Not streaming the games online would be one (probably unpopular) way to increase attendance.

I really think it's a product of today's access to so much stuff. People just don't want to spend lots of time at one event. The generation that used to attend the whole tournament is getting a lot older (or passed on) as someone mentioned. My dad just can't go for the whole tourney any more. Maybe one game or two if we're lucky.

 

The newer generation will only go if their team is involved and probably isn't going to stick around for other games (even in the same day). And the Sunday final was just a BAD idea. Lot's of older people will stick around on Saturday but not stay over for Sunday.

Edited April 18, 201610 yr by maysvilleky

I'd like to see ticket prices adjusted in an effort to reward/encourage people to attend more often. I'm making these numbers up, but work with me:

 

-Buy 1 session of lower tickets, it costs $18 per session

 

-Buy 2 sessions of tickets, it costs $16 per session

 

-Buy 4 sessions of tickets, it costs $13 per session

 

 

Or you could make the first round tickets cheaper to try and encourage more casual fans to attend. Extend the prices a bit as the tournament progresses and more people are likely to attend.

Cost of these things stop people or families from going. Say a family of 4 wants to go. You are looking at a lot of money for tickets alone.

Gas

Food

Lodging if necessary

Ticket price

Please bring back the sat championship!!

 

Looking at the last 15 championship Saturdays for the boys "sweet 16" prior to moving the championship game to Sunday.

The bottom bracket team who played the 2nd semi final game won 8 championship game and the team who won the early game won 7.

 

Was there ever a championship game won by a team of lesser talent who got to play the first semi final and they won the championship because they were fresher than their opponent who had to play the second semi final?

 

I don't think so, the 2 games being too much on Saturday is way overblown!

Cost of these things stop people or families from going. Say a family of 4 wants to go. You are looking at a lot of money for tickets alone.

Gas

Food

Lodging if necessary

Ticket price

 

None of these items have ever been free, and gas, food and lodging costs are things that the KHSAA has no control over. Ticket price is, but I don't think lowering ticket prices a few $'s will do all that much for attendance. It's easy to point out costs as a problem, but a week away from home to watch the tourney has never been a cheap getaway.

Hyatt and Hilton room prices have gotten out of control.

I think it's a generational thing.

 

The generation of people who are big time HS sports fans is dying out.

 

My generation just doesn't care about high school sports, unless their school is playing and even that support is quickly diminishing.

As several have suggested, perhaps there is no fix.

 

But if indeed some of the greater losses of attendance is due to the lack of interest of the younger kids/generations, then about all that can be done is to experiment with enticing them to want to be there. Not sure what that consists of though.

Perhaps more of a fan interaction experience? Have designated times for kids/adults to put up some shots on the Rupp floor? Maybe have some designated times for Pee Wee/younger teams to scrimmage? Maybe before or between sessions? These may all be bad ideas and of course there no guarantees, but it seems that what was once enough entertainment to buy a ticket, watch a ballgame with a bag of popcorn and Coke is just not enough, unfortunately.

I don't buy the argument that people/casual fan won't go to the Sunday games because of the cost of the extra day. People who do that are purposely trying to get the final back to Saturday night by using money as an excuse to strong arm the KHSAA. Why not just come down a day later and still stay for 4 days if the cost of one more day will break your bank account? If I have a choice between a day of the Sweet 16 missed then I am missing first round games and not the championship game. I don't understand why folks would invest the whole week of Sweet 16 and skip out on the climax. That doesn't make sense. Just come down on Thursday and stay through Sunday instead of staying Wednesday through Saturday.

 

As a practitioner of epic stubbornness I can say that I respect and applaud the stubbornness of sticking to the Wednesday through Saturday tradition of coming to Sweet 16 and missing out on the Finals because they are on Sunday. That is my kind of stubbornness.

I am 41 years old and as long as I am living in KY I will be at every Sweet 16. I bring my son along when he can make it but I don't know that he will go every year like I do.

 

There is so much going on that my generation has less and less time to attend the whole Sweet 16. Baseball has started, AAU has started, softball has started, spring soccer has started, middle school volleyball has started, the NCAA tournament has started and modern technology allows people to know everything about every game from the comfort of their homes, offices and cars. I think this has hurt attendance more than anything else.

 

I know people from Mercer County mad that baseball practice wasn't cancelled so they could go to the Mercer County/Dunbar game. Situations like that happen all across the state at every school in the Sweet 16 and that hurts attendance as well.

As several have suggested, perhaps there is no fix.

 

But if indeed some of the greater losses of attendance is due to the lack of interest of the younger kids/generations, then about all that can be done is to experiment with enticing them to want to be there. Not sure what that consists of though.

Perhaps more of a fan interaction experience? Have designated times for kids/adults to put up some shots on the Rupp floor? Maybe have some designated times for Pee Wee/younger teams to scrimmage? Maybe before or between sessions? These may all be bad ideas and of course there no guarantees, but it seems that what was once enough entertainment to buy a ticket, watch a ballgame with a bag of popcorn and Coke is just not enough, unfortunately.

 

Those are all fine ideas, but I don't think any enticements are going to make a generation that generally doesn't get enjoyment from high school basketball spend their time and money at an event like this.

I've been going every year it has been at Rupp (except one year) since I've been in 1st grade (I'm 33 years old currently). Some of my ideas on how to increase the fan experience...

1. Free wi-fi at Rupp with better cell service

2. Don't have it during the NCAA tournament (and if they must then they should have the NCAA tournament games playing in the monitors in the concourse like they did back in the 90s) or at least have better wi-fi service.

3. Charge only $10 per session

4. Consider moving the first round to Memorial

5. Consider having sectionals so that maybe only 8 teams go to Rupp.

6. Find a way to seed the best 4 teams

7. Cut down on the length of media timeouts and time in between games (I don't like to sit through all these KHSAA presentations)

8. Cut it back from 5 days to 4 because people who come from far away don't want to pay for a hotel for an extra night.

9. Don't charge as much for concessions

10. Bring back more kid friendly activities (they used to have these in the 90s)

11. Some of the regions are just awful, I don't enjoy seeing mediocre teams make it to Rupp (not sure what they could do about this, maybe having sectionals or finding a way to even out the talent in the regions but keep it somewhat geographical (if possible). Note that the KOB has better basketball games as compared to the Sweet 16 many years. As a fan it would be fun to see the best of the best play at Rupp. Sometimes I would rather go to watch the 7th region games as opposed to the Sweet 16 if I had to pick one.

12. Let fans come and go as they please during sessions (get your hand stamped and come back during the same session), especially if wireless is bad and you want to watch a few minutes of the ncaa tournament at the hyatt between games.

I'd like to see ticket prices adjusted in an effort to reward/encourage people to attend more often. I'm making these numbers up, but work with me:

 

-Buy 1 session of lower tickets, it costs $18 per session

 

-Buy 2 sessions of tickets, it costs $16 per session

 

-Buy 4 sessions of tickets, it costs $13 per session

 

 

Or you could make the first round tickets cheaper to try and encourage more casual fans to attend. Extend the prices a bit as the tournament progresses and more people are likely to attend.

 

Like this type of creative thinking. The problem is not unsolvable and creative thinking will be key elements necessary to developing an all encompassing strategic plan.

I've been going every year it has been at Rupp (except one year) since I've been in 1st grade (I'm 33 years old currently). Some of my ideas on how to increase the fan experience...

1. Free wi-fi at Rupp with better cell service

2. Don't have it during the NCAA tournament (and if they must then they should have the NCAA tournament games playing in the monitors in the concourse like they did back in the 90s) or at least have better wi-fi service.

3. Charge only $10 per session

4. Consider moving the first round to Memorial

5. Consider having sectionals so that maybe only 8 teams go to Rupp.

6. Find a way to seed the best 4 teams

7. Cut down on the length of media timeouts and time in between games (I don't like to sit through all these KHSAA presentations)

8. Cut it back from 5 days to 4 because people who come from far away don't want to pay for a hotel for an extra night.

9. Don't charge as much for concessions

10. Bring back more kid friendly activities (they used to have these in the 90s)

11. Some of the regions are just awful, I don't enjoy seeing mediocre teams make it to Rupp (not sure what they could do about this, maybe having sectionals or finding a way to even out the talent in the regions but keep it somewhat geographical (if possible). Note that the KOB has better basketball games as compared to the Sweet 16 many years. As a fan it would be fun to see the best of the best play at Rupp. Sometimes I would rather go to watch the 7th region games as opposed to the Sweet 16 if I had to pick one.

12. Let fans come and go as they please during sessions (get your hand stamped and come back during the same session), especially if wireless is bad and you want to watch a few minutes of the ncaa tournament at the hyatt between games.

Maybe don't buy them all, but tons of good ideas, Teeroy. All the fan experience items are especially painless to implement and will add greatly to the overall enjoyment.

 

The KHSAA's overall operation is financially dependent on the Sweet Sixteens success. So glad to see them open the ranks to external expertise for help. For too long they have listened to the naysayers negativity that nothing can be done. So they have attempted to increase the bottom line with expense reductions that have negatively impacted the fan experience. This exercise with business marketing types is a huge step in the right direction.