Improve Mason home game experience discussion

[ProfessorCFK]

The Green Machine's charts are all written by the students that are in the band. If they want to play new music, Doc always gives them the opportunity. All it takes is a student with drive to write/arrange it.

That being said, the DJ is taking up a significant amount of their air time, so even if they have new music they might not be able to play it.

 

[EXpatriot13]

KU student section was absolutely jamming to "Pursuit of Happiness - Kid Cudi" last night. Some of that is obviously organic (and it's Kansas), but you can tell the arena is blaring the song and everyone is in on it. Foster a crazy environment and it will eventually happen.

 

[jessej]

KU student section was absolutely jamming to "Pursuit of Happiness - Kid Cudi" last night. Some of that is obviously organic (and it's Kansas), but you can tell the arena is blaring the song and everyone is in on it. Foster a crazy environment and it will eventually happen.

Query the student body game goers as to what music will get them hyped. Initially those songs will be played by the DJ, but gradually the Green Machine can learn some and add them to their list.

 

[DRK331]

The Gear Trailer should sell Patriot Pressure and Defend NOVA tshirts in both Adult and Youth sizes.

 

[Ben Chwarmer]

Idea to make game day more fun: bring in a bunch of food trucks to the parking lots on game day and make deals so they accept Mason’s meal plan for students. Students might come out just because they’re excited for some variety.

 

[TweederGMU]

Idea to make game day more fun: bring in a bunch of food trucks to the parking lots on game day and make deals so they accept Mason’s meal plan for students. Students might come out just because they’re excited for some variety.

Would never happen as is. They would need to be approved by our meals contractor.... Chartwell and GMU.... and then be approved to accept our meal plan currency.

Plus.... it's competition....why would they bring in multiple food trucks to compete with selling concessions IN THEIR ARENA that GMU actually gets revenue for. That takes away from their potential gameday concessions earnings.

And college arenas are not marketing their food and drinks to broke college students who are probably on meal plans, they are relying on the 25+ crowds and families who have jobs for a living and can afford to fork over $8-&10 for a nachos or popcorn bucket.

You may be able to do this over at the baseball field or field house for soccer events - would need to work out logistics but GMU could work out a 10-20% cut from these trucks for being on their land and selling to their audiences and crowds.

 

[Old Man]

You may be able to do this over at the baseball field or field house for soccer events - would need to work out logistics but GMU could work out a 10-20% cut from these trucks for being on their land and selling to their audiences and crowds.

I don't know about soccer, but there is a food truck at baseball games, at least at the games I've attended on weekends.

 

[Ben Chwarmer]

Would never happen as is. They would need to be approved by our meals contractor.... Chartwell and GMU.... and then be approved to accept our meal plan currency.

Plus.... it's competition....why would they bring in multiple food trucks to compete with selling concessions IN THEIR ARENA that GMU actually gets revenue for. That takes away from their potential gameday concessions earnings.

And college arenas are not marketing their food and drinks to broke college students who are probably on meal plans, they are relying on the 25+ crowds and families who have jobs for a living and can afford to fork over $8-&10 for a nachos or popcorn bucket.

You may be able to do this over at the baseball field or field house for soccer events - would need to work out logistics but GMU could work out a 10-20% cut from these trucks for being on their land and selling to their audiences and crowds.

I get the concern around Chartwells and protecting concession revenue, but I think there’s a bigger opportunity here.

Food trucks don’t have to be “competition” — they can be a complementary experience. Office parks and corporate campuses bring in food trucks all the time despite having dining providers, and they structure it so everyone benefits (rev share, approved vendors, limited menus, etc.). There’s no reason Mason couldn’t do something similar with Chartwells involved.

More importantly, this is really about driving attendance and creating a game day atmosphere. If food trucks get more students and families to show up early, hang around longer, and actually come to games, that increased ticket sales, energy, and engagement can outweigh any marginal loss in concession sales.

Also, if we’re worried about lost food revenue, then tailgating wouldn’t exist anywhere — yet it’s one of the biggest drivers of fan engagement in sports. The goal isn’t to maximize nacho sales, it’s to build a culture people want to be part of.

At the end of the day, Mason doesn’t have a concession problem — it has an attendance and atmosphere problem. This is one way to help fix that.

 

[jkh1978]

At the end of the day, Mason doesn’t have a concession problem — it has an attendance and atmosphere problem. This is one way to help fix that.

It does have a concession problem.

 

[jkh1978]

I don't know about soccer, but there is a food truck at baseball games, at least at the games I've attended on weekends.

There are food trucks at soccer.

 

[TweederGMU]

I get the concern around Chartwells and protecting concession revenue, but I think there’s a bigger opportunity here.

Food trucks don’t have to be “competition” — they can be a complementary experience. Office parks and corporate campuses bring in food trucks all the time despite having dining providers, and they structure it so everyone benefits (rev share, approved vendors, limited menus, etc.). There’s no reason Mason couldn’t do something similar with Chartwells involved.

More importantly, this is really about driving attendance and creating a game day atmosphere. If food trucks get more students and families to show up early, hang around longer, and actually come to games, that increased ticket sales, energy, and engagement can outweigh any marginal loss in concession sales.

Also, if we’re worried about lost food revenue, then tailgating wouldn’t exist anywhere — yet it’s one of the biggest drivers of fan engagement in sports. The goal isn’t to maximize nacho sales, it’s to build a culture people want to be part of.

At the end of the day, Mason doesn’t have a concession problem — it has an attendance and atmosphere problem. This is one way to help fix that.

If you are referring to tailgating as in for college football, that's whole another animal where you have 10-15 times the fans of a normal college basketball arena attending and where college football is built around tailgating.

Tailgating for college bball doesn't really exist. I've been to 20 college campuses (DII to ACC, SEC, BIG Ten, Big East, Conf USA, etc.) over the past 20 years for college basketball games and I don't recall A. Much of a huge tailgate atmosphere in the parking lots before games. B. Never seen a food truck outside a college arena prior to a basketball game.

For college bball - Usually cold as crap out so students aren't gonna stand around tailgating for 2 hours prior to a game with the idea of a couple food truck overpriced empanadas or chicken over rice is going to entice and energize them enough to come out 2 hours prior to a game. Plus, this generation of Mason kids are soft and don't really seem enthused to be at the games and would much rather be on their phones or playing video games an hour or 2 before a game. I haven't seen any crazy die hard students in the student sections that groups would even remotely reach out to and try to encourage hosting pre-game tailgates. Plus don't we offer them free pizza a couple times a year inside the arena? Therefore, outside of Homecoming tailgating with groups of students or fans...It's just not practiced here anymore for home games.

The normal game attendees are alumni, casual fans in the community, alumni families, community groups, etc. where Mason wants to provide really overpriced concessions to them. The other offering is a pre-game meal in one of the arena hospitality rooms, where they are providing an elevated fan experience this way and still making money from people's hospitality / Patriot Club donations. Or some game attendees prefer to grab food or drinks over at Velocity Wings, Oh George, or Fat Tuesdays before our games and walk over.

I'm not trying to bash your idea but you have to look at it from all perspectives, and Mason is notorious for doing noting to the bare minimum with any and everything sports related. Food trucks would cut into these offerings mentioned above and from a logistical and a revenue generating standpoint from the higher up's at Mason..... bringing in food trucks doesn't make much sense. Marvin and his team have bigger hospitality ideas focused on inside the arena to enhance concessions and the fan experience.

 

[jessej]

If you are referring to tailgating as in for college football, that's whole another animal where you have 10-15 times the fans of a normal college basketball arena attending and where college football is built around tailgating.

Tailgating for college bball doesn't really exist. I've been to 20 college campuses (DII to ACC, SEC, BIG Ten, Big East, Conf USA, etc.) over the past 20 years for college basketball games and I don't recall A. Much of a huge tailgate atmosphere in the parking lots before games. B. Never seen a food truck outside a college arena prior to a basketball game.

For college bball - Usually cold as crap out so students aren't gonna stand around tailgating for 2 hours prior to a game with the idea of a couple food truck overpriced empanadas or chicken over rice is going to entice and energize them enough to come out 2 hours prior to a game. Plus, this generation of Mason kids are soft and don't really seem enthused to be at the games and would much rather be on their phones or playing video games an hour or 2 before a game. I haven't seen any crazy die hard students in the student sections that groups would even remotely reach out to and try to encourage hosting pre-game tailgates. Plus don't we offer them free pizza a couple times a year inside the arena? Therefore, outside of Homecoming tailgating with groups of students or fans...It's just not practiced here anymore for home games.

The normal game attendees are alumni, casual fans in the community, alumni families, community groups, etc. where Mason wants to provide really overpriced concessions to them. The other offering is a pre-game meal in one of the arena hospitality rooms, where they are providing an elevated fan experience this way and still making money from people's hospitality / Patriot Club donations. Or some game attendees prefer to grab food or drinks over at Velocity Wings, Oh George, or Fat Tuesdays before our games and walk over.

I'm not trying to bash your idea but you have to look at it from all perspectives, and Mason is notorious for doing noting to the bare minimum with any and everything sports related. Food trucks would cut into these offerings mentioned above and from a logistical and a revenue generating standpoint from the higher up's at Mason..... bringing in food trucks doesn't make much sense. Marvin and his team have bigger hospitality ideas focused on inside the arena to enhance concessions and the fan experience.

Howard is the rare case. For most regularly attended games there is one small concession stand run by University Dining Services. If there is a known large attendance game, there is a fish fry place that is added. They cook via a truck and bring the food inside and sell from a corner of the interior walkway.
On special, special, usually standing room only events, there are food trucks set up outside the entrance and folks can purchase food and bring t into the arena - as they don't have the capacity nor capability to service all of the potential demand. This usually happens once per season.

 

[Ben Chwarmer]

If you are referring to tailgating as in for college football, that's whole another animal where you have 10-15 times the fans of a normal college basketball arena attending and where college football is built around tailgating.

Tailgating for college bball doesn't really exist. I've been to 20 college campuses (DII to ACC, SEC, BIG Ten, Big East, Conf USA, etc.) over the past 20 years for college basketball games and I don't recall A. Much of a huge tailgate atmosphere in the parking lots before games. B. Never seen a food truck outside a college arena prior to a basketball game.

For college bball - Usually cold as crap out so students aren't gonna stand around tailgating for 2 hours prior to a game with the idea of a couple food truck overpriced empanadas or chicken over rice is going to entice and energize them enough to come out 2 hours prior to a game. Plus, this generation of Mason kids are soft and don't really seem enthused to be at the games and would much rather be on their phones or playing video games an hour or 2 before a game. I haven't seen any crazy die hard students in the student sections that groups would even remotely reach out to and try to encourage hosting pre-game tailgates. Plus don't we offer them free pizza a couple times a year inside the arena? Therefore, outside of Homecoming tailgating with groups of students or fans...It's just not practiced here anymore for home games.

The normal game attendees are alumni, casual fans in the community, alumni families, community groups, etc. where Mason wants to provide really overpriced concessions to them. The other offering is a pre-game meal in one of the arena hospitality rooms, where they are providing an elevated fan experience this way and still making money from people's hospitality / Patriot Club donations. Or some game attendees prefer to grab food or drinks over at Velocity Wings, Oh George, or Fat Tuesdays before our games and walk over.

I'm not trying to bash your idea but you have to look at it from all perspectives, and Mason is notorious for doing noting to the bare minimum with any and everything sports related. Food trucks would cut into these offerings mentioned above and from a logistical and a revenue generating standpoint from the higher up's at Mason..... bringing in food trucks doesn't make much sense. Marvin and his team have bigger hospitality ideas focused on inside the arena to enhance concessions and the fan experience.

I’m not married to this idea lol, just think it could help draw more students to games. I’m not picturing a huge tailgating scene.

We had food trucks at my job the other day, and even though I brought lunch, I still went out of my way to grab something. It made me think Mason could do the same. Students who are tired of their usual food options might actually come out for it.

 

[Stoolguy]

I’m not married to this idea lol, just think it could help draw more students to games. I’m not picturing a huge tailgating scene.

We had food trucks at my job the other day, and even though I brought lunch, I still went out of my way to grab something. It made me think Mason could do the same. Students who are tired of their usual food options might actually come out for it.

Students are indeed tired of the dining hall all the time as I was last year. Chartwells is doing a very good job at mixing up things unlike Sodexo.

I think food trucks may be a hard option but some sort of event Mason dining markets and people use swipes for food can be doable. They do events at dining halls (had a gaming/gambling night a week or two ago) so I think with the right demand Mason dining can create some event where students swipe in before the game grab some special food however they want to market it and that could draw some people. Another option that is less likely to get a lot more students to they came is do some tailgate atmosphere in the dining halls themselves before a few games. The globe dining hall might be a great option, they could even market it to regular fans too (no you guys won’t feel old there is many families that eat in a dining hall on a given day).

Many options, I can text some people to see what can be done during the offseason.

 

[Jack Strop]

I’m not married to this idea lol, just think it could help draw more students to games. I’m not picturing a huge tailgating scene.

We had food trucks at my job the other day, and even though I brought lunch, I still went out of my way to grab something. It made me think Mason could do the same. Students who are tired of their usual food options might actually come out for it.

Where do you put these food trucks? EBA parking area is already stretched, stressed, and maxed-out during weeknight games when class is in session.

 

[GSII]

Where do you put these food trucks? EBA parking area is already stretched, stressed, and maxed-out during weeknight games when class is in session.

Exactly....just set up beer heated garden in the grass and let students get shit faced. You attract more flies with beer than vinegar.

 

[Ben Chwarmer]

Where do you put these food trucks? EBA parking area is already stretched, stressed, and maxed-out during weeknight games when class is in session.

Yeah, you’re right—better not try anything new because parking might get crowded… especially with all those fans who definitely show up now.

Imagine how bad it would be if people actually went to the games.

But sure, let’s keep shooting down ideas instead of trying to fix something we all know needs fixing.

 

[Verdad]

Yeah, you’re right—better not try anything new because parking might get crowded… especially with all those fans who definitely show up now.

Imagine how bad it would be if people actually went to the games.

But sure, let’s keep shooting down ideas instead of trying to fix something we all know needs fixing.

Don't get upset when everyone politely tells you, and provides reasons why, it is a bad idea and you keep belaboring the point. Bad ideas need to get shut down.

 

[Ben Chwarmer]

Don't get upset when everyone politely tells you, and provides reasons why, it is a bad idea and you keep belaboring the point. Bad ideas need to get shut down.

Got it — bad ideas should be shut down. But when the atmosphere makes it feel like Liberty brought the crowd, maybe the worse idea is pretending everything’s fine.

 

[2011WinOverVillanova]

Got it — bad ideas should be shut down. But when the atmosphere makes it feel like Liberty brought the crowd, maybe the worse idea is pretending everything’s fine.

The program needs a positive jolt. A food truck, t shirt giveaways and a live outdoor rock band next year might build some pregame atmosphere.