Facilities

[bbtds]

I believe the NCAA rules prohibit that. Someone check me on that.

In the State of Illinois they host the State Championships down in Champaign for Football and for basketball they host the games at the Bradley's Arena Peoria Civic Center. I'm not sure if they get away with it because the Civic Center may be leased by Bradley from the City.

If its not against the rules then I don't think it would be a bad idea to just get familiarity and foot-track. It would be great for the High School Athletes to play a game in a Colligate Arena.

The Peoria Civic Center Carver Arena is owned by the Peoria Civic Center Authority Board. It's both a city and state entity. I believe ownership of the facility is the key to whether the NCAA allows the facility to host high school athletic events.

[bigmosmithfan1]

Chicken or the egg argument regarding seat expansion.  We don't even sell out now?

I've covered this before but "we don't even sell out now" is the most short-sighted response to the facilities issue. Our current facility is a big reason why we don't sell out consistently -- sitting in the mezzanine (and lower) bleachers is a mostly unpleasant experience compared to the chairbacks or watching the game from the comfort of home (where you don't have to wait in long restroom lines). I've heard this from casual fans in town consistently.

And yes, P6 teams are indeed very image conscious about where they play road games. Many won't play in what they see as a "gym". Make the ARC a more modern arena-like facility is critical to opening scheduling doors that are now closed, particularly since other MVC teams are able to draw top-notch opponents to their buildings.

Look, when your Division I home court is consistently referred to having a "high school" feel -- on national television, no less -- that's not a good thing! We are no longer in the Mid-Con or Horizon League -- we're in the Valley. Time to act like it with a commitment to a 21st-century facility like our new conference mates have.

[crusadermoe]

Fair enough.  But the students have front-row seats and free admission, and they still don't come.

I would like to think that the MVC teams will appeal more to them.  But my fear is that the current student recruitment targets are just not interested in basketball.  Can't recall if Rhode Island had good attendance.  That would be a good predictor of student attendance.

[VUBBFan]

Fair enough.  But the students have front-row seats and free admission, and they still don't come. I would like to think that the MVC teams will appeal more to them.  But my fear is that the current student recruitment targets are just not interested in basketball.  Can't recall if Rhode Island had good attendance.  That would be a good predictor of student attendance.

Even free food, sandwiches couldn't get them in the door

[vu72]

Fair enough.  But the students have front-row seats and free admission, and they still don't come.

I would like to think that the MVC teams will appeal more to them.  But my fear is that the current student recruitment targets are just not interested in basketball.  Can't recall if Rhode Island had good attendance.  That would be a good predictor of student attendance.

Rhode Island attendance was 4149 so would guess a fair number of students.  I'm guessing to be sure, but I wonder if kids from Illinois (there are a lot of them) might come to see an Illinois State or So. Illinois or Loyola more so than to see a Cleveland State or Youngstown State or Wright State simply because they have friends at the Illinois schools and would like to have something to rub in (presuming of course that we win!  )

[VUGrad1314]

Let's not forget that in addition to the geographic factor, those schools from the MVC have generally speaking a stronger recent national profile than the HL schools you mentioned.

[covufan]

The NIT home court advantage is what we should have for MVC and top 150 RPI games.  I could see only 4200 for a Div III team. 

[crusadermoe]

VU72, I hope you are right about the Illinois factor and the "friends at rival schools" factor. That's a plausible one for students to attend more MVC games than Horizon ones. That would be nice. .   

Having griped about students again, I do agree with folks in this thread that new ARC or new arena amenities would help draw the ticket buying public. But I fully believe that the "game atmosphere" is part of the value buy in college sports and it elevates my NCAA hoops interest far above my level of NBA interest.

[VU2014]

I know I've mentioned this before but Greek Life has part of the reason for the drop off of attendance after winter break... Valpo is a small school and Greek Life is a big part of student life on campus. Rush events start the week the students come back from winter break which competes directly with the Valpo Basketball games. It sounds like a excuse but its reality. The students who are in fraternities/sororities have to be at those events and freshman/sophomores who want to rush a fraternity or sorority have to go to those events to have a shot at getting invited to a fraternity or sorority. Not only that but after that those students that decide to join the fraternity/sorority have to go through a long process of pledging (initiating) the new members which is very time consuming for them and the current members. I was in a fraternity myself and I can attest to this.

Even since I've graduated they have added 2-3 new fraternities on campus the last few years and Greek Life participation is up. There is not only greek life. The clubs recruits new members at the beginning of the spring semester.

Just last year we saw the student attendance pick back up after rush/pledge process was finished.

[VULB#62]

I know I've mentioned this before but Greek Life has part of the reason for the drop off of attendance after winter break... Valpo is a small school and Greek Life is a big part of student life on campus. Rush events start the week the students come back from winter break which competes directly with the Valpo Basketball games. It sounds like a excuse but its reality. The students who are in fraternities/sororities have to be at those events and freshman/sophomores who want to rush a fraternity or sorority have to go to those events to have a shot at getting invited to a fraternity or sorority. Not only that but after that those students that decide to join the fraternity/sorority have to go through a long process of pledging (initiating) the new members which is very time consuming for them and the current members. I was in a fraternity myself and I can attest to this.

Even since I've graduated they have added 2-3 new fraternities on campus the last few years and Greek Life participation is up. There is not only greek life. The clubs recruits new members at the beginning of the spring semester.

Just last year we saw the student attendance pick back up after rush/pledge process was finished.

Holy crap!  For decades in the past the rush process and pledging incorporated the MBB games as a part of the process.  Greeks made support of the MBB games (and all other sports and university activities) a MAJOR component of pledging.  It was about emphasizing and instilling school spirit as a part of becoming a brother or sister. Now I hear that the greeks are doing stuff that is antithetical to the development of school spirit.  What the heck has happened?  Back in the day, greeks were the driving force for student attendance at games. And we were a force.

Maybe this is the key to turning student attendance around:  the AD should meet with each greek org and propose that their activities complement, not conflict with, the Valpo athletic program.

[crusader05]

I am not sure we can say greek life, which has been a constant, is the reason. The schedule of intiations and recruitment have not changed for years and even with the addition of a couple new fraternities (2 in maybe the last 6 years) that is not really going to be that big of a drain. In fact, sorority recruitment works to make sure they don't get in the way of the women in cheer and dance in regards to conflicting with their basketball games if possible. I think that last year in particular there was a drop off in aggressive advertisement to students, a team that was not as engaged as it's prior version with campus as a whole, and the intensity of the second semester in general.

I hope that the lack of real promotion was due to some staffing changes, not just in coaching but in athletics in general and that it picks up again.

[VU2014]

What has changed in recent years about the rush process is that the new Greek Life Dean forced Fraternities and Sororities to not compete for rush events on the same days of the week so they are spread out. Example: Monday: Sig Ep/Phi Delt Tuesday: Lambda Chi Alpha Wednesday: Phi Kappa Psi Thursday: Phi Mu Alpha Friday: Phi Sigma Kappa Saturday: PIKE/Sigma Chi Sunday: Sigma Pi.

Its a smart move from a Greek Life position to maximize the recruitment and not have the fraternities compete for the prime days of Friday/Saturday/Sunday but it also dominates campus life for those weeks. This is how it was my Senior year of college. I believe its still the same process now but now there are even more fraternities.

I really think the rush/pledge process has affected the attendance those weeks. The attendance picked up right around when that process ended I remember this year. Maybe the AD could talk to Carrie Whittier the Dean of Greek Life but I don't see it happening. Maybe. Another theory I had is maybe the team wasn't as engaged with other students as previous years. Bryce would hang out at the student Union during lunch time and chat with students on game days and basically remind them of the games. I'm not sure if Coach Lottich does that or has tried it. I don't think its a epidemic or anything but you can clearly tell early student participation during the Fall Semester compared to the start of Winter Semester and then it goes back up later in the season. Just something I've noticed the last few years.

[valporun]

Some of the student attendance issues may have also been lack of interest in the home opponent... I mean how many students looked to see how Youngstown St., Cleveland St., Detroit, or Wright St. were doing before they decided to attend the game or not? With having more Wednesday/Saturday MVC games, maybe this will change how things are worked for Greek Life recruitment week, especially in this first year of the MVC.

[bigmosmithfan1]

That's another great point in regards to attendance... we're now in a league with higher-profile opponents, better traveling fans, and a league where we'll get more than one lousy Saturday home game during conference season. All the more reason to invest in a modern facility.

[VU2014]

University of Southern Indiana's new facilities. Rumor is they're trying to become the next NKU and have their eyes on Horizon League membership in the future. They are currently D2.

https://twitter.com/USIAthletics/status/905864285426941954

[vu72]

Some of the student attendance issues may have also been lack of interest in the home opponent... I mean how many students looked to see how Youngstown St., Cleveland St., Detroit, or Wright St. were doing before they decided to attend the game or not? With having more Wednesday/Saturday MVC games, maybe this will change how things are worked for Greek Life recruitment week, especially in this first year of the MVC.

[/b]

Well, I know one fraternity that will be out in force supporting Brother Smits!

http://valpophipsi.org/about/member-gallery/

[bigmosmithfan1]

Yeah, that USI facility ain't intended for a program that plans on staying D-2. Valpo needs to step up its game here, or we're going to get passed by.

[VU2014]

Yeah, that USI facility ain't intended for a program that plans on staying D-2. Valpo needs to step up its game here, or we're going to get passed by.

I don't think we'll get passed by as long as we have the people intact in the coaching staff & Athletics Department. As long as the cycle of maintaining & hiring good coaches continues we should be fine BUT if the Administration (Heckler & the Board) don't start prioritizing & looking to make upgrades to the facilities we may never go to the next level. Its about time for ARC to see at least see basic upgrades/improvements (cough parking cough, chairbacks surrounding the lower bowl (maybe besides the student section), bathrooms, etc.). I know some people will give this post an eye-roll because its like beating a dead-horse.

[vu72]

Yeah, that USI facility ain't intended for a program that plans on staying D-2. Valpo needs to step up its game here, or we're going to get passed by.

I don't think we'll get passed by as long as we have the people intact in the coaching staff & Athletics Department. As long as the cycle of maintaining & hiring good coaches continues we should be fine BUT if the Administration (Heckler & the Board) don't start prioritizing & looking to make upgrades to the facilities we may never go to the next level. Its about time for ARC to see at least see basic upgrades/improvements (cough parking cough, chairbacks surrounding the lower bowl (maybe besides the student section), bathrooms, etc.). I know some people will give this post an eye-roll because its like beating a dead-horse.

I think we may start to see some movement on this front, though I certainly don't have any inside information.  I did come across the following which indicates that some crowd funding inititiative may be forthcoming, who knows.  I just wonder why in the world they would put something like this in print unless there is a plan in the works.

http://support.valpo.edu/s/1347/17/page-1col.aspx?sid=1347&gid=1&pgid=2140

[VU2014]

Yeah, that USI facility ain't intended for a program that plans on staying D-2. Valpo needs to step up its game here, or we're going to get passed by.

I don't think we'll get passed by as long as we have the people intact in the coaching staff & Athletics Department. As long as the cycle of maintaining & hiring good coaches continues we should be fine BUT if the Administration (Heckler & the Board) don't start prioritizing & looking to make upgrades to the facilities we may never go to the next level. Its about time for ARC to see at least see basic upgrades/improvements (cough parking cough, chairbacks surrounding the lower bowl (maybe besides the student section), bathrooms, etc.). I know some people will give this post an eye-roll because its like beating a dead-horse.

I think we may start to see some movement on this front, though I certainly don't have any inside information.  I did come across the following which indicates that some crowd funding inititiative may be forthcoming, who knows.  I just wonder why in the world they would put something like this in print unless there is a plan in the works.

http://support.valpo.edu/s/1347/17/page-1col.aspx?sid=1347&gid=1&pgid=2140

Yeah they've had the Day of Giving for a few years now. As far as I know none of the recent major fundraising the University has been doing the last few years has been specifically geared towards Athletics or even more specifically for ARC renovations.

I haven't heard of any fundraising efforts for a ARC reno.

When Paul did his interview with Mark LaBarbera I'm pretty sure he said there was nothing the works. But ARC was going to get a new roof I believe. It sounds like the Admin is counting on a alum being the lead donor to get the ball rolling. Currently that alum does exist or hasn't decided donate towards the project.

https://twitter.com/MichaelOsipoff/status/847996237102166016
https://twitter.com/MichaelOsipoff/status/847995767432335361

[oklahomamick]

Is southern Indiana athletics any good?  Looks like they will have the facilities but do they have d2 success or history?

[bbtds]

I know some people will give this post an eye-roll because its like beating a dead-horse.

Here is our facilities horse!

[valpospartan]

While watching the VU - SIU VB game on ESPN3 (on my TV), I realized a sad fact: I could hear the SIU PA announcer 100% clearer, in the back ground through the TV,  than I can hear the ARC PA announcers LIVE at BB & VB games. And this has nothing to do with the announcers, but rather the PA systems.  And before anyone says that their VB gym is much smaller than the ARC, size has nothing to do with it.

[VU2014]

It looks like the ARC just got central Air Conditioning. I believe this picture is batting cages next to Hilltop Gym.
https://twitter.com/ValpoCoach/status/918863926959443968

[vu72]

It looks like the ARC just got central Air Conditioning. I believe this picture is batting cages next to Hilltop Gym.
https://twitter.com/ValpoCoach/status/918863926959443968

A close guess.  HILLTOP just got air conditioning.  Those batting cages are above the bleachers at Hilltop.