bincitysioux

Is anybody elses broadcast coming in in Black and white?

The only Alerus Center sell-out that I am aware of is the 2001 Sioux-Bison game in which attendance is listed at 13,500, the listed capacity of the Alerus. There have been several games since then around 12,500 including the last Sioux-Bison game, but I have never heard of any other game being a sell-out. I have heard rumors that UND is notorious for underreporting football games at the Alerus. The Sioux Center situation is entirely different.

I think if there is going to be any expansion of existing facillities, Bunning needs to figure out how to get about 1,000-1,500 more seats in the Betty, rather than worry about getting another 4,000 seats in the Alerus which usually has about 3,000-4,000 empty seats in it on Saturdays.

I am perplexed by the discussion of expanding the seating in the Alerus. There has only been one sell-out in 5 years. There likely won't be any more sell-outs unless a DI move is made, and NDSU comes to town. That is also questionable, because by UND's numbers the final UND-NDSU game did not sell out either. I just don't see a need for it at this point in time. Perhaps after we've been members of the Big Sky for about 10 years, but not now. The only seating modifications that I think would be immediately beneficial to increasing attendance at the games, and relatively cost efficient, would be to add REA-style Club Lounges in the North and South concourses. The Clubs in the REA are always packed and offer a nice "upscale" alternative to the Suites, that both regular fans can afford and Corporations would be interested in owning seats in. Having a place in the building like this where fans are catered to would likely bring more people to the games just for the experience of being there, which is why alot of people come to hockey games, because it's the place to be on a Friday or Saturday night. I know someone mentioned that moving FB games to 7 p.m. rather than 1 p.m. may help attendance. I'd agree. At least moving non-conference games to evening Kickoffs would certainly help attendance. Alot of people do work all day on Saturdays. Why does Coach Lennon oppose this?

What's the deal with the Satworks? That's also what I used last year, this year I'm using a Fortec, which I'm very happy with.

Yes, this satellite is far superior to last years. My quality rarely falls below 90%. Last year I was in the 35-48% range all season, and rarely made it through an entire game without any issues.

I am sure you are referring to one of the Gillette girls from DP. The sophomore reminds me of Langen. She has a sister who is a junior is a better all around player and very athletic. Reminds me of Boese.

When did this Thursday-Saturday combo go into effect? Is this the first year? Why did they go to that format? Friday-Saturday seems like a much better deal, or maybe even one or two Saturday night-Sunday afternooners. I'd think alot of people wouldn't mind taking the family to a Sunday afternoon basketball game after the NFL season comes to an end. Was it changed because of all the hockey schools in the NCC?

Although I have been one of the supporters of the Betty, I must admit I am disappointed to learn that 3,064 constitutes a sell-out. Having been there, I would not have guessed that that's all it holds. As someone in this thread pointed out, the Betty's website claims a capacity of ~ 3,300, which is too small. Like many others, I have always been under the impression that it would hold between 3,600 and 4,000, which I also thought was on the small side, but was a number that I could live with, given UND's historical b-ball attendance combined with the state of the NCC (meaning our biggest drawing game is no longer on the schedule). Still, I think this is being blown out of proportion, and hands down I prefer the Sioux Center to the REA, Hyslop, and Alerus Center. Hindsight is 20/20, but looking back, I think that refurbishing the old REA for basketball may have been a better option, but the Englestad Family/REA Inc. wasn't going to pay for that, so we gain the benefit of a new state of the art arena (albeit a little small) as opposed to the University having to pay the rennovation of the old REA. Perhaps a toss-up? Speaking as an alum, I can say that I have gone to more games this year than I ever have since I was a student (when students got into the Hyslop for free), simply because the games are in the Betty and the atmosphere is absolutely spectacular. I would never want to step foot into the Hyslop again period, I would never go to another DII/NCC game in REA (the only games I'll go to in the Ralph again will require a Divisional reclassification so that NDSU, a Montana school, Big 10 school, or other significant DI opponent is on the schedule), and there is absolutely no way in hell that I will watch Sioux basketball in the Alerus! The things that Sicatoka has been saying in this thread can be taken as Gospel. The capacity of the Sioux Center needs to be increased by a minimum of 1,000. This can be easily done in two ways. First, larger bleachers on the ends. I know they need to fold and store, but they are much smaller than what I anticipated they would be, and there is plenty of room for larger ones. I'd estimate that the bleachers could be at least half again if not 3/4 again the size they are now. Second, stop giving season basketball tickets to REA Suite and Club Lounge Seat holders. The people that sit in the Suites and Clubs in the REA can probably afford the $12 it costs to go to a basketball game if they want to. Also, the majority of Suite holders are corporations that have an interest in Sioux hockey for marketing reasons, rather than actual loyalty to the rest of the University's athletic programs. To me it is worth it to be able to sell those seats to willing buyers than to allot them to those who won't use them and count them as tickets sold/heads counted.

Actually, attendance is about the same this year for the women as last year, even a little less, and the men's attendance was much higher last year. There were 4400 for SCSU last year in the Ralph. So if UND turned away 1400 people, they missed out on about $17,000.

Maybe it was built with the idea that the volleyball team would be drawing 3,000+ someday. Sounds like I may have been wrong about the Betty. They have alot of money tied up in all those leather seats if it was just intended as practice facility. Still, it will bum me out the day I have to go back to the Ralph for an NCC game.

What was the atmosphere like? How did the Betty handle the aforementioned issues, with the biggest crowd on hand so far? 3,064 in attendance against the #4 team in the country?! C'mon Sioux basketball fans, we should be able to do better than this! This could be the best women's team that Roebuck has assembled, and there have been some damn good teams to play for him! My excuse for not going is living 100 miles away, it's a school night, and the weather is crap! What is your excuse, Grand Forks!?

I know where Furman is. I know they have a decent DI basketball program, and a very solid I-AA football program. I know more about them than I do Upper Iowa. Lucky for me, if I wanted to learn about Upper Iowa, I could go see them in the Betty this weekend. I think I will choose to save my $11 and remain in the dark. I'd much rather listen to a Sioux basketball team lose to Furman on the road on the radio, than waste my time at a home double-header that includes Mary and Upper Iowa.

Is it just me, or does this position at Bemidji State sound perfect for Rich Glas?

Reasons to go DI It looks to me like if UND had gone DI in the same year that NDSU/SDSU did, we could have had Minnesota on the football schedule in 2006, for a nice guarantee game, if we wanted. NDSU has them for 2007, and UofM is looking for a game for 2006, but NDSU isn't so sure they're ready. My theory is that had UND been SU's partner in the move instead of/along with SDSU, UND would be much more attractive to Minnesota to bring in for football or basketball since we already have a 70 year old history and rivalry together. NDSU, SDSU, and UNC are competing against schools like Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana, and Montana St, in a wide variety of sports on a fairly regular basis, while UND is going to try to pack a state of the art basketball arena next weekend with something called Upper Iowa. National recognition. No question that UND does and always has received more national exposure than our rivals in Fargo, and that will most likely continue for a long time. But NDSU could be closing the gap. Evidence: In just the local media a men's basketball team that is barely over .500 is overshadowing what could end up being one of the best collegiate women's basketball teams ever assembled by any university in North Dakota. How many local recruits have chosen NDSU over UND this year mainly because of that "illustrious" DI label? Are we getting as many high quality South Dakota recruits as we used to? NDSU just beat the Wisconsin Badgers on their home court, which just happens to be in one of UND's prime recruiting areas for both football and basketball.

I agree. Glas has done wonderful things in his 18 years here. But I think a different philosophy is needed. I don't know if it is coaching or recruiting, but this program is and has not been close to where it was in the early 90's. Personally, I like Craig Smith. He's done a fabulous job with Mayville, and learned under Tim Miles. I got to know Miles personally while he was at Mayville. He is a class act, excellent coach, and all around great guy. And I thought this before the win over Wisconsin.

Those tickets allotted to suiteholders should still be factored in to attendance at the Betty. That is if they do count number of tickets sold/allotted rather than an actual head or "turn-style" count. Suiteholders and Club Lounge Seat holders at the REA automatically receive season tickets to basketball in the Betty.

I am somewhat puzzled by the attendance at the basketball games. The UNO game drew ~800 less than last year, and Auggie drew around 1,100 less than last year. While the men's team is down, this women's team is something special. Attendance should be up, not down, across the board. Does playing in the Betty hurt? I think the atmostphere is much better in the Sioux Center rather than REA and thought it would have helped attendance. I understand that the non-conference schedule was not as strong as last year's, but there should be a better turnout for the conference games than what they've gottten.

How do they do that? During the postgame show on WDAZ after the home series with Minnesota, John Bernstrom did a feature on maintaining the ice at REA. Correct me if I'm wrong, but IIRC they said they needed a minimum of 24 hours to switch from ice to no-ice or vice-versa. Also since the REA has been setup for hockey pretty much all season, I haven't heard nearly as many complaints about the condition of the ice as in previous seasons.

Couldn't agree more. The Montana/Montana St. "Brawl of the Wild" game is televised on CSTV, Altitude Sports, and other regional channels every year. I can see down the road the Sioux-Bison game (hopefully it happens again, sooner rather than later) being a I-AA feature game of the week on a CSTV or ESPNU. It has that kind of history.

I was not at the UNO game, but I was at the Southwest Minnesota St. game, and I didn't notice a big problem. UND normally draws around 3,500-4,000 for conference games, and there are currently only six of those. I agree that the corridors to the court where the concessions are are too small. But for 2/3 of the home schedule it is just fine. Since you don't have to use the corridors to get to the bathrooms, that is not a problem once you get into the gym. The bathrooms may be small, but are optimally located. For bigger drawing games the space behind the bleachers should be better used for additional concessions. However, as long as we are DII, I don't think any of this is a concern. If we were DI, the only regular game I can foresee being a problem would be NDSU, and that game would never be played in the Betty. It is just as bad using the South entrance of the Alerus on gameday to get your tickets and gain entry to the concourse. And if I'm not mistaken, I normally spend about the same amount of time in line for concessions and bathrooms at REA and Alerus. Agree to disagree.

I second that motion.

I agree, the size of the Betty is just fine. Bigger portable bleachers on the ends would be an easy fix if needed to accomodate 1,000 or so more fans on a regular basis, and that would be a wonderful problem to have. The only games the Betty probably couldn't accomodate, would be against certain DI opponents like NDSU, Minnesota, or Montana/Montana St (if it were a Big Sky conference game ), and any of those games could easily be played in REA.

In a round-about way, NDSU's win over Wisconsin in basketball could have a substantial effect on UND's future and the Division classification issue. Obviously I understand that this is only one game but it could have an impact on how NDSU athletics are perceived by the conferences in which NDSU has been trying to gain membership in. Big Sky commissioner Doug Fullerton recently has stated that he is unhappy with the RPI of the Big Sky members. With this win, NDSU's RPI is now higher than all but two Big Sky schools, and higher than all but one Mid-Con school. Does that make NDSU more attractive to these conferences? I don't know.

For football, Alerus>Fargodome.