BOKC Wildcat

No, SMG is not responsible for marketing NKU basketball. NKU has a marketing and promotions department with a full staff that does their marketing and promos. SMG helps in the tickets, to a smaller degree from what I understand, but NKU and the athletics dept. is responsible for the marketing of games. SMG does not do their publicity efforts either and Learfield Sports has the rights to their radio and electronic media. NKU is responsible for maintaining their own website with information and getting stories on TV and the papers, not SMG.

I can't wait to see what NKU lists as their attendance for the women's game in Regents Hall on Feb. 21. They play North Florida for that game that has been moved from the BOKC. I know Regents Hall holds about 1,600, so it will be funny if NKU lists the crowd at 3,000 because of all the season tickets their men sold, staff, players, etc. Look for this to be the first of many NKU women's games moving to Regents Hall the next few years.

We have noticed the past two years NKU seems to inflate their attendance numbers for the public, no one really understands this at SMG. I saw the ACTUAL attendance count (those who entered the arena via tickets) and it was 4,019. NKU's 5,089 reflects those who have season tickets, even if they don't show up, players, coaches and staff for both teams, game crew, media, cheerleaders, band, dancers, even public safety and SMG workers! So take that NKU ANNOUNCED CROWD and subtract about 600-700 every game, if not more.

Here is a scoop from one of the NKU men's basketball coaches about their schedule next year. NKU will play Xavier. The coach did not say if it is at the BOKC or at Xavier. But it is going to happen next season. Hopefully if its at the BOKC they don't play it on a Sunday against the NFL. lol!

You are incorrect. There were 4,019 in ACTUAL attendance for the West Va. game. You are counting in people who buy tickets and don't show, all personnel that NKU counts as attendance which I don't understand (they count players, coaches, game staff at the table). Trust me, there were not even close to the 6,000 you claim.

If its a Title 9 violation, why is NKU playing the women's game in Regents Hall next month? I don't know much about Title 9. Front row of the bleachers you say? How are they going to transport The Vault over the Regents Hall? Free admission to The Vault is part of your perks for being court side ticket holders. lol!

I did not even know that. Makes playing the West Va. game on that Sunday even more questionable.

I know the building cost around $68 million dollars of state money. Not sure who primary tenant is. I say whoever brings in the money to finance the building. In a perfect world, NKU would be a primary tenant, but reality is they have very few fans compared to the high schools and big events. I don't know why they can't play the women's games in Regents Hall. As I said, they are playing a women's game in Regents Hall next month and that will be a preview of things to come, in my opinion. They will have 300-400 fans and have a real advantage playing in front of them in a smaller arena. Those same fans in the BOKC don't pay for the electricity bills. There is a disconnect between NKU and SMG on how to handle the building, dates, and the like, but keep in mind the circus that moved NKU out of the BOKC in 2009. BOTH teams had to play games in Regents Hall. So who knows who the primary tenant really is. They moved the women's game out this year to Regents Hall and cushioned it by saying it's Retro Night (wink-wink). Wonder how the court side seat ticket holders are going to use their court side seats in Regents Hall next month for the women's game? (wink-wink!).

Little dogs don't bother old Marine vets! I've seen a lot worse bites in my time, so these little barks just amuse me! lol

I am actually defending my employer, SMG, against the person who said we are not hosting the 9th region. Just FYI.

I took from the conversation that people question the effectiveness of NKU moving to Division I. I never saw them and their crowds in Regents Hall, but everyone who did seems to think the atmosphere was much better due to a smaller venue. It does make sense that if you are drawing about 1,000 per game, Regents Hall was perfect for their basketball program. Now they play in from of 8,000 empty seats in a huge arena virtually every game. One of the assistant coaches told us they should have built the BOKC at about 5,000 capacity for basketball, but even that is too big based on the crowds. They had West Va. in this season and only had about 4,000 show up, partly because they messed up and played on a Sunday against the NFL and with the Bengals at home vs. the Steelers. That is plain old lack of common sense on someone's part at NKU, not the BOKC. Right after that game, you could tell their administrators were not happy with the crowd because they were telling everyone it would be a sellout when the game was announced. The fact they only had 4,000 or so, many of them West Va. fans, convinced me the SMG brass is correct in that NKU basketball is hurting the business of generating revenue. My solution would be to put all the women's games back in Regents Hall, and let the men play selected games in the BOKC that have the potential to draw. I am not sure how to do that, but SMG could bring in a slew of shows in the winter were they not handcuffed by having to set aside dates for NKU basketball, even the women's games that draw about 200-400 fans!

Says who? Have you got access to any agreements we sign at the BOKC? No, because we do not. Anything I have posted here is common knowledge. I work part time at the BOKC for events only. Please refrain from telling me what is appropriate if you do not have all the facts. Thank you.

Agree with you one hundred pct! SMG and the BOKC has NOTHING AT ALL to do with the parking, that is all on NKU. Their public safety has no idea how to control traffic for big events. Parking is all NKU. Concessions, well, no comment! lol.

In the first year NKU made a deal to have the circus in the BOKC and forced their own basketball teams to play in Regents Hall near the end of the season. I worked the circus 3 or 4 straight days and NKU was in Regents Hall. Not sure of the particulars, but Les Crooks was the GM of the BOKC who made that deal for the circus. There was lots of controversy about it and he left the BOKC for a reason I wasn't privy to. James Votruba was the NKU President at the time and said he knew nothing about the circus taking priority over the NKU basketball, but that's hard to believe. The lady athletic director at the time said they were given a choice of weekends to play at the BOKC and they chose a tournament week because of the women's team. I remember the women's team did host a tournament after that in March. All of us were told by the SMG brass to refer any circus questions to Kevin Contardo, who was the SMG PR person then.

Were the games with Ken Shields in Regents Hall attended well? I never saw a game over there until 2006.

All concerts bleachers pulled back. High school proms, specialty events (roller skating, Circus Solei, Walking with Dinosaurs) also retracted. I think they will begin pulling them back for high school games shortly. They could pull back for NKU games, but there is not enough students there for those games to bother.

The NKU people say their students get in for free already. I know they always have youth groups in attendance and assumed they got in free as well. Why did they build a 9,000-seat arena for a program that can barely get 1,000 fans a night in my question. Last week they had an OK crowd on Thursday, but Saturday was another so-so attendance day. Some of their own people were complaining about playing at almost the same time as UK that day and I agree with them. That's on who ever does scheduling. Like I said earlier, there seems to be a lack of understanding by the NKU administrators on scheduling game times and even teams. They brought in Clermont College and another school from Ohio Mid-West earlier in the season and never understood that.

Still there for events on a part time basis. I was there for Carrie Underwood working the first event, Walking With Dinosaurs, Louisville vs. NKU basketball exhibition, you name it!

One reason why I think the women will go back to Regents Hall for all games in future. They play a A-Sun game in Regents next month and the feedback/shouting from women's fans should be interesting. They are calling it a Retro Night to cushion the fact the BOKC is taken. lol.

The simple solution is just have NKU games in the BOKC - there's rarely many students in attendance! lol. I could not resist. Shame on me!

I don't think that will ever happen in the BOKC. Maybe some minor breaks, but no catastrophe like the video posted. Just my opinion.

This goes back to the construction flaws for the retractable bleachers when the BOKC was built. They wanted this facility built in a hurry, and the result is borderline negligence in what you are pointing out. SMG does due diligence and fixes the breaks, but it all goes back to the construction of the building prior to 2008. Only way to fix the problem is either eliminate the end zone bleachers (possibly in the works!) or spend thousands of tax dollars replacing current bleachers for a facility that isn't used often enough.

I don't know much about the Division I and Division II particulars, but NKU would be better served playing at a smaller level due to the competition they face in this area for fans. They were playing in Division II when the BOKC opened in 2008 (that's when I started there as well for SMG events) and the crowds were more enthusiastic. I remember Bellarmine brought about 1,000 of their fans to a game and the atmosphere was great. From talking with people at the time, NKU also had a chance to win national championships in Division II. That is all behind them. The crowds are sparse this year, there is zilch enthusiasm as evidenced by a women's game that had NO STUDENTS IN THE BLEACHERS! My opinion is they made a mistake by moving up to Division I without proof they could draw at least 3,000 or 4,000 per game. The BOKC holds 9,000-plus seats and they are drawing about 1,000 per game for the men. I won't even venture a guess on the women crowds, but it's brutally small. Molly is still GM and does a great job. She got Bruno Mars agent to build stages a couple of summer ago in the BOKC. That was fun stuff in the arena, and hardly anyone knew!

I remember two years ago before NKU's athletic director was fired, they were actually doing some creative things to try and improve attendance. The athletic director they brought in after that is apparently just a Yes Man to the school's President, according to people in the BOKC. One of the SMG people said he was the athletic director somewhere in Wisconsin before NKU hired him, but he has brought nothing idea-wise to help attendance. He also caters to the women's head coach and they allow her to set up extra baskets for practice event though it costs a lot of money to take them down and put them up after games or events. She was an assistant coach at the same Wisconsin school the athletic director was at several years ago. I have also noticed the NKU President shows up and sits in the front row for women's games, but he rarely appears for the men's games. Not sure how to read into that!

You are correct. There was NEVER any talk about canceling the 9th Region tournament by the BOKC. Never.