The Home Court advantage is there now

[Deleted]

We have it. 18-4 over the last 22 games at Gola. Attendance numbers, which had been declining, are now stabilized.

However, I did hear on twitter that some ushers told the standing section to sit down today so that other people can see.

Does that happen in real arenas? Fortunately, we have the 4everlasalle video boards encouraging people to stand and clap and you know, do the things that every college basketball fan does (respectfully, but NOT QUIETLY!).

Question: I was not at the CCSU game. Was Journey played after the buzzer? Can anyone confirm if it was queued up today just in case we lost?

[luhoopsfan]

I was at CCSU and not sure if they played it. All I k ow is that whoever runs that AV booth either needs help or needs to be replaced- there are way too many production screw ups

[JoeFedorowicz]

The overall game day production yesterday was rough. It is the one, biggest qualm that I have with the university outside of all others because other schools of similar size and geography do it so well.

And if my twitter feed was correct, the students were told to sit down at one point. They did not.

~Joe Fedorowicz
Philahoops.com

[kevinbonner]

Joe and all,

Wanted to come on here to add a few thoughts about the video board situation. You all are free to contact me with complaints, suggestions, etc, all season through my email at [e-mail] or calling 215-951-1513.

We are certainly open and deserving of criticism for two significant mistakes during yesterday's game (national anthem audio and trivia question). But I'd respectfully disagree that yesterday's production was terrible.

Aside from those two gaffes, we showed more instant replays right after the play than we ever have. We added a movie clip segment, dance cam, code of conduct, Galloway pump up, words to the fight song and a few other things. From the trivia question through overtime, I thought it was some of our best production since we've had the board.

I would also say that the two errors were the exception rather than the rule. In 25-30 games, those were the first times I can remember that we goofed on the anthem and the trivia question. I'm sure there have been errors but to say that the boards are a three-ring circus every game would be incorrect in my opinion.

It's also important to keep in mind that of the 10-12 people required to run the show, all but two are students. We have two adults involved in the process but the technical director, all camera people, replay operator and graphics are all run by students. It is a great learning experience for them but anytime 18-22 year olds are involved there are bound to be errors. We just want to minimize them.

I'd also be interested in hearing the other schools of similar size that do video boards well. St. Joe's has a graphics board, not video, and other schools our size in the A-10 (Bonnies, Fordham) as well as Villanova do not have video boards. We are always looking for ways to improve so I'd be willing to contact those smaller schools to get some tips.

I will check in about the students sitting that was posted on Twitter. It is definitely not our policy to tell our students to sit down after we've worked hard to get them there and involved in the game.

And Journey has been removed from the playlist for after games.

Again, please feel free to contact me about any concerns you may have about the game-day experience or otherwise. Thanks in advance.

Kevin Bonner
Associate AD

[MisterD]

I can't speak to who is right or wrong regarding the videos, but this is the first time I can remember someone associated w/ La Salle leadership addressing critiques. Very welcome change. Thanks Kevin.

[lasallescreamer]

Production wasnt terrible; just needs improvement. Cant have anthem go wrong again. I am not sure if anyone cares about trivia q.

[Deleted]

Hey Kevin. By and large, the video boards have been great. It has really improved the gameday experience at Gola. Thanks to 4Ever for making that happen.

I have one suggestion though. Any way the athletic department could spring for better prizes for the contest winners? It might get even more students to show up if they knew they had a shot at winning something better than a water bottle.

[stlexplorer]

Kevin, I appreciate you coming on here opening a line of discussion.

[big5vet]

Kevin, as others have already said, many thanks for coming on the board and asking for assistance. My suggestion pertains to the during game boxscore. Since my view of the player scoring at the La Salle bench end of the arena is obstructed, I'm glad that video board includes stats. I'd suggest that they be posted at halftime when there is no other programming; ditto during timeouts.

[Deleted]

KevinB, you're awesome. Guys, this is what the props button is for.

Is there someone who decided that sitting down at college basketball games is the status quo, including our student section which is always standing? This does not happen at other arenas... La Salle students have the advantage of best tickets in the A10 because of their placement at midcourt, but the forced seating concept is still a detraction.

Giannini has been clamoring for a home court advantage such as it exists at every other arena in the A10. It is unfortuante that some people can't see, but that is a design flaw that can't be reaccommodated for the sake of a few. There are indeed chairbacks in front for people who want to sit down and be more comfortable and have an unrestricted view. They just cost a little bit more.

I know that they don't want the police coming to Tom Gola Arena. But it seems like a very tight line has been drawn. 4everlasalle pointed this out on Raftery night, and we all laughed at the way he brought it up but he was too right.

As for the production quality comments, a few minor errors to address in the long run.
-The volume level of commercials is often so subtle especially when it is played on top of the band.
-The arena rules and regs is barely audible because it is not enunciated nor closed captioned. (It's going to be even louder in the arena after the no standing rule is lifted.)
-The trivia question answer replay was not a fluke. Same error also happened last year. Both Jared and Molly have had to improvise. Also, not very enunciated. What did he say? Again, it is a lot louder in the arena on game days than in a production room. The enunciation should be overemphasized.)

[lasallescreamer]

I think that the AD needs to talk to "Ushers" or their boss. Some are personable., but some view themselves as gestapo-like security guards and have a constant scowl on their face. It needs to be the school and not an usher who decides about NO STANDING. Their people skills need to improve.

[JoeFedorowicz]

All,

I want to amend my comment and change a word I wrote previously. The word "terrible" was strong and in hindsight, was probably not the best word choice. It clearly offended some on here and in the La Salle community. Also, my comments have nothing to do with the video board as I could care less about the video board. It had more to do with the overall experience and were just my thoughts.

I'm going to amend it in my original comment, but will leave this here.

[coachd]

Kevin, thanks for taking the time to answer questions.

Is there any possibility for a couple of rows of seating behind each basket in the existing Gola Arena?

Any updates when a possible arena can be built assuming we do not enter into another recession next year?

[SICguy84]

Thanks Kevin for dropping in and addressing these issues. I hope this will be the start of an ongoing dialogue between the athletic department and some of the most loyal and enthusiastic La Salle fans who happen to be members of this board.

[jellybean]

I'm impressed. Hykos makes known his displeasure with the playing of Journey after the game and it's gone. Maybe he can use his clout towards the pre-game music. Without sounding like an old fart, can they play something other than hip hop or rap for EVERY song?

[explorergalf11]

jellybean... i believe that most of the pregame music is selected by the team. It probably is a good time for them to get pumped up and ready for the game... that pregame warm up and video is probably not only to fire the fans up but to also fire up the team as well.

[theneumann64]

Yeah, I think most teams allow the players to choose warm-up music. Hence a bunch of 19 and 20 year old, predominately African American kids are going to choose mostly Hip-Hop. I'd like it if it was more of a mix of music once the crowd was let in, but the whole notion of music to pump the players up is most valuable right before tip off.

[theneumann64]

By the way, Kevin: thanks so much for your dropping into the thread. Nice gesture and much appreicated.

[kevinbonner]

Whew, a lot to cover. Thanks to those to have emailed me as well. I will try to address as many things as I can here.

- Giveaways. Agreed that water bottles aren't the greatest prizes in the world. Our new corporate sales guy Joe McPeak is doing a great job in his first few months and we can certainly do a better job with the giveaways. On a side but related note, look for the Gola replica t-shirts to the first 500 students at the Penn State game.

- Stats on the board. We do have a lot to squeeze into the timeouts and halftime but I will pass along to display the stats more often rather than going to the spinning logo in some cases.

- Audio. The audio is definitely a thorn in my side. We had some professionals in the arena a few weeks back and they've made some recommendations. Partially, I believe its the acoustics of the arena aren't that great and the sound gets dissipated. It's similar to the Palestra, which I love, but also doesn't have great acoustics.

Anytime you have your student-athletes talking, some will be better speakers than others. I've noticed the guys with deeper voices don't sound as well. But we still feel its important to get their faces and personalities out there as much as we can. If we only used the athletes that were the best public speakers, we wouldn't be able to feature as many as we do now.

Ushers. I will pass along.

Pre-game music. - You guys are pretty much right on. The players pick the pre-game music because it is important that they are pumped up, etc. However, we have worked together to pick some more fan-friendly, yet still upbeat music from about the 20 minute mark to tip-off. None of it is really the music I'd listen to at home but if that's the music the guys need to win games, then I'm all for it. We do screen the music for vulgarity.

Moving forward, I'm not sure how often I'll get around to posting but feel free to email me if you have any thoughts. I will try to address as many things that are under my area of responsibility.

[jellybean]

Thanks Kevin. Great job and much appreciated.

[stlexplorer]

Appreciate it Kevin. Can't say enough how frustrating it used to be years ago to be in the student section and being told we were too loud by security when Penn is walking their mascot out in handcuffs when they played us.

[calsufan]

Nov 26, 2012 19:10:53 GMT -5 coachd said:

Kevin, thanks for taking the time to answer questions.

Is there any possibility for a couple of rows of seating behind each basket in the existing Gola Arena?

Any updates when a possible arena can be built assuming we do not enter into another recession next year?

So Al \ Steve, why do you assume we could enter into another recession next year? There are no forecasts of any such thing happening next year.

[coqui900]

I'll e-mail this to you in case you don't check but I've got a video idea.

How about a video of THE SCREAMER doing his "We fight hard! We fight well!" chant. That, synced up with the cheerleaders' signs for this, could get the crowd chanting that. I think the students have no idea what the heck is going on with that chant.

[lasallescreamer]

I will co-op in any way.

[gymratlsc72]

Nov 27, 2012 21:48:20 GMT -5 coqui900 said:

I'll e-mail this to you in case you don't check but I've got a video idea.

How about a video of THE SCREAMER doing his "We fight hard! We fight well!" chant. That, synced up with the cheerleaders' signs for this, could get the crowd chanting that. I think the students have no idea what the heck is going on with that chant.

Since Screamer has been quieted by the video board commercials, loud music and other assorted timeout events, I think this is a great idea! Also gives him a proper introduction to the current generation of students.

[luhoopsfan]

I will pay for my own DVD of that to play at my house if it helps move things along