What Needs To Happen

[Brendan25]

For Gary Williams Court to fill up and sound like it did last night for all of the ACC games. We would have one of, if not the best home court advantage of any team in the country if it was like that every game.

[glenn__davis]

Just win, baby.

Get this program back to a top 25 team every year and a top 10 team every few years and the passion for the program will come back. It's been a mediocre program for some time now, tough to expect people to maintain the passion for that.

[Sports Guy]

Better fans.

Sorry but that's just the truth.

And I guess when I say better, I mean more consistent.

MD fans feel Duke is the only game they play. Its an incredible atmosphere when they play them.

So, MD fans have proven they can be a great fan base...but the truly great fan bases have that same passion when they play Longwood or GT or ND or whoever.....The MD fan base is weak way too often.

Comcast is arguably the best arena in college OR pro bball. That place could be amazing but its not...at least not enough of the time.

[Lucky Jim]

It's a very tough team to be amazing for. I love them, but they make a fool of you for being enthusiastic way-too-often.

[ccbird]

Like every other sport you have to win. Except for maybe the NFL and a handful of college football programs how many stadiums are going to be full capacity or even 80% capacity with mediocre to poor teams. How full was the Dean Dome during UNC's back to back down years. I remember seeing a lot of empty seats for arguably the greatest college basketball program ever.

It also doesn't help that you move out of a smaller but much more hostile and loud environment like Cole. I don't care how good MD gets again and how full the Comcast Center gets it still won't match the environment that was Cole for a big game. If it's not as hostile for the big games it's surely not going to be as hostile for the non big games. I know it's all about more seats, suites,etc which equal more money but I would die to go back to a smaller fieldhouse type building.

[mweb]

In semi-related news, Duke students are no longer filling the student section most games.

[ccbird]

In semi-related news, Duke students are no longer filling the student section most games.

Duke needs better fans. Lets make one thing clear, if Duke had a new age arena that place wouldn't be full every night or nearly as intimidating as it is now either.

[Sports Guy]

It's a very tough team to be amazing for. I love them, but they make a fool of you for being enthusiastic way-too-often.

Are you enthusiastic about the Orioles?

[Sports Guy]

Duke needs better fans. Lets make one thing clear, if Duke had a new age arena that place wouldn't be full every night or nearly as intimidating as it is now either.

Probably not...of course, they don't have the amount of students that MD has either.

[BaltimoreTerp]

Probably not...of course, they don't have the amount of students that MD has either.

Yeah, but the point is that this happens at a lot of schools. Duke was selling student-section tickets to the general public for at least one game this year. The big games get all the attention, and they are the ones likely to see filled student sections. Nobody worries about the non-conference games. My two years there I went to almost every home game, Cole and Comcast, and a lot of those games it was a ghost town. That was for a team coming off the Final Four and about to win a championship.

[Sports Guy]

Yeah, but the point is that this happens at a lot of schools. Duke was selling student-section tickets to the general public for at least one game this year. The big games get all the attention, and they are the ones likely to see filled student sections. Nobody worries about the non-conference games. My two years there I went to almost every home game, Cole and Comcast, and a lot of those games it was a ghost town. That was for a team coming off the Final Four and about to win a championship.

Duke usually has to do that when they are off for xmas break.

[Lucky Jim]

Are you enthusiastic about the Orioles?

Sure. But not "house of horrors" enthusiastic. I'm a devoted, but calm, fan. Makes it much easier to be constant.

Duke usually has to do that when they are off for xmas break.

It's not just a Xmas break thing: http://dukechronicle.com/article/low-attendance-forces-duke-athletics-sell-student-seats

[glenn__davis]

Better fans.

Sorry but that's just the truth.

And I guess when I say better, I mean more consistent.

MD fans feel Duke is the only game they play. Its an incredible atmosphere when they play them.

So, MD fans have proven they can be a great fan base...but the truly great fan bases have that same passion when they play Longwood or GT or ND or whoever.....The MD fan base is weak way too often.

Comcast is arguably the best arena in college OR pro bball. That place could be amazing but its not...at least not enough of the time.

Not really buying this. You'd be hard pressed to find a fan base that brings the same passion against Longwood as they do against Duke or UNC or whomever. Especially when you're talking about a team with results over the last half decade or so that have been the definition of mediocre.

You can't tell me the atmosphere isn't more charged at Duke or UNC when those two teams play each other than it is when they play, say, Boston College. Whether Duke fans want to acknowledge MD as their rival or not, MD fans hate Duke and so that game is always going have a little extra sizzle.

When the team improves, you'll find a more enthusiastic fan base.

[JohnD]

I'll say this, the fact that student support seems to be so small at Comcast Center, especially when they designed the seating specifically with students in mind, is disappointing.

When I was a student, the games were at Cole and tickets were first come, first serve. And the seating there gave students a few sections on the side, not a whole ring around the bottom. Then again, the design of Cole is more susceptible for a loud, raucous, and intimidating atmosphere.

The school itself could do more to foster it. Having the marching band play the same bunch of 80's songs they've been playing since I was a student is lame. There seems to be this schism in the department over how much they want a great experience for fans/students, as if they're worried people will have too much of a good time. It doesn't help that the students chant so much profanity and other vulgarities. It's not new, no, but it's still worse than it ever was before. I think that causes some tension inside the department.

I'd get away from the ticket lottery and scanning system and go back to doing it the old way. You show up at the box office and get your tickets the old fashioned way. Hell me and a buddy would drive to College Park over winter break just to pick up our student section tickets for games still two-weeks-away. Some days we'd be there within an hour or so of the box office opening even with students on break, because you just had to. But the whole "Maryland Pride" campaign that started with UA and football needs to extend to all sports, and really be instilled into the students.

[Sports Guy]

Sure. But not "house of horrors" enthusiastic. I'm a devoted, but calm, fan. Makes it much easier to be constant.

It's not just a Xmas break thing: http://dukechronicle.com/article/low-attendance-forces-duke-athletics-sell-student-seats

That's interesting, I hadn't heard that.

End of the day, the crowd is still very passionate at that place, whether its UNC or Belmont.

But still, it is surprising to read that about the student section.