An e-mail I received for you folks to think about
By Colin Dunlap | 2:43 p.m. Sunday
I get a lot of e-mails -- a lot of e-mails. And, quite honestly, I am thankful for all of them, even the ones that point out that I am an idiot and don't know anything about sports/grammar/writing/reporting/life/logic, well, you get the point.
Anyhow, I got an e-mail this morning that I needed to share with the DukesBlog readers. It makes a few very good points and I wanted to see what you think about it.
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I've noticed a lot of chatter about attendance and
atmosphere at the Palumbo. The total lack of interest from the current
university community is stunning and I don't know why that is or what
fixes it but in the larger Pittsburgh sports landscape I do think the
following:
I think eventually sustained winning (2 years in a row and hopefully a
third is a start), some real games in March (finally an A-10 win and a
post season game also a start) would eventually lead to them filling
the place.
But in the meantime I think two enhancements to the non-conference
schedule would pump a little more life into the program's "buzz" and
was wondering if there had been any discussions on the matter,
1. Move the City Game with Pitt into February. Pitt currently plays
Robert Morris in Febraury (3 years running I think) so they technically
have a date they can play with on the non-conference front during Big
East play (by moving Bob Morris to December). Right now the City Game
in December is competing with Steelers Football, bowl season coverage
for up to three area schools, and the start of Pens season. In
February, they'd only be competing with the Pens. I think this would
elevate that game on the Pittsburgh sports landscape.
2. Add Penn State to the non-conference schedule. I know PSU basketball
has never been big and certainly doesn't generate the following that
Pitt and WVU do in Pittsburgh. But with the number of alumni in the
area, the number of current students from the area enrolled in PSU,
plus the proximity of the McKeesport campus that this would generate
some real interest, certainly above a game with ODU or Ohio.
Obviously, both of these items would require a willing partner and
could do nothing more that leads to more sustained interest in the
Dukes product but I do think it is a way to get a broader swath of
people to a least take a look at what the Bluff has to offer a college
hoops fan.
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