Maryland got dethroned on the field as B1G’s best team. In the stands, #BeTheBest stand alone at the top of the B1G conference in total and average by a good margin. The biggest bright spots were the Notre Dame and Hopkins games that drew over 6000 spectators. On the not-so-great side, the Terps attendance as host in the B1G quarterfinals against Rutgers and the NCAA opening round game against Army drew less than 2000 each. @TerpsMLax only played 6 regular season home games.
Maryland to do: A Maryland, Virginia, Georgetown, Navy four team fan and commute friendly double header tournament should be scheduled in back to back prime weekends. This was also pitched in the ACC attendance article. For televised Terps games, put the camera facing the side with the crowd or encourage the crowd to spread out. The empty look on TV is a bad look.
Johns Hopkins, Maryland’s high lacrosse pedigree neighbor in Baltimore was next highest. Hopkins put over 4000 into the Homewood Field seats for its game against Ohio State. Hopkins also hosted the B1G tournament, which gave it an extra home game plus a home game in the NCAA playoffs. Hopkins was also a big draw on the road. On the road, the Blue Jays were the top attendance home game for Maryland, Penn State, Loyola, and Jacksonville. Hopkins was the #2 home draw for Syracuse and Navy.
Johns Hopkins to do: Hopkins and Loyola kicked each other in the shins on February 11. Hopkins hosted Georgetown as Loyola hosted Maryland two miles up the road, each with 1pm starts. Hopkins and Loyola should coordinate their scheduling to complement instead of cannibalizing each other’s attendance. Double headers, day and night, Saturday and Sunday. There are options.
Head up Amtrack’s Northeast Corridor and you can get to #BuiltinNewBrunswick, NJ home of B1Gs 2023 3rd best home lacrosse attendance, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Are the Knights of the Raritan New York’s team? Rutgers attendance went with the weather. In February, RU drew Division Three level attendance. After February, @RUmlax started stacking about 1000 extra fans per week. It culminated with over 5800 coming to see the Scarlett Knights play Maryland on April 16. Rutgers has a lot of potential for big crowds when the stars align.
Rutgers to do: Make the B1G semifinals in 2024 at least. The B1G conference tournament location is not merit based. Rutgers hosts the B1G Conference Tournament in 2024 no matter if they are in it.
Ohio State comes in at number 4. The Buckeyes attendance didn’t have huge fluctuations. Its average was 1814, and #GoBucks didn’t get too far from that number all season. Ohio State played its last home game on April 7 against Maryland. It was probably not a coincidence, mixing a great opponent with an April date, that it was @OhioStateMLAX best attended home game. If the schedule is going to play out this way, there is a solid chance that fans in Columbus are not going to see a marquis home game in decent weather all year.
Ohio State to do: More April/May home games. Its cold out there. Keep converting fans of other sports and building a lacrosse ecosystem in Columbus.
That school up north is #5. Michigan, compared with OSU, at least played three home games in April. Of course, the weather is going to play havoc with Michigan. It played marquis games against Notre Dame and Hopkins in the low 30’s and wind. Over 1000 Michigan fans turned out for these two games, but its going to be really hard to deliver crowds in this weather.
Michigan to do: Build up the budding rivalry with Notre Dame combined with the existing rivalry with the Buckeyes.
Compared with Michigan, Penn State seems like it is the Caribbean, but it is not. It is in the Nittany Mountains, and it is colder in State College than it is in Philadelphia. Penn State comes in at #6 in B1G home attendance. #WeAre had a great showing in the NCAA semifinals at championship weekend at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
Penn State to do: When you are last in the conference in attendance, there is work to do. Penn State should work on cultivating football and hockey fans into lacrosse fans in State College. Are there attendance ideas from well-established Virginia in Charlottesville, that also plays in a semi-Appalachian boutique college town? @PennStateMLax could also play a marquis home game in Philadelphia which the alumni might like. The Lions could also play a home game in Pittsburgh to stick one in the eye of Pitt, who does not field Varsity men’s lacrosse.
The B1G Conference Tournament in Baltimore had by far the highest attendance of all conferences. (The ACC did not have a conference tournament). Given the combined fan bases of Maryland and Hopkins, having the tournament in Baltimore is @B1GLacrosse most optimum location for BIG crowds. Next year, the tournament will be held at Piscataway, home of Rutgers in New Jersey. In 2021, the BIG lacrosse tournament was held at Panzer Stadium in State College, Pa. PSU didn’t even make the BIG semifinals, so the Lions were a no show in the tournament they hosted. This is bad for players, fans, budgets…… If Rutgers doesn’t step up, 2024 could be a repeat of home site with no home team or home fans. B1G should do better to procedurally undercut a Championship environment.
BIG to do: New BIG Commissioner Tony Pettiti should move the B1G Conference Tournament location to the home of #1 seed ensuring fans show up and rewarding merit or just keep it in Baltimore where the odds are good of getting 1 or 2 local teams and there are a few alumni of each University around. Also, the 2023 B1G semifinals were played on a Thursday at 1pm and 3:30pm. Make the games at 5pm and 7pm. People with a normal job or school should have a chance to come or watch on TV without taking a vacation day. How about bands, cheerleaders, and mascots at big games?
Very good analysis and thoughtful recommendations for improvement.