mens and Womens BB attendance

[stuball888]

Looked at our attendance so far. Mens is at 1,687 per game. pre pandemic it was 2,887. Also Womens was about 600 and now under 300 per game. Do you really think the pandemic and masks have not affected attendance.

[HUSID80]

Pandemic yes, masks not necessarily, vaccinations or lack of, yes.

[ZMAN3]

Masks - Yes - My friends and I are Minus 6
I'm fully vaxed (including booster) but I don't go anywhere a mask is required.

[HofstraMathew]

All the issues with the pandemic definitely effect attendance. Of course the team did have a bit more hype in that 2019-20 year so some of the drop will have to do with that. But I would say the mask requirement and vaccine requirement both are reducing attendance. In addition on the opposite end of the spectrum there are people that probably aren't going to the game because they don't feel it is a Covid safe environment even with those policies.

Would removing the mask and/or vaccine policies increase attendance by more than it would also reduce attendance (by people now deeming it a Covid unsafe environment)? My guess would be yes but who knows for sure.

Personally I have attended every home game this year except the 2 non D1 games as I had a family commitment for one of them and was away for the other but for next season I won't be renewing my seats if the mask policy is still in place. This is literally the only place I still go that requires a mask (except the dentist which is my mask really doing something for that walk to the chair before the dentist then sticks his hands in my mouth? lol). Maybe I am in the minority though and Hofstra would lose more fans by dropping the mask mandate but at some point we need to trust that the vaccines work.

[HofstraPride1]

Looked at our attendance so far. Mens is at 1,687 per game. pre pandemic it was 2,887. Also Womens was about 600 and now under 300 per game. Do you really think the pandemic and masks have not affected attendance.

Definitely not masks since it really isn't that big an inconvenience to wear one. Of course you can't wear a mask while eating so that factor may have factored into some families opting not go during the Omicron wave. Hopefully will be better rest of season starting tomorrow.

[Hofstra]

All the issues with the pandemic definitely effect attendance. Of course the team did have a bit more hype in that 2019-20 year so some of the drop will have to do with that. But I would say the mask requirement and vaccine requirement both are reducing attendance. In addition on the opposite end of the spectrum there are people that probably aren't going to the game because they don't feel it is a Covid safe environment even with those policies.

Would removing the mask and/or vaccine policies increase attendance by more than it would also reduce attendance (by people now deeming it a Covid unsafe environment)? My guess would be yes but who knows for sure.

Personally I have attended every home game this year except the 2 non D1 games as I had a family commitment for one of them and was away for the other but for next season I won't be renewing my seats if the mask policy is still in place. This is literally the only place I still go that requires a mask (except the dentist which is my mask really doing something for that walk to the chair before the dentist then sticks his hands in my mouth? lol). Maybe I am in the minority though and Hofstra would lose more fans by dropping the mask mandate but at some point we need to trust that the vaccines work.

So true. I was at the game last night. Did you guys see the season ticket holder of the game? Looked as if he was 14-17 old. He wore approximately 1 mask for every year in age he was. So we have people like him, and people who dont want the mask anymore. Hofstra is in a tough spot, but I think HM is right, trust the science in the vaccines.

At work, I have to wear a mask all day long, so I am not opposed to wearing one obviously, but I think its just too much. If we all have to be vaccinated to get in, some boosted, why the mask? IMHO, I do think it hurts attendance. Like ZMAN said, he wont go anywhere that requires a mask, and he is vaxxed. I am sure there are a few dozen people like him, which def. hurts the attendance numbers.

At times, I just held a water in my hand last night to put the mask down. Would slowly sip. Its hard to be at a game and talking to your friends, rooting for your team all while wearing a mask.

[Pride97]

I think if people wanted to go bad enough, they’d go mask or no mask. If they did away with the mandates I’d still go but with a mask. My personal opinion at this point.

If they were a team with a winning tradition they would have bigger crowds. Unfortunately they aren’t right now and thus it’s the same every year. If they were 8-1 with a win over Houston or Maryland I think the crowds would be better and the students would have interest. They are a .500 team. I don’t think the masks have a big factor on the attendance.


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[Hofstra]

I think if people wanted to go bad enough, they’d go mask or no mask. If they did away with the mandates I’d still go but with a mask. My personal opinion at this point.

If they were a team with a winning tradition they would have bigger crowds. Unfortunately they aren’t right now and thus it’s the same every year. If they were 8-1 with a win over Houston or Maryland I think the crowds would be better and the students would have interest. They are a .500 team. I don’t think the masks have a big factor on the attendance.


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I think you're right with the wins over Houston and Maryland

[BringBackFootball]

I dont attend any establishment that requires proof of vaccination or a mask. These results are not surprising. These idiots will figure it out eventually

[stuball888]

At my training facility We have a mask optional policy. Those that want to wear a mask can. If they want their trainer to wear a mask they will. It is about choice and it has worked for me. This way those that are afraid can wear a mask and get protection. Maybe if Hofstra had that policy you can get the best of both worlds.

[stuball888]

Mens games attendance announced at 3,793. WOW! maybe we should do this more often.

[HofstraPride1]

Mens games attendance announced at 3,793. WOW! maybe we should do this more often.

Very impressive crowd indeed, although I would say actual attendance probably not quite that high. Awesome job by our marketing department hyping this game up and getting many alums to attend.

[Dooku25]

Looked at our attendance so far. Mens is at 1,687 per game. pre pandemic it was 2,887. Also Womens was about 600 and now under 300 per game. Do you really think the pandemic and masks have not affected attendance.

That's a 40% drop in attendance. Of course the spectator policy the school implemented on 11/5 had a direct impact. They eliminated 350,000 Nassau County residents right there. They also lost a second group of people like Zman who have received 2 or 3 shots and are done with any further restrictions or mandates. Requiring proof of vaccine AND mask wearing seems a bit extreme to me. They should have required one or the other, not both. By requiring a mask for a 100% "fully vaccinated" crowd, there is admittance that you can still catch and spread the virus in that setting. If that's the case then there shouldn't be a proof of vaccine requirement. If they wanted better attendance, they could have followed Stony Brook's policy of no restrictions and let people decide for themselves. For what it's worth, they are outdrawing us, averaging around 2,000 a game this year.

[EvanJ]

I'm not saying this is a factor in schools' decisions, but it might be. The House of Representatives district with Stony Brook is more Republican than the district with Hofstra. I'd be interested if every school surveyed season ticket holders (not just in Men's Basketball, albeit all other things equal the risk of transmission is less for watching outdoor sports) about what COVID restrictions if any they want and compared it to the school policy.

Do you think transfers are bad for attendance? No matter how much Estrada and Cooks score, they can't pass people on our list with at least 1,000 points like Pemberton and Buie did. Of our five starters last season, two transferred, and three are combining to average 20.9 points, which is a drop of 43 percent from 36.5 points last season.

[CTDutch]

Do you think transfers are bad for attendance? No matter how much Estrada and Cooks score, they can't pass people on our list with at least 1,000 points like Pemberton and Buie did. Of our five starters last season, two transferred, and three are combining to average 20.9 points, which is a drop of 43 percent from 36.5 points last season.

Absolutely not. Fans want to see an exciting winning team. transfers or 4 year players - doesn't matter.

[Jojogunne]

Hofstra's Covid policy for indoor sporting events is part of its overall Covid policy, which requires vaccinations and masks for students, faculty and staff -- a community that's fairly consistent from day to day.

Indoor sporting events bring a lot of people into contact with the otherwise protected Hofstra community. Until the overall Covid policy changes, I don't expect the policy for indoor sporting events to change.

[EvanJ]

That's a good way of looking at it. If thousands of students at Hofstra, and millions around the country from kids through college can wear masks whenever they're in school, not to mention some jobs, the time spent at games is small compared to the time spent in school or working 40 hours a week.

[Flying Dutchmen]

I didn't renew season tix for the first time in 7 years, partially because I got a new gig which meant I would miss home games for a good portion of the season, but also because I didn't want to deal with the inevitable restrictions/cancellations. I was finally able to get to my first game on Thursday, and honestly, the policies are what I expected, it wasn't terrible, but the crowd was definitely small and subdued. The one really weird thing I noticed was the ushers walking around during game breaks with the "wear the mask" signs, had a real 1984 vibe. Other than that, it felt pretty normal.

I think Hofstra has taken the necessary precautions, and as Jojo mentioned above, they are just an extension of the school's overall covid policy, so I don't know why anyone would expect different covid policies for the hoops games. But the truth is the mask, vax/ID policy while fair, just makes the whole event less fun. It's an interrogation getting into the arena, and I don't want to constantly have to be thinking about covid while I'm trying to watch the game, sucking on my mask for hours while I try to get into the action. Not saying Hofstra's policy is wrong this year, just that it's annoying and makes it a chore to watch the game at the Mack. The policies definitely have a negative effect on attendance, as I don't expect to go back this year, I'll continue to support from afar and hope the mask policy gets trashed for next season.

[HUSID80]

If the game is marketed and promoted we can still draw a good crowd; look at yesterday, we drew 3,700 plus people…pretty good.

It takes work to get people in the building…and most people who go to games have a great experience anecdotally…we just need to do a better job promoting the events.

What concerns me is the lack of interest from the students. I’d like to see breakdowns of student attendance over the years…we need to do more work to engage with them.

[triplec2195]

Students definitely are an important part of the game and they can be really loud and raucous inevitably having an effect on the outcome. I don't like having to show id and vax status as I walk into the Mack but a small inconvenience to watch a sport that I enjoy so much. Wearing a mask I've already gotten used to that wearing it in all stores I go in so it's become second nature.