Stadium Journey reviews Illinois' Memorial Stadium

[Dan]

Food & Beverage 4
Atmosphere 3
Neighborhood 5
Fans 2
Access 4
Return on Investment 3
Extras 3



http://www.stadiumjourney.com/stadiu...l-stadium-s447

[Redfoxdogs]

"The marching band does stand out as one of the best I have seen"


Good team or bad team, the MI performs at the highest level of musicianship and drill difficulty as well as keeping a high level of energy in the stands regardless of fan attendance.

Go Band!

[jackman404]

Very accurate reflection on the stadium experience. Great stadium, horrible atmosphere (combination of bad fans and bad teams).

[MastFan1]

Originally Posted by jackman404

Very accurate reflection on the stadium experience. Great stadium, horrible atmosphere (combination of bad fans and bad teams).

Meh, 2001 and 2007 had some pretty great crowds at the stadium. I'd put it more towards bad teams than bad fans.

[Shenanigans]

Originally Posted by jackman404

Very accurate reflection on the stadium experience. Great stadium, horrible atmosphere (combination of bad fans and bad teams).

Not bad fans, just constantly let down fans.

[jackman404]

Our fans have been through a lot, but to even call them average fans would be a stretch in my mind. Way too many "sit down I can't see!" fans in the stands.

[Wooderson]

Food & Beverage 4

Was this out of 100?

[Sure Shot]

Originally Posted by jackman404

Our fans have been through a lot, but to even call them average fans would be a stretch in my mind. Way too many "sit down I can't see!" fans in the stands.

I think I would put it this way,

It's not that we don't have a passion for winning, it's that we don't have a passion for having fun.

MS often has a vibe of absolute misery, and not just when things aren't going well.

[DanvIllini]

Originally Posted by jackman404

Our fans have been through a lot, but to even call them average fans would be a stretch in my mind. Way too many "sit down I can't see!" fans in the stands.

Agreed. Although Im getting used to sitting down with my kid. Hopefully by the time we are standing for a whole game, hes old enough to not be held constantly.

[IlliniOllie]

Originally Posted by jackman404

Our fans have been through a lot, but to even call them average fans would be a stretch in my mind. Way too many "sit down I can't see!" fans in the stands.

Not only this, but there's also about 5,000 people in neon-yellow EVENT STAFF and PARKING STAFF vests and jackets who are hell-bent and determined to prevent any of the fans from having even the slightest amount of fun and enjoyment at the game or the areas around it.

There wasn't a problem with the atmosphere in the 1980s. Add 20 years of mostly pathetic performances, remove 12,000 seats (actually down 18K+ from the record attendance), do as little as possible to enhance the gameday experience, and you've got what you've got today. Mike Thomas has his work cut out for him, especially after going 2-10.

[Boneyard Surfer]

Originally Posted by Sure Shot

MS often has a vibe of absolute misery, and not just when things aren't going well.

MS is like Wrigley Field South. We know what's coming. We're just waiting for it.

Originally Posted by IlliniOllie

Not only this, but there's also about 5,000 people in neon-yellow EVENT STAFF and PARKING STAFF vests and jackets who are hell-bent and determined to prevent any of the fans from having even the slightest amount of fun and enjoyment at the game or the areas around it

When we had season tix ('08 and '09), my wife and I brought our own (awesome) stadium seats to the games. At the end of the '09 season, one EVENT STAFF person at the entry gate said we couldn't bring our seats in because they were 1 inch too wide per the guide taped to the table at the gate. Never mind that the a$$es of half of the fans were wider than our seats, or us saying that we had brought these seats into the stadium a dozen time before...the answer was no.

So we just went down 4th Street to another gate and entered as usual.

It seems like the parking lot, with a grill, a cooler full of beer, and a wide screen TV, is still competition for the interior of the stadium.

[illinifan31]

I am slightly ashamed to say this, but this past year I may have preferred watching the game on my TV rather than walking a few blocks to the stadium.

[jackman404]

Originally Posted by Sure Shot

I think I would put it this way,

It's not that we don't have a passion for winning, it's that we don't have a passion for having fun.

MS often has a vibe of absolute misery, and not just when things aren't going well.

Great way of putting it. It's incredible how the crowd reacts to Gangnam Style. Half the crowd is standing up and dancing, and everyone is having a great time. Then when that song is over, the crowd goes back to their grumpy selves. Our crowds just need to lighten up and enjoy the gameday experience.

[Oskee Mayer]

Originally Posted by jackman404

Great way of putting it. It's incredible how the crowd reacts to Gangnam Style. Half the crowd is standing up and dancing, and everyone is having a great time. Then when that song is over, the crowd goes back to their grumpy selves. Our crowds just need to lighten up and enjoy the gameday experience.

I think they took what enjoyment they could this year, as you perfectly described.

[Illiniwek66]

Originally Posted by Boneyard Surfer

MS is like Wrigley Field South. We know what's coming. We're just waiting for it.



When we had season tix ('08 and '09), my wife and I brought our own (awesome) stadium seats to the games. At the end of the '09 season, one EVENT STAFF person at the entry gate said we couldn't bring our seats in because they were 1 inch too wide per the guide taped to the table at the gate. Never mind that the a$$es of half of the fans were wider than our seats, or us saying that we had brought these seats into the stadium a dozen time before...the answer was no.

So we just went down 4th Street to another gate and entered as usual.

It seems like the parking lot, with a grill, a cooler full of beer, and a wide screen TV, is still competition for the interior of the stadium.

The gate attendant's name is Loren. I had the same restrictions imposed on me regardless of the thousands of empty seats available all around me. I finally went out and bought new seats. I'm sure he's just "doing his job" but DIA needs to get people on board that understand a game day atmosphere.

At the Purdue game, we parked at the Law Building, because DIA is now charging for Education. (DIA claims that parking services set that policy not DIA). I needed to remove some of my Oktoberfest, and found the Law Building to be locked. Understandable, since school was out for fall break, and I was parking for free. So, I walked over to Education, past the parking guy who was sitting in his UI official van, wasting gas to make sure he didn't get cold. Education was also locked.

So, they charge you $20 to park, refuse to offer you anywhere to use the restroom, and then lay the big stinker on the field. Plus the SS gate attendants, making sure that there will be room for the 29 people attending the game. I laughed at Education to see that only about a dozen people coughed up the $20. It probably cost the university more to pay a bunch of union guys to work on a Saturday, wasting gas to charge for the lot. Plus, I have to assume that people were relieving themselves whereever they found a bush.

I sure hope things improve. When I complained to DIA about the Education lot, they said it wasn't their fault as parking services had taken that lot. Good leaders don't pass the buck. They take charge and provide solutions.

[U of I 89-05-10]

Illini fans would show up in huge numbers just for something to do on Saturday ... if having fun at the game wasn't dependent on Illinois being good. That's what the DIA has failed to realize; Iowa, Michigan State and Wisconsin can get big crowds during down years, yes because they are usually good but mostly because going to those games is fun. The tailgating is FUN.

Illini fans aren't "not fun" people ... the people who ran UI athletics for the past two decades were, though. I think MT is slowly but surely trying to change that, and I think that is a reason that I like him as AD. He's incredibly underappreciated for this effort, IMO, and most of the hate (maybe rightfully so) he's endured is entirely because of Beckman sucking or people still hurt that he fired our previous two coaches.

[Redfoxdogs]

The yellow event staff make me shudder. They've got to change the color at least. Make it look like the thought police live at MS.