Empty Seats

[PARavensJeff]

I was disappointed to see the # of empty seats I saw today & I don't want to hear any excuses about why. There is no excuse for Ravens fans to not show up.
- They switched the game time. So what, deal with it.
- They were only playing the Bills. So, they're still an NFL team & they are on the schedule.
- The weather was ugly. So what, it's football, deal with it.
- The Ravens already clinched the division & playoffs. So, you are a supposed fan & they still needed your support.

My Dad, who usually attends the games with me couldn't make it today, but I got someone to fill the seat, someone who had never attended a Ravens game & was very excited to go. The least all you no shows could have done was found someone who could have used the tickets. Believe it or not, even after 11 years, there are a lot of people who have never attended a Ravens game. Don't worry about selling the tickets, just give them away.

The announced attendance was 70,913, which I am sure is how many tickets the Ravens sold for the game. I would be interested to know how many fans actually showed up.

[OwingsMillsAlex]

Not sure what section you sat in. I am in 502 and it was filled as normal. Now after the half-time when some started leaving it started to empty a bit.

[Mista T]

:229031_confused2:

What empty seats? The stadium looked pretty full to me - until a mass exodus in the 4th Q -- I guess some people had to rush home to change for parties.

[Ravens0587]

on tv it looked like qa bunch of empty seats

[52RAYVENS]

There was a few in my section. What do you expect. We're playing the Bills.

[skaybaltimore]

It looked pretty full from what I could see on TV. It DEFINITELY was better than the way the Steelers' bandwagon fans totally no-showed last week at Heinz Field -- and the Steelers were in a do-or-die situation. That was just outright disgraceful, IMO.

http://img328.imageshack.us/img328/1568/emptyseatsvy0.jpg

http://img58.imageshack.us/img58/5638/williamsbeatingpolamalujt6.jpg

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/1782/jamaltdetw8.jpg

GO RAVENS!!!

[Drkraven]

My section was full, I think when the rain started a lot of people went under cover. My brother had to give up his 4 seats so I took my kids, they love their uncle!
My husband got sick at tailgate this morning and went home, gave the ticket to my nextdoor neighbor who had a blast! No trouble getting rid of tickets, we had 4 others that were looking this morning.

[BertJonesMyHero]

Looked full and loud to me on TV.

[HDDream]

Definitely looked pretty full to me on the television. The crowd didn't seem to be too loud, though.

[ravenwoman]

The stadium was definitely full. Some people left at halftime but most emptied out after the McAllister interception. The game was over by then.

People would not have left if it were a 1 PM game. After all, New Years Eve is basically a holiday, traffic was bad downtown and fans wanted to get home.

No one will be leaving early in two weeks.

[ladyraven127]

I could not believe that half of the stadium was empty by the end of the game. Lame . . lame . . . lame.

We were playing for a bye week and people leave???? Pffft :thumbdown:

I don't care if the game was in the bag or not. :nerd:

[skaybaltimore]

Wow. You're tough, ladyraven127.

:hammer:

GO RAVENS!!!

[knots]

there weren't that many no shows (I too sit in 502)...after McAlister's TD return the place started emptying...most around us stayed until the very end (as we always do)..........I'm not going to rip on those who had to chose between honoring commitments made based on a 1PM kick-off....at least the game wasn't at 8 PM.....

[ladyraven127]

I suppose, however :crazy:

This town has the weirdest reaction to winning I've ever seen. The more we win the quieter the tailgating lots get, the quieter the crowds get and people just get up and leave before the games are over when we are winning. I mean, how about sticking around and applauding the players and giving them some props or something.

Weird, weird, weird :nerd:

[Sports Steve]

A few empty seats in the 4th quarter looking around the stadium. However it looked full for most of the game.

:jester: :jester:

[PurpleRulz]

I don't get this leaving games early. Don't get me wrong, because I am doing well on the SES side of things, but as expensive as those tickets are, I am staying for everything.

[section553]

While I agree with most of your replys, you have to remember it was New Years Eve. A lot of people had plans long before the game got bumped to 4:15. Simmer down, we won the game, have the 1st round bye all is well. You should be making posts to celebrate that not dog your fellow Ravens fans. I'll see you in Miami!
Go Ravens!!!!!!!!

[skaybaltimore]

Maybe ladyraven127's just PMS'ing.

:bag:

:rolling:

GO RAVENS!!!

[WxKevin]

While I agree with most of your replys, you have to remember it was New Years Eve.

That shouldn't be an excuse. New Year's Eve is not even a "holiday", it is a time to get together with friends and celebrate. Even though I went to the Christmas game last year, I can understand people not going to that game.

I still have never left a regular or postseason game early. We pay a lot of money for the tickets and I am going to see every second of live football I pay for.

[PurpleRulz]

That shouldn't be an excuse. New Year's Eve is not even a "holiday", it is a time to get together with friends and celebrate. Even though I went to the Christmas game last year, I can understand people not going to that game.

I still have never left a regular or postseason game early. We pay a lot of money for the tickets and I am going to see every second of live football I pay for.

Plus, the game would have been over at 7:15 PM, which still allows time to party or go to church as I did. There is no excuse for leaving a game early. Again, for the money it cost (regardless of how much one makes), I would stay to the end.

[Mista T]

Plus, the game would have been over at 7:15 PM, which still allows time to party or go to church as I did. There is no excuse for leaving a game early. Again, for the money it cost (regardless of how much one makes), I would stay to the end.

:iagree:

Regardless of the money .... why leave? Do you leave a movie before the end? :229031_confused2:

If we are winning, the quitters miss seeing the victory. If we are losing, the quitters stop supporting the team.:thumbdown:

[camdenyard]

I saw a few hundred empty seats. So what. Seriously, what do you expect...

1. It was New Year's Eve and a 4PM start
2. The weather wasn't the greatest (but better than it could have been)
3. We were playing the 7-8 Bills
4. The playoffs were locked up - seeding nonwithstanding.

More importantly,

5. Not every ticketholder lives and dies the Ravens like a lot of us do. Seriously, it's a fact!

I'm guessing that most of those people said "aw, shit on it", at 1PM and just skipped the game with rain in the forecast with "something better to do" and ate the tickets. Too bad, but it happens.

Now, if it were a playoff game, I could see cause for the uproar. But there are a certain percentage of casual fans out there.

[BirdFan]

For the record, over 70,000 people came through the turnstiles yesterday. There could not have been too many no-shows. Most empty seats are just temporary while people line up for the bathrooms and for more beer.

[crowdog89]

For the record, over 70,000 people came through the turnstiles yesterday. There could not have been too many no-shows. Most empty seats are just temporary while people line up for the bathrooms and for more beer.


I agree. When they make the announcement about attendance on the big screen, that is the number of folks who went thru the turnstiles and are actually at the stadium....not the number of tickets sold.

Seemed to be pretty full to me....until about 4 minutes left in the game when there was a mass exodus.

[Drkraven]

I think there were a lot out in the concourse at the beginning of the game and did not want to sit on a wet seat afterwards.

[camdenyard]

I think there were a lot out in the concourse at the beginning of the game and did not want to sit on a wet seat afterwards

Huh?

I don't know what game you were at, but it was dry well into the game, and very little fell during the two brief periods that it did rain. I'd call it more of a sprinkle.

[Drkraven]

It rained enough my hair was still wet 3 hrs after the game was over:laugh:
There were bunches of people in the ramp areas.

[skaybaltimore]

At least during the first half -- at around midway through the first quarter, I think -- I could clearly see the rain on the helmets, and the ponchos being put on by some of the sideline staff, and I think some players as well.

GO RAVENS!!!

[Mista T]

For the record...There were no 70900 people at that game....no way. It was hardly half empty, but it is safe to say way more seats were left empty than should have been...after all we were playing for a bye.


Don't know where you sat, Nurse, but I had a pretty good view of the entire stadium. Plus we got up to walk on the ramp by the scoreboard when it started raining hard, so we got another perspective. The stadium sure looked like it normally does when sold out. At least around kickoff time, before the first rain. And before the 4th quarter exodus by those whose New Years parties were more important than seeing the end of the game.

It's never completely full due to buying beer & food, smoking, and pitstops, and yesterday in particular there were more fans on the concourse with the rain.

[PARavensJeff]

My section, 504 was full, but looking around the stadium there were many fans dressed as seats. How do you know for sure the announced attendance is what went thru the turnstiles? The Orioles announce their attendance all the time, & if you look at who is there & what the attendance is announced at, there is a huge difference. I'm not comparing the Orioles & Ravens, but my guess is the attendance # is tickets sold. There were many people missing, if you all want to argue about this, you are missing my point, which was if you don't want to go, give your tickets to someone who would love to go. I took someone who had never been & he said it was a great time. If you all want to live in a fantasy land about this, go ahead, buy there were missing fans yesterday. I just watched the game, I DVR'd it, & there were many empty seats during the game. As far as leaving early, I have never understood that. I never leave until the game is over, & I was 1 of the few who stayed during the Seattle game. As far as the rain, it rained a little heavy for a while, but big deal, I mean it is a football game.

[ravensjeff]

I was able to move down to the club level in the 1st quarter.

[RAVENOUS52]

Seemed full enough to me...:thumbup:

The folks in my section needed a little "gentle coaxing" to get loud, but soon enough they learned to shut their beaks on offense and make some noise on defense...:D

[skaybaltimore]

These photos shed some light on the situation, but with the reduced size (so they'd fit here and not mess up anyone's ability to view them) the first one doesn't show as clearly some of the empty seats in the upper sections. But for the most part, the stadium did look pretty full:

http://i18.tinypic.com/2dw9e8n.jpg

http://i10.tinypic.com/2nkna8p.jpg

http://i12.tinypic.com/4bj1647.jpg

GO RAVENS!!!

[ravensfan1996]

Hey those are my pictures!!!! But its ok i was going to do the same thing and post some.

As you can see the lower bowl was just about completly full, the upper deck i saw pockets of empty seats, but nothing where youd say...wow it looks empty. Perspective is everything..if you are sitting in a section that has 10 empty seats close together it looks empty...same with crowd noise, one section may say its quiet, while others are loud..

But those photos show it pretty full to me...the rain wasnt that bad, a heavy drizzle at best for about 20-30mins nobody in our section left cuz of the rain.

I was one of the ones that left after stovers fg with about 4:30 left to go in the 4th. I stayed for the entire seattle game when we came back. I left early only a few times in the 10 years.

[skaybaltimore]

Yep, they sure are, 1996. Great shots, man. I saw them at YBR, and thought it might help shed some light on this topic here. Sorry I didn't give you specific credit; I wasn't sure really how that was supposed to work. I wasn't trying to take credit for the photos; just trying to show how the stadium looked, was all.

GO RAVENS!!!

[ravensfan1996]

No problem, like i said i was going to do the same thing to kinda show the full stadium. The first picture was taken right at kick off...the last photo is the 4th quarter.

[skaybaltimore]

Cool. I really enjoyed them, as usual. You definitely get some great shots that capture the feel of the games. (Not to mention the cheerleaders. LOL)

GO RAVENS!!!