What we have lost as a fan base

[USFRaider]

4 minutes ago, BullyPulpit said:

Enjoying the upcoming season and remembering the past aren't mutually exclusive. I have never wavered in my support for the Bulls, but the fact of the matter remains, the stakes are not the same as they were when we were in the Big East. It does feel like we were relegated back to the second tier of football. Even if the Big East was the bottom rung of the Tier 1 ladder, we were there. We had a taste of the good life. We flew first class for a few years and now we are flying coach. I still love the journey, but the flight there isn't as nice and the potential destinations aren't equal. I scoffed at the SEC Network commercials with the southern chick saying "In the SEC, it just means more," but the fact of the matter is that it does. When we were in the Big East, it just meant more. That isn't to say we can't enjoy what we have now, but we don't have to forget what we once had. 

 Very well said. I still attend all the games and have had season tickets since the Big East days, but the AAC is definitely not as exciting as the Big East and the casual fan knows this. The AAC is minor-league college football. In a pro sports town with three professional sports teams, a league perceived as AAA is not going to draw many fans outside of the hardcore fan base. No one in this town is ever going to care about Tulsa, Tulane or SMU. 

[George_Bullnard_Shaw]

The Big East. That's what we lost as a fan base. We lost relevancy.

[Calibull]

1 minute ago, George_Bullnard_Shaw said:

The Big East. That's what we lost as a fan base. We lost relevancy.

If you're honest aside from Basketball the Big East really wasn't that relevant.  All I'd hear were announcers trashing the conference.  Maybe having a Bowl bid... but actual relevancy... nah not in football. That left with Miami, Virginia Tech, and yes... Boston College. 

[Bullrush33]

8 minutes ago, Calibull said:

If you're honest aside from Basketball the Big East really wasn't that relevant.  All I'd hear were announcers trashing the conference.  Maybe having a Bowl bid... but actual relevancy... nah not in football. That left with Miami, Virginia Tech, and yes... Boston College. 

Right it’s the same conference. Not as good as the P5 but better than the G5

[BullyPulpit]

Just now, Calibull said:

If you're honest aside from Basketball the Big East really wasn't that relevant.  All I'd hear were announcers trashing the conference.  Maybe having a Bowl bid... but actual relevancy... nah not in football. That left with Miami, Virginia Tech, and yes... Boston College. 

This just isn't accurate. There were seasons when the Big East wasn't as relevant, but don't forget 2005 when West Virginia finshed #5 overall, 2006 when the Big East had 3 of the top 12 teams in the nation and a 1 loss Louisville was ranked ahead of a 1 loss Wisconsin team, or in 2009 when Cincy was undefeated and ranked #4 before losing in its bowl game. If we had the CFP then, they would have been in it. That type of relevancy will NEVER happen with the AAC under the current system. 

[BullyPulpit]

Just now, Bullrush33 said:

Right it’s the same conference. Not as good as the P5 but better than the G5

Except it was actually apart of the P6 and just didn't pretend to be. The Big East champ had guaranteed access to the BCS Bowl system and the money that came with having a team play in a big bowl game. There wasn't a financial chasm between the Big East and the other power conferences like there is between the P5 and the AAC. Would you rather play West Virginia, Louisville, Syracuse and Rutgers or Tulsa, Temple, Tulane, and ECU? 

[NewEnglandBull]

33 minutes ago, BullyPulpit said:

Enjoying the upcoming season and remembering the past aren't mutually exclusive. I have never wavered in my support for the Bulls, but the fact of the matter remains, the stakes are not the same as they were when we were in the Big East. It does feel like we were relegated back to the second tier of football. Even if the Big East was the bottom rung of the Tier 1 ladder, we were there. We had a taste of the good life. We flew first class for a few years and now we are flying coach. I still love the journey, but the flight there isn't as nice and the potential destinations aren't equal. I scoffed at the SEC Network commercials with the southern chick saying "In the SEC, it just means more," but the fact of the matter is that it does. When we were in the Big East, it just meant more. That isn't to say we can't enjoy what we have now, but we don't have to forget what we once had. 

My point was: better than the alternative...NO FOOTBALL. Because I am older my perspective is much different. In terms of being a student, the good old days for me was sitting in Fontana Hall on a Saturday afternoon listening to the dorks down the hall cheer for the Gators. Yes, things are not as good as 07 but hell life is too short to worry about it. Give me an AAC Championship just once for the love of god please...

Edited August 15, 2019 by NewEnglandBull

[BullyPulpit]

Just now, NewEnglandBull said:

My point was: better than the alternative...NO FOOTBALL. Because I am older my perspective is much different. In terms of being a student, the good old days for me was sitting in Fontana Hall on a Saturday afternoon listening to the dorks down the hall cheer for the Gators. Yes, things are not as good as 07 but hell life is too short to worry about it. Give an AAC Championship just once please...

I agree it is certainly better than nothing. I don't loathe the AAC like some on here do. I want an AAC Championship in the worst way. We need to start putting trophies in the soon to be built case in the IPF facility. But wondering why the casual fan doesn't get excited about an October game against Tulane in the same way they did for that same October game versus Pitt is just silly. History, perception, and the stakes felt higher (even if they never actually were higher). We picked the worst time possible to hire a HC that didn't fit and an AD that was apathetic and ineffective. Combine that with the downgrade in conference, TV money, and the rise of viewing options and the quality of those options, and we find ourselves here. We have a small window to right the ship and turn this thing around in the event there is conference realignment. It begins August 30. The responsibility rests with CCS, KB, and the 2019 USF Bulls team to lead us back into relevancy. If we knock off Wisconsin and Georgia Tech Tampa will take notice, especially if the Bucs struggle. Tampa Bay is a front-running town, so we just need to make sure our Bulls are running out in front.  

[NewEnglandBull]

21 minutes ago, BullyPulpit said:

I agree it is certainly better than nothing. I don't loathe the AAC like some on here do. I want an AAC Championship in the worst way. We need to start putting trophies in the soon to be built case in the IPF facility. But wondering why the casual fan doesn't get excited about an October game against Tulane in the same way they did for that same October game versus Pitt is just silly. History, perception, and the stakes felt higher (even if they never actually were higher). We picked the worst time possible to hire a HC that didn't fit and an AD that was apathetic and ineffective. Combine that with the downgrade in conference, TV money, and the rise of viewing options and the quality of those options, and we find ourselves here. We have a small window to right the ship and turn this thing around in the event there is conference realignment. It begins August 30. The responsibility rests with CCS, KB, and the 2019 USF Bulls team to lead us back into relevancy. If we knock off Wisconsin and Georgia Tech Tampa will take notice, especially if the Bucs struggle. Tampa Bay is a front-running town, so we just need to make sure our Bulls are running out in front.  

Excellent points throughout and I completely agree...especially your later points about the importance of getting off to a good start this year. Going 2-0 is good and will do wonders for attendance. The last four games are most critical as we have a gauntlet to go through. Having nice crowds for those games are critical.  In terms on realignment that is out of hands (and I think the best we do is a slimmed down Big12) but as you have stated we have to be winning to get people to notice. 

Edited August 15, 2019 by NewEnglandBull

[Friscobull]

22 minutes ago, NewEnglandBull said:

My point was: better than the alternative...NO FOOTBALL. Because I am older my perspective is much different. In terms of being a student, the good old days for me was sitting in Fontana Hall on a Saturday afternoon listening to the dorks down the hall cheer for the Gators. Yes, things are not as good as 07 but hell life is too short to worry about it. Give me an AAC Championship just once for the love of god please...

Same as my perspective and plenty of this board that experienced USF prior to football.  My Saturday afternoon and evening consisted of sitting at Beef’s drinking pitcher after pitcher wagering on the noon, 3, 7:30 espn game and Hawaii only if on the island using their cordless phone to place bets and calling the sports line to sit through 5 minutes of advertisements of stone cold locks to get the updated scores.  I love having a team and being able to watch them every week, things could be better but also much worse, I am just enjoying the roller coaster ride and hoping some day to see our team hoist the AAC trophy and a NY6 boWl.