, its condition, and the fact that the field was cavernous with the track going around it. I would have loved to see them build a smaller stadium on its site and build the basketball arena elsewhere (much easier to accommodate). But that didn't happen and I'm generally OK with whatever the university decides to do.
I don't think an on campus stadium will exponentially grow attendance...it won't. But 40K fans will seem a lot larger in a 45-50K stadium than it will in 68K seat Heinz.
For me, I focus on the game itself but do feel that the atmosphere at Heinz is lacking when we aren't playing a ND, WVU, or PSU. I don't get bent out of shape about it but do miss the days when we could walk up the hill to Pitt Stadium.
And yes, Pitt Stadium was too big for our needs as well. It was time for it to go, given its size, its condition, and the fact that the field was cavernous with the track going around it. I would have loved to see them build a smaller stadium on its site and build the basketball arena elsewhere (much easier to accommodate). But that didn't happen and I'm generally OK with whatever the university decides to do.
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Attendance threads get old.
Do not sell Season tickets for Upper End Zone, so they they can be tarped. Sell only game day tickets for upper end zone when playing Notre Dame, Penn State and West Virginia.
The Pittsburgh Pirates tarped old "Three Rivers Stadium" for years.
Tarped a 60,000 capacity stadium down to 30,000.
Easy
AD Barnes get on it.
Tired of these attendance threads.
HAIL TO PITT!!!!
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Why is it that pitt is the only place where this occurs? Think about it, 15000 people hiding out away from the seating areas would have been 43% of all the people at the game on Saturday (if we are assuming the announced attendance was correct). Why is it that no place else in America has such a phenomenon? Will there be 45000 people hiding out somewhere other than there seats at Ohio Stadium this Saturday? Hell, will there even be 15000? Of course not. And the weather will be every bit as bad as it was last Saturday in Pittsburgh.
This idea that people have gotten that there are 10000 or 15000 or 20000 people at the stadium but not in the seating areas at any given moment is absurd. I mean at half time, sure. But at random moments when the game is going on? No. Not even close.
Tarping the seats is the dumbest idea ever. I'd be more embarassed to show a recruit tarped off seats because you may as well admit you've given up. No college stadium in the country tarps off seats. I don't want to be the first one. The fact that you are so steadfastly eager to do so is troubling.
Like it or not, Pitt will be faced with building their own stadium one day. Heinz Field has what 14 years left? We are in a much better financial situation now. Time to build our own stadium.
The city won't let Pitt close Bigelow. You think they would let us build a stadium? Please stop the insanity.
Hopefully the tide shifts and the city can start to realize that Pitt is the best thing it has going for it.
If the residents of North Philadelphia can't stop Temple's plan I don't see the city stopping Pitt's ever they ever devised one.
Then we would lose 20,000 paying fans every time we play Notre Dame,Penn State and West Virginia.
Tarping is the answer.
What Pitt needs now are new facilities for Track and Field.
AD Barnes get it done.
HAIL TO PITT!!!!
Because that happens so often.
We would also be able to keep all concession revenues, which I don't believe we do now.
We would more than make up that money by generating greater demand for the seats in a smaller stadium (our seats are incredibly cheap right now), keeping money through stadium concessions and parking, and by requiring athletic department donations for seats due to increased demand.
20K fans for the opposing team which we can do without.
We'd probably have to build a 30K seat stadium to get that sort of demand then.
I appreciate your honesty even on an anonymous message board. I'll be honest too.
You are part of the problem. Please accept that as fact. Until you and the other 10-15% of hard core Pitt fans change their ways and attend no matter what, then our game day atmosphere will be poor.
What they need to do is build a new VA hospital near the airport (I think someone's suggested this on here) and then build the new stadium there. One stadium that I really like is Houston's TDECU Stadium. 40,000 and you could easily expand the upper deck to get around 50,000. It's probably the nicest of all the new stadiums and it looks bigger than what it is. Looked very good in the UH-Louisville game.
I think those who think Pitt will build an on campus stadium are the same people in Pittsburgh who still talk about how good the steelers where in the 70's.
It's over it will never happen. And yes there are other teams that tarp off stadiums, and yes it looks 10 times better.
We would not have this problem if you and the rest of the so called Pittsburgh fans, Alumni, and Students would spend $5 for a ticket. Get out of your mom's basement.
It's over it will never happen. And yes there are other teams that tarp off stadiums, and yes it looks 10 times better.
We would not have this problem if you and the rest of the so called Pittsburgh fans, Alumni, and Students would spend $5 for a ticket. Get out of your mom's basement.
There's a direct and undeniable correlation between greater attendance, improved atmosphere, better recruiting, and winning. Greater attendance=improved atmosphere=better recruiting=better chance of winning. If you look at the 15 largest stadiums in the country, every one of those schools is the top portion of the all-time winningest college football programs.
If attendance didn't matter, why do all schools, including Pitt, bring in recruits to see a game with the largest crowd for that season? Pitt brought in recruits for the Penn State game not the Duke game, not the Marshall game, etc.
Whenever someone here mentions the best atmosphere at Heinz Field, most of those were all games that were sold out or near sellouts or had a large crowd (Penn State, Notre Dame, Cincinnati).
So attendance matters. Would you show off Pitt's gameday atmosphere when Pitt had 30,000 people in it? Or does it look better when there are 60,000 people in attendance? No brainer.
Our veterans deserve a new hospital and Pitt football deserves a new stadium of their own!
Not true. Rarely is not true. You show me a list of games that shows attendance that verifies that.
Again there will never be another on campus stadium live with it.
I also hold the university partially responsible for this problem. THE SPORTS MARKETING DEPARTMENT MUST SUCK.
If you can't get 15k in students, 30k in Alumni, and 15k in Pittsburgh fans to come to a game with $5 tickets you have to be doing NO MARKETING.
I also hold the university partially responsible for this problem. THE SPORTS MARKETING DEPARTMENT MUST SUCK.
If you can't get 15k in students, 30k in Alumni, and 15k in Pittsburgh fans to come to a game with $5 tickets you have to be doing NO MARKETING.
Since our own damn students aren't interested in going we should offer discounted student season tickets to kids from Carlow, Duquesne, Chatham, etc.
Its not that our students aren't interested in going (record numbers bought tickets). The problem is we can't keep them at a full game.
I don't think the VA is going anywhere given all the money they've sunk into that hospital over the past 10-20 years. And they are usually at or close to capacity.
I was thinking the same thing, but it's the only place that makes sense where we could build a large enough stadium. The other option would be the OC Lot since they'd most likely want it to be in Upper Campus. It would look like this:
This looks a tad small though. Has to be under 40,000. Anyone have more info on this rendering?
It's not moving. Never. It's location was and is intentional and the land was provided by Pitt in the 40s to build the medical center up, just like land was given for Presby to move from the North Side. The VA wants to be next to Presby and the med school. There are Pitt Med faculty practicing in the VA. It has been a de facto part of the university med center since 1950.
I was thinking the same thing, but it's the only place that makes sense where we could build a large enough stadium. The other option would be the OC Lot since they'd most likely want it to be in Upper Campus. It would look like this:
This looks a tad small though. Has to be under 40,000. Anyone have more info on this rendering?
Yes, I originally posted that originally over a decade ago
It was done by an architectural firm (maybe Apostolou) back in the late 90s as study for potential athletic complex development in conjunction with the development of the Pete.
However, that is never going to happen on that site. Neither is an on-campus stadium going to happen on or adjacent to the current university grounds.
I tend to agree. I don't think anything happens for a long time. I see a few scenarios where it could eventually get done. One would involve buying up land in South Oakland....a long and slow process. Not sure if that would even matter given the street grid. Another would involve the demolition of Forbes Quad. It won't happen for a long time but I could see the university looking to redevelop that space eventually. There is so much wasted space in that building (although many would consider a new stadium wasted space too). I don't see anything else working.
The stadium doesn't need to be on campus. But it needs to be Pitt's own stadium and it needs to be right sized.
I don't think anyone sees playing off campus in the Steelers home stadium (wherever that might be in the future) as a long term solution.
I don't think anyone sees playing off campus in the Steelers home stadium (wherever that might be in the future) as a long term solution.
Those scenarios will never happen. A stadium on the Forbes Quad plot is absolutely ludicrous. The current plans are to expand Forbes Quad (Posvar Hall)...south side of the building over the plaza along Clemente Dr. There is less wasted space in Posvar than people think. It houses a huge chunk of the university and is only going to get bigger.
In fantasy world, that would be a fantastic location for a stadium from an aesthetic perspective, but it is only a fantasy world dream.
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A solution to WHAT! Read the foregoing posts, it is CLEAR that whether a stadium is on or off campus, 40,000 or 75,000 seats, it just doesn't matter in terms of more or less people attending! As evidence, we can look at about every school outside the SEC, a couple in the ACC south and three big 10 schools. We aren't in that category, never have been and never will be.
More directly, just compare Pitt attendance over decades at Pitt stadium. With the exception of a few years in the late 70's early 80's - we draw consistently better at Heinz than on campus! There is just no factual basis for building a new Pitt stadium wherever located. Enough!
I think you should go back and read my posts again. I specifically said that I was not suggesting that an on campus stadium would increase attendance.
Reading Comprehension.
My suggestion for why we should have a stadium has nothing to do with drawing more fans. Read my posts again--it's about atmosphere, ticket demand, home field advantage.
Reading Comprehension.
Contrary to your claim, we don't draw appreciably better at Heinz Field than we did at Pitt Stadium. We draw fewer fans now than we did in 1982. That's 34 years ago. Our fan base is basically the same size (which is bad).
Do more people attend games today than 30-40 years ago? Is attendance up everywhere compared to 30-40 years ago? Yes to both. So drawing more people at Heinz Field (compared to the awful teams we fielded during the final years of Pitt Stadium) means absolutely nothing.
Offer them a bag of chips and a coke diet or regular.
That job goes to the PITT athletics customer service employee with the lowest senority!
I was thinking the same thing, but it's the only place that makes sense where we could build a large enough stadium. The other option would be the OC Lot since they'd most likely want it to be in Upper Campus. It would look like this:
This looks a tad small though. Has to be under 40,000. Anyone have more info on this rendering?
That's a neat drawing, but a full sized stadium absolutely positively DOES NOT FIT into that space in that orientation. No way, no how. Unless you are planning on building it without seats.
Yeah, it is unrealistic, but so are just about all of the locations anyone proposes for an OC stadium. I'm sure Pitt would have gone taller if they could get a redo on the Forbes Quad design. They are going to have to start building more vertically in the very near future if they want to accommodate future growth. I wouldn't be surprised if we see one or a few 20+ story buildings on campus over the next few decades.
Yes, every one of them is pure fantasy.
They wouldn't have gone taller with Forbes Quad. It is specifically scaled to reflect the scale and massing of the Carnegie Institute buildings across the Plaza. That is not only a design sensitivity to the existing historic structures, but also a consequence of doing business in a historic district where everything has to be approved by multiple planning and historic commissions.
Pitt is not going to be building anything taller in the central part of campus around the Cathedral. The new building on the Syria Mosque site with be scaled and massed to fit in along with the PAA and its new hotel addition, Soldiers & Sailors, and the University Club and Nordenberg. Nordenberg Hall was about as big as they can go around the S&S lawn.
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