It’s been more than 10 years since then-Boston University President John Silber made the decision.
Due to recent lack of success, Title IX obligations and a paltry fan base, the BU football program received the ax after 91 years of existence. That final season in 1997 — as well as the two preceding campaigns — mostly saw crowds of the miniscule variety.
“Except for homecoming,” said BU Facilities Director Alan Weinberger, “attendance at football games was not very good.”
Saying the Terrier crowds weren’t very good is putting it nicely. Back when there were goal posts, a 50-yard line and extra seating capacity at Nickerson Field was 14,500. Home games averaged fewer than 2,000 fans in 1997.
All of this brings us to today, when BU students annually cry for the return of football to Commonwealth Avenue. But memories of the program’s demise and today’s less-than-stellar attendance for sports outside of men’s hockey may keep BU football’s perfect record since 1997 intact for quite some time.
More often than not, Terrier athletic events feature more empty seats than filled ones. To understand why, one must accept the obvious — Boston isn’t Orono, Me. or Burlington, Vt. BU is located in the heart of a lively city — complete with countless entertainment outlets and professional sports teams. Needless to say, Terrier athletic events aren’t always the main attraction for students.
“Part of the issue is being here in Boston and having dozens of other things to do outside of our athletic department,” said BU Director of Athletics Mike Lynch. “When you’re trying to change a culture that had been going on for almost 40 years since the school became a residential campus, it’s not easy. Nobody is suggesting this is an overnight fix.”
That’s not to say the athletic department isn’t trying. Agganis Arena and the Fitness and Recreation Center are still in their infancies, and both injected new life into a campus starving for new facilities. Still, a robust fan-base outside of one to two hockey games per week is seemingly non-existent.
“I think part of the problem is we’re considered a hockey school,” said School of Management senior Dave Marchetti. “People come here already thinking we really only have one team.”
College of Arts and Sciences senior Saum Ghodoussipour furthered the notion that hockey games take priority above all else.
“I go to basketball games when I can,” he said. “But I also make sure that I go to hockey games. I usually only go to basketball games when I have the time. I’d probably be thinking a lot more about the basketball team if they were successful.”
Success is only part of the three-way perfect storm that must occur for the athletic department to truly thrive: Winning teams, proper promotion of games and school spirit.
“I think all three [factors] need to happen,” Ghodoussipour said. “It all starts with the school establishing the programs. That’ll attract players and make students come here.”
Lynch, who was named Director of Athletics in 2004, understands it’s going to take a collective effort to address this issue.
“You need everything going right, from the students getting the message correctly to the teams playing well,” he said. “In the past, much of the information wasn’t coming to the students in the right fashion.”
Still, the situation isn’t as dire as it may seem. Promotional events — such as the Terrier Tailgate to kick off the men’s soccer season last September and last month’s Whiteout at a men’s basketball game — proved to be major successes.
Basketball Marketing and Promotions Coordinator Nancy Atufunwa said interaction with students is a key aspect in driving up attendance. The Whiteout event, during which the first 1,000 fans who entered Case Gymnasium received white t-shirts, produced the largest non- Agganis Arena crowd (1,406) of the season. The overall success of BU teams hasn’t been up to par this year, but events such as the Terrier Tailgate and Whiteout have produced better crowds than it may appear, Lynch said.
“The records of the teams aren’t something anyone is happy about,” he said. “But while attendance is not where we want it to be, it’s definitely growing. ”
The university’s promotions and giveaways are a step in the right direction, but there’s still a long way to go. No overnight event will bring record crowds to Nickerson Field or Case Gymnasium. Time — and a gradual change in culture — is needed to create the school spirit seen in collegiate powerhouses.
“This is a generational thing here, but I’m optimistic that things are going in the right direction,” Lynch said. “We’re making small strides.”
What exactly it will take for consistent interest from a university comprised of 30,000 students is the real mystery — something both students and the athletic department continue to search for.
“I think if we had all the answers,” Weinberger said, “we’d have the places packed every night.”
