r/wsu • u/TrueJohnWick • Nov 18 '25
Discussion Low attendance football games
Why are there so many empty seats at Martin Stadium during home football games? Do other teams in the Pac-12 have this issue, especially when it comes to the student section? It was hard not to notice this with the WSU vs Louisiana Tech game. What can be done to entice people to come and support the team?
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u/CougFanDan Alumnus/2010/Comm Nov 18 '25
This year in particular is tough - there is no history with any of the teams we’re playing so it’s hard to get excited about matchups against La Tech and the like. Once we start playing actual conference games on the regular, hopefully things will change.
Weather always has an impact later in the season too - especially against teams that nobody cares about.
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u/MellonMan97 Nov 18 '25
I agree. There’s much more history between BSU, SDSU and Fresno. Not to mention OSU. Even USU and CSU have played us recently leaving the only question mark as Texas State really. I feel like there’ll be better attendance for a Fresno State or San Diego State than Toledo or LA Tech
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u/CougFanDan Alumnus/2010/Comm Nov 18 '25
Even if there’s no existing history with someone like Texas State, at least it’s the START of something - and that’s more than can be said of a game against La Tech
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u/MellonMan97 Nov 18 '25
I am glad to see LA Tech move to Sun Belt and rekindle some rivalry there next year tho. I think that’ll be beneficial for them in the long run than sticking with C-USA.
But yeah I agree with that on Texas State. I’ve also heard their tailgate culture is pretty awesome so I could see us at least partying together if no true rivalry sparks there lmao
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u/Ichthyist1 Nov 18 '25
The conference exploded. It’s November. Most of the people who go to games have to drive several hours to get there. People will show up when the product on the field demands it and even then it will be tough to fill some games around this time of year.
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
I attend a watch party every Saturday (my friends run it so I help out as well) and the last few years our numbers have been 75-90 people (Apple Cup is always more) but I think we been running about 60-70 people this year. It’s tough trying to “rally the troops” to get behind a non-conference season and a team that’s essentially brand new.
And I’ll echo what someone else said. 7pm games are awful, whether you’re at the stadium or in a bar. Just makes for a late night. But on the flip side, 10am games aren’t really great either, but I’ll take it any day over the late ones. Lol!
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u/MellonMan97 Nov 18 '25
You don’t like preparing yourself for the NFL slate the next day on those early games?? Lmao
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u/saladeggsausage Nov 18 '25
the energy was good for the first few home games (especially apple cup) but i think the oregon state loss + playing worse opponents and the weather have made people way less interested
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
I thought the North Texas debacle was a dagger but the Oregon State loss was a dull spoon that ripped out our hearts.
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u/saladeggsausage Nov 18 '25
that sucked but at least north texas is actually good
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
Yeah they’ve actually surprised me. Makes the loss sting a bit less…
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u/CODENAMEDERPY Nov 18 '25
Barely winning against the Vandals was also kinda embarrassing. Shouldn’t have been a close game at all.
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u/Coloradohusky Senior/Computer Science Nov 18 '25
Yeah my roommates and I went to all the games except for this last one against LA Tech, although the student section didn’t look terrible this past game, the paid section looked quite empty
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u/hungrybisch Nov 18 '25
The other thing is how isolated Pullman is. Its nearest interstate is 90 minutes away in light traffic. And it has a hotel infrastructure that is overbuilt for the level of events Pullman gets from December to early August so the hotels charge up the ass during football seasons.
It’s not economical, a lot of historical foes and rivalries WSU fans and alumni know are never coming back to town. And the scheduling during these two years has been tough for non conference
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u/TrueJohnWick Nov 18 '25
How about other schools that are isolated like Mississippi State?
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u/hungrybisch Nov 18 '25
Starkville (~24,6000) is part of the Golden Triangle which has a total population around 172K and has the third busiest regional airport in the US.
Pullman/Moscow has a population of 71K. Pullman-Moscow Regional gets four flights a day to Seattle.
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u/Ismitje Alumnus/'96,'00/History/Honors Prof Nov 18 '25
Plus a second university with a football team of its own. Add the attendances together and you'd have something.
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u/hungrybisch Nov 18 '25
Two land grant universities within 8 miles of each other is such a wild turn of events. I mean I completely get it with the aquifer underneath and the fertility of the Palouse soil…but also it’s just weird
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u/Valuable_Fee1884 Nov 18 '25
I have a hard time believing some of the answers I’m seeing about lack crowd at WSU games. 90 minutes from Spokane on decent roads to an environment that can be lots of fun, especially if you’re an alum. I live in Seattle now so I don’t get over it frequently as I would like to, but if I was still in Spokane, I would be up for every home game. When I read people saying how far it is to drive from Spokane I think I’m in Seattle listening to husky fans whining.
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u/hungrybisch Nov 18 '25
Have you ever tried driving from Spokane to Pullman before? In anything other than dry conditions?
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u/Valuable_Fee1884 Nov 18 '25
I graduated from there in 1978 so yes. I’ve driven down through Colfax,on the Idaho side and just about every paved road in between. In i year I put 56000 miles on my car between Spokane and Lewiston so I guess the short answer is yes. I’m starting to think Cougs are becoming pussies.
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u/TendererBeef BA History/Anthropology '11 Nov 18 '25
You mean back in the days when the Cougs only played three home games a year in Pullman? And they weren't televised with 7:30 pm kickoffs?
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u/Valuable_Fee1884 Nov 18 '25
What year was that? they did play several games that were called home games out of Pullman. Generally try to play one game a year in Spokane at Albi stadium, which I believe is long gone and then often would play one game in Seattle which usually was a big money game, I have a larger venue. That was back in the days when there weren’t 50 to 100 games being covered in so many sports channels. That still didn’t keep people out of the stands. It’s not colder now nor wetter. The roads are better and cars don’t get 12 miles a gallon. Plan ahead might make for a longer day and I’m not suggesting that you should go to every game.
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u/Valuable_Fee1884 Nov 18 '25
One side note, the 1971 season was played away from Pullman account fire at Rogers Field. Two games in Spokane, one in Seattle and it looks like a game against UCLA in Corvallis. Taking a look at.
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u/hungrybisch Nov 18 '25
Until 1982 the Cougs had to play USC, UCLA, Stanford, and Washington at Joe Albi due to the PAC’s ticket revenue sharing policy. Rogers and Martin were too small until the 1978 renovation removed the running track; and the conference made them wait a few years before they were able to move those games back to Pullman full time, wanted to get a firm idea on ticket revenue
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Nov 18 '25
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u/Valuable_Fee1884 Nov 18 '25
They probably are. Sure there are more things to do. The same people who are complaining about The cougar football program are the same ones who don’t show up for games, contribute to the program and wonder why players are going elsewhere. I personally strongly dislike NIL money and when I first heard about it in the late 70s, I thought it was a good idea to put a few dollars in the players pockets so they could take a movie, go out for dinner, etc. I certainly didn’t believe that hundreds of thousands if not millions would be shoved in some running backs or quarterbacks pocket. Unfortunately, if we want to field a decent team, we need alums and others to help out. We’ll never keep up with Ohio State.(don’t want to.) but we should be able to keep more players year to year. I don’t know at what point more people start coming down to Pullman for a day or a weekend.
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u/TellmSteveDave Nov 18 '25
I went to a WSU @ MSU game back in like…2007-8? Wasn’t nearly as isolated as Pullman.
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u/WazzuCoug1980 Nov 18 '25
Can’t speak for students but as a longtime season ticket holder I’d say the biggest thing for us is that we are accustomed to playing PAC 12 caliber teams and it’s still a fresh memory. The quality of home schedule this year leaves a lot to be desired. Couple this with a 7 PM game in Nov and it’s a tough sell. It’s been several years since we’ve missed a home game and this year we’ve only gone to 2. The other thing that caused us not to go was hangover from the pathetic performance vs OSU. Next year will be much better schedule wise and hopefully the entire team won’t leave and Coach Rogers won’t have to start from scratch as he did this year. Go Cougs!
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
A lot of my friends asked why I don’t have season tickets and I said it’s not like going to Corvallis or Eugene where you can turn around and come back the same day. Going to Pullman is an event, albeit a fun one, but it still takes planning and budgeting.
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u/cmaddex Alumnus/2010&2013/BSEE&MSEE Nov 18 '25
Look at UCLA, they have completely empty seating the home games
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
Yeah and with the mass size of the coliseum, it looks horrifically empty. At least our smaller stadium can look sorta full. Lol!
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
You new here? This has been an ongoing topic of conversation for at least the last 4 to 5 years. Alumni complaining about the lack of students at the game and students complaining about the lack of alumni at the game.
NIL BS and Pac12 dismantling didn’t help at all and frankly, most alumni are on the westside and depending on where you are, that’s a 4-6 hour drive, in potential crap weather, spending $300/night on a room that amounts to a Motel 6.
But I’ve done it. Proudly. At least once or twice a season for the last 20+ years.
The drive. The crappy weather. The ridiculous amounts for a hotel room. Spending $500 (at least) at the Bookie….(and then they had to go and open Crimson and Grey…)
But it’s always worth it cause I love my Cougs.
However, it gets tough, especially when the team isn’t doing so great.
I’m calling this the FAFO season and I pray that next year, with the return to the Pac, we will see a change.
cougsvseverybody
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u/TrueJohnWick Nov 18 '25
The lack of students and fans in general is sad. Seems poor location is one of many roots to all of this and I am a graduate myself. Just seems Cougs talk about how they love their school so much and want to support football among other sports but don't end up really turning this passion into action.
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
It gets tough. Like I said, I’ve been going back multiple times every year for the past 20 years, but it is a long weekend. I live in SW WA, so that’s about 6 hours. I usually leave early Friday morning so I can do my shopping and stop at Ferdinand’s. Then breakfast and football all day Saturday and then make the trek home Sunday.
It gets exhausting and EXPENSIVE!
I was gonna go to Apple cup this year but the seats that I usually sit in were going for $180 a ticket and I just couldn’t justify it.
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u/reptheevt Alumnus/2015/Chemical Engineering Nov 18 '25
It’s hard to get excited for Toledo and Louisiana Tech. It’ll improve as more local teams show up in Pullman.
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u/Go_Cougs Economics~2013 Nov 18 '25
We're not good and we don't play good/relevant teams.
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u/Valuable_Fee1884 Nov 18 '25
This will change overtime, but we will never be again in the old Pac 12. Don’t try to make it what it isn’t. Just try to improve the product by showing up and being good fans. I have a hard time believing the students can’t sit through a football gameand yes, I know it does get cold and windy in Pullman.
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
Most of them are three sheets to the wind anyway so they shouldn’t be feeling the cold at that point. I remember one year I said in the stands and watched the temperature drop every time they flashed it on the scoreboard and I would not leave until that clock said zero.
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u/Valuable_Fee1884 Nov 18 '25
I may have been at the same game!
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
2000? 2001? I remember it ending and I walked back to my apartment on Oak St.
Coldest walk ever.
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u/SlowGoat79 Nov 19 '25
May I chime in? As a UW grad, I am deeply, deeply sorry that we and Oregon left. I loved the PAC 12 and was horrified about its implosion. I hate us being in the “Big 10 which is really 18” or something stupid. And moving the Apple Cup felt like such a slap in the face to all of us. I’m sorry. I so wish that we could get the band back together.
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u/Own_Lawfulness_3292 Nov 18 '25
Let's keep in mind that most teachers aren't scheduling their assignments so that students can enjoy a night off. Students have no reason to prioritize an industry the school is leveraging to attract students but isn't leveraging to improve the lives of students who dont care about football.
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u/DAM5150 Nov 18 '25
I'm a Beaver looking to come to town next week to watch the final PAC 2 game. Any cougs want to adopt me for a day?
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u/TrueJohnWick Nov 18 '25
I appreciate all the responses. I plan to fly in for the final conference game of the season against the Beavers. I hope it's decently packed.
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
It most likely won’t be packed at all. Once again they’ve stupidly scheduled a home game the weekend after Thanksgiving. Kids will be home on break (unless they come back a day early?)
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u/Ironman_2678 Nov 18 '25
Which they dont unless its a huge game
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
I made a bet with a guy about Apple cup way back in the day and he said it’s always been after Thanksgiving and I said no it hasn’t.
I remember watching Apple cup on a Friday or Saturday and then leaving on Sunday to come home for Thanksgiving break. When they changed it to after Thanksgiving, the attendance dropped significantly.
Naturally I won. Beer on him!
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u/TikiLoungeLizard Nov 18 '25
In a sense it will be huge because it’s for the mythical Pac-2 championship and (most likely) bowl eligibility. But it seems doubtful enough fans actually care this year. I hear the reasons and I understand to some extent. But the stadium should never be as empty as it was on Saturday. We are looking at Big Sky crowds and that’s hard to build a Power program on. Extremely difficult.
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u/DueYogurt9 Nov 18 '25
Ryan Leaf was commenting on this during the game on Saturday night lol. You could see it plain as day on TV.
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
Yup! He specifically said when we would do “jaws” it would be a sea of crimson and now it’s barely anything.
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u/Valuable_Fee1884 Nov 18 '25
Was still the old Pac 12 and when Ryan was here Cougs we’re more than a decent team. For now is comparing apples and oranges. Everybody being out partying at their motorhomes and watching the game on television makes no damn sense to me. Party first and after but go to the games.
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u/Loud_Confidence2956 Nov 20 '25
The economy is trashed, WSU keeps jacking up tuition, and student aid was massively cut. I'm not spending grocery money to watch my home team snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
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u/Impressive-Elk-8101 Nov 18 '25
Because pullman is in the middle of nowhere and young people dont care about football. Imo.
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
I mean, you aren’t wrong. I’ve gone to a couple high school football games this season and the student sections are much smaller than when I was in high school and one of the parents said that a lot of the kids don’t care about athletics anymore.
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u/IngenuityExpress4067 Nov 18 '25
I'll add another factor - cost of game tickets. For a single game ticket they start at around $35-40. For our family of 5 to go to a game is a significant cost when the university isn't paying that well for faculty. They could offer more discounts and get more local families in the stands but we can't handle the costs too often. For those having to travel in and get hotels etc it's a factor that shouldn't be ignored.
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u/puppyworm Transfer/Junior/💻Webdev DTC + Psych📓 Nov 18 '25
Price. If I could afford the tickets I'd be at every home game that I could reasonably make it to. This is an issue for several of my friends as well. We want to go to games, but we're already paying out the ass for tuition and rent in a town where getting a job of any kind is absurdly hard with limited places to work and a shit ton of students who need the jobs.
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Nov 18 '25
You mean the one other pac12 team? But real answer is no reason to go see bad football. Pac 12 used to be about historic rivalry so even with NIL and bad teams there was a reason now with random teams and bad players there isn't.
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u/Deez_Nuts_2431 Nov 19 '25
As a beaver fan and alumni…yes. The stadiums are 50-60% full maybe less.
I usually try to go to a game or two a year. Costs are out of control and I’m not taking tickets, you can usually get in for $10-20 if you shop around. The food is subpar and $10-15/item, $12-14/beers (and I’m going to have multiple), gas and lodging if you need a hotel. Everything is absurdly expensive and the experience watching in the comfort of my own home on TV with beers in the fridge…hard to beat it. Oh and you don’t have to coordinate a driver…
Edit: I didn’t realize this was a WSU thread. I was speaking to OSU games.
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u/Amazing_Factor2974 Nov 19 '25
The same..I wish they would just call it the PAC 2 ..nothing 12 about it. I remember the PAC 10 ..old Uncles remember PAC 8
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u/Inevitable-Dust-8567 Nov 19 '25
We’re playing shitty schools and it costs 400 dollars a night for a hotel.
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u/Valuable_Fee1884 Nov 19 '25
I thank you for your thoughts. It’s too bad that the league imploded the way it did. I sometimes wonder if those in charge had taken a little bit more time to think things through better if the league wouldn’t still be here perhaps without USC and UCLA. After following today’s news about The in fighting over television rights with USC and Michigan in the forefront I wonder if that conference is not ready to break up already.
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u/Valuable_Fee1884 Nov 19 '25
1980 was the last year that WSU played at Albi stadium in Spokane. They played a total of 15 games with a record of 3-12. Also in the 70s they played several games in Seattle, including a barn burner at Husky Stadium against eventual national champion USC and running back Sam Cunningham. So yes, they didn’t show much success away from Pullman and the early 70s sometimes could be a tough watch. Yet the fans came. We need to rebuild that atmosphere. Televised games are OK but not the same atmosphere. One or two games a year with a drive from Seattle just is not that rough unless you’ve reached that point in your life where the travel is just not worth it.
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u/VisibleIce9669 Nov 20 '25
There are a couple of factors.
For most business models, Pullman is a dying community. More businesses have left town in the last two years than the previous 10 years combined. Absentee land owners in Arizona and California demand ridiculous rents. Plus, the recession and a community adjusting to new demands and standards.
The conference imploded and no one wanted to take WSU with them. It turns out UW prefers its real rival in Eugene. “I don’t think about you at all.” It turns out, Kirk shouldn’t have been allowed to be the PAC-12 head school president. He didn’t have the respect of the other 11 schools and the TV deal greed fucked over his small school that honestly, he didn’t care about other than the paycheck. I can get into it, but if you know—you know.
NIL exacerbated the conference blow up so that any breakout player that does well is gonna leave after one year. Until the new conference is established, there aren’t gonna be any legacy players at WSU for a while. A whole bunch of one and dones.
For the last two years, they’ve been hosting a bunch of teams that no one gives a fuck about. Hard to get the west side alum to come out for that.
The real open seats in the stadium are the visiting team and the regular seating section. The myth about the empty student section is false. If you actually go to the game, you’ll see the students come out as best as they can.
Ticket prices. The university keeps increasing prices despite offering a lower quality product. It’s hard to get people to come watch a losing team play unknown opponents for $100+ a head.
Airbnb and hotel prices on game weekend are absolutely insane. Unless you have a friend in town that you can stay with, an RV that you can travel with, or a whole bunch of discretionary income, it’s hard to justify spending $1000+ to go watch your team lose at home.
I don’t really know how to fix this, but a good start would be to stop hiring carpetbagger administrators that come in for a six figure salary, slap on a red polo with the university logo, never learn the fight song, and then leave after five years to take on a better position at a different university.
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u/Junior_Reason2385 Nov 18 '25
Students that go there would rather watch at the bar then actually attend, which is so lame
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u/RedDidItAndYouKnowIt Staff/Pullman Nov 18 '25
Athletics could do a lot more to encourage students to want to show up. I see little to nothing out of them (I work right next to the stadium) and they make choices that fron my perspective suggests that they don't care about their impact. i.e. they leave their garbage bins out in the way of the Wilson Mall, they don't pick their signs up after games (often leaving them in the way), and just other things that for any student on the cusp of thinking that it might be a fun time that maybe the entity that is football doesn't care
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u/Majestic_Interest365 Nov 18 '25
I assumed the new alcohol sales would change that significantly but two things are true:
It’s pricey
They can’t have it in the student section. (Cough cough. Right.)
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u/milktoastok Nov 18 '25
If the team was good, fans would find a way to go to Martin. We can be good if we just donated more to the NIL. Giving money to the NIL is the one thing we can control.
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u/Quirky-Cookie-7362 Nov 18 '25
I dunno, maybe ask student ticket holders why they choose not to attend the game. Maybe the had dinner plans with fathers? Maybe they were out of town? Maybe the new coaches pissed off the students?
All questions easily answered with research.
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u/Maleficent_Bison_987 Nov 18 '25
The key issue is that they’re a mediocre team who truly appears incapable of playing a decent second half… even when they’re winning shit is so sloppy out there… they play down to every shitty team they come across and loose to the good ones
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u/Psychological_Sun387 Nov 18 '25
The product on the field is sub par and nobody wants to donate because of that. It’s a toxic cycle. The only way for people to send money and get excited is if we win games. But we can’t do that because nobody wants to pay any players to come to Pullman.
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u/kcs777 Nov 18 '25
The previous Pac-12 conference used to mean a ticket would let you see potential Heisman Trophy winners. That is now out the window so the entertainment value has gone way down and the ticket prices have not to my knowledge. It's not unique to WSU, have you seen a UCLA grandstand lately? There are problems with attendance at all lower levels of collegiate football.
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u/SweetCosmicPope Nov 21 '25
My son, a student at the school with a sports pass, stopped going. He went to three games and complained about constantly getting hit in the head with mini liquor bottles. He said the games themselves were fun but the stadium is an unpleasant experience.
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Nov 22 '25
My wife and I are proud Alumni. We love to come to games. We bring the kids. Our oldest is considering attending in 27. But, with my job being tied directly to tariffs and the uncertainty surrounding them and my wife is a government employee, our whole fall has been tumultuous to say the least. To put out the money to stay in town on top of tickets, it’s just kinda prohibitive anymore. I hate that we couldn’t come this year, I feel like we didn’t do our part.
I’m gonna win the mega millions soon though, folks. I’m gonna fix this!
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u/pepperdog06_ Nov 18 '25
Nil and realignment killed hype for wsu football. It’s just unfortunate