Author Topic: Conference Realignment Rumors  (Read 12856 times)

Chairman of the Board

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Re: Conference Realignment Rumors
« Reply #30 on: March 08, 2017, 09:40:55 am »
There are ways to fill the stands, but it will not happen overnight.  Winning certainly breeds enthusiasm which will help fill the stands.  Look at what the signing of Warney did to the basketball program.  Getting that kind of marquis player can do wonders for a team, and its ability to draw fans at the gate.  Is it easy to get that kind of marquis star to come to Stony Brook.....no way!  It takes work and perseverance on many levels, and sometimes takes a bit of luck as well.

Regarding football, you have to start at home on Long Island, IMO.  3MM people live out here and we're the only DI football team on the Island.  There are lots of kids who want to stay home, play football at the D1 level, but know they aren't good enough to play at Alabama or a marquis football program, but are outstanding players.  We need to recruit heavily from the area, and establish a presence, that becomes a magnet for strong local talent.  And most of all, you need to attract a Long Island QB that can be the fulcrum of the team.  Coaching aside, it all starts with the QB.

Here are some ideas on how to fill the stands, and how to obtain the best talent on Long Island.  It takes money to market the team, so we need to budget for these items, but the payoff (prestige and financial) will come down the road:

1) Offer a free full-year academic scholarship to one lucky student every game.  Advertise this in the campus newspapers and with flyers around campus and especially, in the dorms.  No excuse for students not packing the stands every week;

2) SBU athletic staff needs to stay plugged in to the High School football programs on Long Island, particularly the strong ones.  Provide free tickets to High School
Football Programs in the area, on a rotating basis, to help promote the SBU brand.  Do this for every game.  Create a buzz amongst Long Island High School players;

3) Create a free weekly digital magazine for the football team, that is distributed to every Long Island High School football program, and to local community members.  You need the locals to start identifying with the only game in town, and a digital magazine adds credence and visibility to the program;

4) Establish weekly coaching media segments on News12, WFAN, and on Newsday.com without fail;

5) Establish bonuses for coaching staffs and even the AD.  Let part of the compensation packages be contingent on performance on the field.  Winning attracts talent, not only athletically, but academically as well.  Winning fills seats, even if it's 35 degrees outside and raining.

Yes, we are doing some of this already, but we need to do it better, if we want to grow the program, and take that next step.  It's a process, and it takes time.  Attracting talent and winning will result in more talent being acquired, more fan interest, and will snowball as time moves on.

We've come a long way over the years for sure, but there's a much longer and more fruitful journey ahead to get to the next plateau.

http://sbufan.createaforum.com/stony-brook-football/2012-2020-future-of-stony-brook-football/msg12032/#msg12032

we also have a whole separate thread for ideas if anyone wants to read it: http://sbufan.createaforum.com/around-stony-brook/making-sb-better-idea-thread/
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