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Post by milwsport on Mar 23, 2011 13:37:11 GMT -6
Getting to your column Jimmy I didn't like it on the whole. Yes we need to have our own identity, but what you seem to be saying is that fans who enjoy UW and UWM are somehow not as good. You don't say it outright but that impression is certainly there.
I go the Badger FB games and we tailgate with die hard Badger fans. Every year they ask me about UWM and how the team will look. Every year they tell me they're rooting for us. And I know it's not just talk because many of them will mention games from the previous season.
And you know what? NO ONE has ever told them that they can't or shouldn't root for another school.
I love your enthusiasm, but you are wrong on this one. We need all the fans we can get at our game. In the end, a quality product and a quality experience will move us up in people's minds and diminish their feelings towards other schools.
Telling people that they're wrong to wear a Badger hat to a UWM game, when only 35 people even cared enough to get on the bus to NU does nothing but hang a big "You're Not Welcome" sign out to anyone who enjoys following more than the Panthers.
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damasa
Sophomore
KFC: Kick From Chuck. What else do you need?
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Post by damasa on Mar 23, 2011 13:41:07 GMT -6
Getting to your column Jimmy I didn't like it on the whole. Yes we need to have our own identity, but what you seem to be saying is that fans who enjoy UW and UWM are somehow not as good. You don't say it outright but that impression is certainly there. I go the Badger FB games and we tailgate with die hard Badger fans. Every year they ask me about UWM and how the team will look. Every year they tell me they're rooting for us. And I know it's not just talk because many of them will mention games from the previous season. And you know what? NO ONE has ever told them that they can't or shouldn't root for another school. I love your enthusiasm, but you are wrong on this one. We need all the fans we can get at our game. In the end, a quality product and a quality experience will move us up in people's minds and diminish their feelings towards other schools. Telling people that they're wrong to wear a Badger hat to a UWM game, when only 35 people even cared enough to get on the bus to NU does nothing but hang a big "You're Not Welcome" sign out to anyone who enjoys following more than the Panthers. Flawless victory! |
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Post by PantherU on Mar 23, 2011 14:33:44 GMT -6
I bet nobody other than Jimmy and wife on that bus knew who "the mupanther" was. I think and hope that is the point Jimmy is trying to make. Yep. My point is that as long as the majority of our fan base counts itself half and half Milwaukee and Wisconsin fans, we will never reach our potential. |
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Post by Pounce Needs Pals on Mar 23, 2011 14:38:20 GMT -6
Correct!
Not, oh well the Panthers lost, well we still have the Badgers. We don't want our own fans looking at us as "little brother"
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Post by buppie05 on Mar 23, 2011 14:54:48 GMT -6
I think people are missing out on the spirit of what Jimmy is trying to say, and please sir correct me if I'm wrong. The biggest things we can do to boast attendance and following in state is as follows:
1. Win (specifically in March)
2. Develop rivalries with Marquette and Wisconsin.
Number 2 is hard because it requires us to have our own identity, beat these teams occasionally, ect.
I don't doubt that people from both Marquette and UW don't have a problem with Milwaukee, and actually "wish us well" when we are not playing their team. IMO this is bad for our program. Heck UW has no reason to dislike us as they basically have been using our program as a "minor league" coaching system for years.
UW and Marquette fans may give us occasional kind regards, but one thing fans of each school won't do is say a nice thing about the other. Sure there may be the occasional moderate fan of both, but no "diehard" Marquette fan wishes UW well or the transverse. On this board fans who support Marquette and UW often post with critical undertones about their rival, and this love lost has been going on long before Marquette entered the big east, so conference affiliation isn't everything.
One thing that I have the toughest time with when it comes to dual allegiance is that uw-madison is no friend to Milwaukee. They offer us very little and with the deal we currently have in place, I would rather not play them all together until we are offered a fair deal. Its hard to develop a rivalry with a team that NEVER loses at home, when their home is the only place you play them. Next year is a big year for us. Wisconsin fans will try to turn the Cell into Kohl Center East, we need to pack the cell with OUR fans, and if/when we win no storming the court like amateurs, just cheering and celebration and threats of repeating the same feat in years to come.
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Post by milwsport on Mar 23, 2011 15:27:17 GMT -6
I guess my point is that we need people in the seats FIRST, then we can work on what they're wearing.
Many people my age were UW Fans since birth because quite frankly UWM didn't have a program. You can't expect people to suddenly say "Oh because I support the Panthers, I'm turning my back on 30/40/50 years of rooting for the Badgers.
The bottom line is that sports, ticket buying etc is all discretionary. You really can't say that because there's a UW or an MU, we aren't doing as well as we could. There's no guarantee that if those two schools went away tomorrow, our attendance would be any better.
And it's not just about winning. The best product in the world won't sell if it's not marketed properly and people don't know about it.
People spend their time and money on what appeals to them. If we can market the Panthers better and get our program to the point where it appeals to a broad base, they will spend their time and money on us. If we can't, then they won't.
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Post by buppie05 on Mar 23, 2011 15:28:25 GMT -6
Oh btw I really liked the article. I passed it along to a friend of mine who previously couldn't wrap her head around why its such a big deal what we are called, and she admittedly gets it now.
Shes from Arkansas so I used this analogy. If you are a moderate sports fan from Arkansas or a basketball fan from outside the state and saw the following names; Arkansas-little rock, Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Arkansas-Fayetteville could you pick out what program is head and shoulders above the others? How about the program that averages 10x as many fans as the other two? NO
How about now, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Arkansas-little rock, and Arkansas. Yea now she gets it that the hyphen gives you little brother status, and that programs who are trying to raise their status develop their own identity.
I can understand why some people want to keep the the Wisconsin in our name, but since I didn't grow up a badger, I could care less and only care about the emergence of a stronger Milwaukee brand.
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