Drew Kerekes

Nick Saban was angry about something again last week, this time student attendance as it related to Alabama’s game against the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns.

Long story short, there were a lot of empty seats at Bryant-Denny Stadium in the student section for that game, and Saban took it as a slight against his players. I’m actually going to use his latest blowup to springboard this discussion into something much broader: fan attendance to games in general.

A quick Google search of “fan attendance down” immediately shows a story by fortune.com about Major League Baseball’s attendance dropping to its lowest average in 15 years. A little further down the search links to a story by NY Mag’s Will Leitch titled, “Nobody’s Going to Sports in Person Anymore. And No One Seems to Care.” In it, Leitch talks about not only MLB’s declining attendance numbers, but how the NFL, NHL and college athletics has seen a decline as well, while NBA’s attendance has increased (https://nym.ag/2JgpnrZ).

Leitch makes an interesting point in the article: Teams and leagues aren’t exactly concerned about attendance numbers since they’re getting much of their revenue from other sources; namely, TV deals. As long as money is being made, who cares if no one shows up to the ballpark?

Saban can decry student attendance as much as he wants, and Alabama is certainly within its right to try to incentivize its students to show up for the non-major games, whether it be tying attendance to FCS opponents with attendance to games that matter more to Alabama fans, such as Tennessee, LSU or Auburn. Barring that, it could reduce student seating. It isn’t any coincidence, though, that the university recently announced plans to downsize the total number of seats in the stadium over the next several years while creating what I would call “corporate-friendly lounge areas” in their place. The administration sees the current trend in attendance and is adjusting accordingly.

It stinks for long-time fans who will be displaced by the changes, to be sure, but college football is ultimately a big business all about the bottom line. I’m a Yankees fan, and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen people on Twitter complain about empty front-row seats in Yankee Stadium. Those are referred to as the “Legends Suite.” Here’s a description, courtesy of MLB.com (https://atmlb.com/2PcTN27):

“The Legends Suite provides first-class accommodations, with seating options so close to the action you could make the call at home plate. Join a winning lineup of unparalleled comfort, service and convenience, with special amenities and benefits to give you the most immersive New York Yankees experience.”

Does that sound like something the average fan is going to be able to afford? Of course not. Those seats will go to the corporate big-wigs and their friends, who pay the big price but may not be able to make every single game. This would probably be less of an issue in college athletics, since home football games, for example, are only on Saturdays and only from September-November. But it’s the direction live sports venues will be taking more and more in the coming decade in catering to these types of people.

Why is fan attendance down? I have my theory, and it goes something like this: Let’s say you want to attend a college football game in Starkville, Oxford, Hattiesburg, Tuscaloosa, Baton Rouge or wherever. Let’s assume you live in one of these cities. You have to find parking, which is often a great distance away from the stadium, walk to the stadium and navigate your way to the seats. I’ve heard Alabama fans complaining about the newly installed metal detectors. Last year, I attended an Alabama game with my mom and had to run back to her car to put her purse back in it because nothing but clear bags were allowed in Bryant-Denny. Then I had the pleasure of not only running back to the stadium, but up the ramp to the second upper deck just to arrive to my seat by kickoff. Oh, and the temperatures outside were those late summer/early fall temperatures.

And that’s just for people who live in those cities. If you don’t, well, good luck finding a hotel on game day. You’re not planning to stay in town after the game? Better hope it’s not a night game. It is? Enjoy sitting in traffic for hours while everyone else is going the same direction and cars are barely moving, all while hoping you don’t fall asleep at the wheel because college football games are way too long and it’s now midnight.

What’s that you say? I can just sit in my living room, in a climate-controlled environment, and watch the game on my 4K television and not leave the house after a long week at work? And I don’t have to pay for tickets, when the prices of those keep going up? I wonder which option I’m going to take?

Sports are evolving in many different ways, not the least of which is how we watch them. Streaming and high-definition TVs exist, and these TV deals allow us to watch Ole Miss or Mississippi State or Southern Miss or Alabama versus Sisters Of The Poor — usually a pay-per-view game a couple of decades ago — without having to go through the hassle of attending a sporting event. Every game is being televised now, and with that, fan attendance is declining.

I don’t want to sound like an old man yelling at a cloud, but it’s time we accept packing out stadiums every single game are a thing of the past. 

Drew Kerekes is the sports editor at The Meridian Star. He can be reached at dkerekes@themeridianstar.com.