Post by Deleted on Feb 26, 2017 20:26:30 GMT -6
It was interesting to see Coastal Carolina baseball "before/after" their NCAA championship year.
Last year, at this point, they had NO premonition that they were going to end up on the Winner's Podium. I was one of about 75-100 at the game and probably one of about 25 that actually bought a ticket vs. being there on a player-relative freebie. I'd almost say that BSU had more at the game than Coastal did. I parked behind the right field fence and walked 328 feet to the ticket counter. After the game, I was in the car and back on 501 in about 3 minutes.
As most of you know, baseball doesn't normally draw large crowds to non-tournament games. This year I returned and had to park about 3/4 of a mile away and ride a shuttle bus to the ballpark. There were about 2,000 at the game (and, no, this wasn't their first series after the championship) and EVERYONE was sporting Coastal garb and participating in the recorded music designed to encourage fan participation. The Chanticleers have landed a big Under Armour contract and it was plastered on uniforms, outfield fences and everywhere you looked.
You could see a bit of arrogance in the players, coach and fans as they disagreed with ball/strike calls, close plays at first......good for them. You could really get the feel of pride from the other fans. They don't appear to have a championship-caliber team this year but, hey, they could win their conference and make it to the first round anyway. You could see that another couple of good years could really build a bunch of momentum in their program for the long run.
After the game, the first two busses were full and I was able to catch the third one back to the remote parking lot after about 10 minutes. I struggled through traffic for another 15 minutes to finally reach the highway. If I was a Coastal Carolina fan, I'd gladly endure these new inconveniences to see that NCAA trophy projected on the outfield screen. I'm sure I'd also be at the souvi shop getting my new championship tee, hat and jersey in bright Chanticleer Teal.
Last year, at this point, they had NO premonition that they were going to end up on the Winner's Podium. I was one of about 75-100 at the game and probably one of about 25 that actually bought a ticket vs. being there on a player-relative freebie. I'd almost say that BSU had more at the game than Coastal did. I parked behind the right field fence and walked 328 feet to the ticket counter. After the game, I was in the car and back on 501 in about 3 minutes.
As most of you know, baseball doesn't normally draw large crowds to non-tournament games. This year I returned and had to park about 3/4 of a mile away and ride a shuttle bus to the ballpark. There were about 2,000 at the game (and, no, this wasn't their first series after the championship) and EVERYONE was sporting Coastal garb and participating in the recorded music designed to encourage fan participation. The Chanticleers have landed a big Under Armour contract and it was plastered on uniforms, outfield fences and everywhere you looked.
You could see a bit of arrogance in the players, coach and fans as they disagreed with ball/strike calls, close plays at first......good for them. You could really get the feel of pride from the other fans. They don't appear to have a championship-caliber team this year but, hey, they could win their conference and make it to the first round anyway. You could see that another couple of good years could really build a bunch of momentum in their program for the long run.
After the game, the first two busses were full and I was able to catch the third one back to the remote parking lot after about 10 minutes. I struggled through traffic for another 15 minutes to finally reach the highway. If I was a Coastal Carolina fan, I'd gladly endure these new inconveniences to see that NCAA trophy projected on the outfield screen. I'm sure I'd also be at the souvi shop getting my new championship tee, hat and jersey in bright Chanticleer Teal.
