Exactly. People seem to miss the point that cheering and the crowd being into the game doesn't happen for no reason. It depends on the situation.
After a disappointing game during the 2001-2002 season, a media jackal asked Ryan Bayda if it would have helped if the crowd had been into the game. His reply (paraphrased) was: You can't expect people to cheer when you give them no reason to cheer.
He was absolutely right.
How many sporting events have we watched where a sportscaster remarks about the crowd being taken out of the game or the need of the home team to do something that gets the fans into the game? It happens in all sports. Why should it be any different at the new REA?
It's easy for fans to get revved up when their team is playing a hated rival or playing an important playoff game or a game with playoff implications. As Tim Hennessy pointed out, it's also easier to generate fan enthusiasm in cities like Duluth and Madison where the teams haven't had success in recent years.
Sioux fans have proven time and again in the new REA that when they have good reason to cheer and go wild, they will. That doesn't mean that the atmosphere couldn't stand some improvement, but it does mean that the situation isn't nearly as grim as some continually portray it.