JessN: A-Day wrap-up: What it wasn't, was A-Day

[JessN]

A-Day wrap-up: What it Wasn’t, Was A-Day
by Jess Nicholas, TideFans.com Editor-In-Chief

To borrow heavily from Andy Griffith, it was football, but what it wasn’t, was A-Day.

Alabama concluded spring practice Saturday with what amounted to an exhibition practice. Of the 90 minutes of practice time, about 10 was spent in some form of scrimmage work – or, as we have come to call it over most of a millennium, A-Day. The rest was more or less C-Minus-Day if you came to Tuscaloosa expecting to get any insight that could be applied to the upcoming season.

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A-Day wrap-up: What it Wasn’t, Was A-Day

To borrow heavily from Andy Griffith, it was football, but what it wasn’t, was A-Day. Alabama concluded spring practice Saturday with what amounted to an exhibition practice. Of the 90 minute…

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[tusks_n_raider]

Didn’t realize attendance was that poor.

5,000 fans? Woof

That’s a steep drop off from 92K+ in 2007

They might as well just cancel it being open to the public.

 

[bamacon]

It sure does not help our local economy. We used to have a nice little bump from the business A-day used to bring in.

 

[Tideflyer]

Not just referring to us, but yeah, to hell with the paying customers. This is even more of a business now, complete with industrial espionage.

 

[DrollTide]

Not sure I've ever read a sadder wrap-up than that.

 

[CB72]

Slowly dying.

 

[The Ols]

Slowly dying.

Slowly? Crash & burn Mav…(low key nod to Val Kilmer)

 

[JTH]

If college football continues as is, regular season games may have this many in attendance in the future

 

[JessN]

Didn’t realize attendance was that poor.

5,000 fans? Woof

That’s a steep drop off from 92K+ in 2007

They might as well just cancel it being open to the public.

After I wrote that, I noticed that Rodney Orr over at TiderInsider estimated it at 12,000-15,000. I may not be right at 5,000 but I think I'm closer than he is.

Not just referring to us, but yeah, to hell with the paying customers. This is even more of a business now, complete with industrial espionage.

Want to feel even sadder?

They had an autograph session on the field afterward. If you aren't a member of Yea Alabama (a separate deal than Tide Pride), you couldn't get in. And you had 45 minutes and could get one item signed before having to leave.

It's all monetized now. On my way back to my car I spoke with and/or overheard more than a few people who were confused by the format (apparently they didn't know much about the changes coming into it) or who felt like it was a waste of time to come.

 

[AlexanderFan]

After I wrote that, I noticed that Rodney Orr over at TiderInsider estimated it at 12,000-15,000. I may not be right at 5,000 but I think I'm closer than he is.



Want to feel even sadder?

They had an autograph session on the field afterward. If you aren't a member of Yea Alabama (a separate deal than Tide Pride), you couldn't get in. And you had 45 minutes and could get one item signed before having to leave.

It's all monetized now. On my way back to my car I spoke with and/or overheard more than a few people who were confused by the format (apparently they didn't know much about the changes coming into it) or who felt like it was a waste of time to come.

A-Day, brought to you by AT&T, in association with Baumhower’s Grill.

 

[dvldog]

A-Day, brought to you by AT&T, in association with Baumhower’s Grill.

So not coke and lays potato chips?

 

[CaliforniaTide]

After I wrote that, I noticed that Rodney Orr over at TiderInsider estimated it at 12,000-15,000. I may not be right at 5,000 but I think I'm closer than he is.



Want to feel even sadder?

They had an autograph session on the field afterward. If you aren't a member of Yea Alabama (a separate deal than Tide Pride), you couldn't get in. And you had 45 minutes and could get one item signed before having to leave.

It's all monetized now. On my way back to my car I spoke with and/or overheard more than a few people who were confused by the format (apparently they didn't know much about the changes coming into it) or who felt like it was a waste of time to come.

The crowd shots taken by the beat writers tell me you're closer to the attendance numbers than Rodney Orr.

 

[CrimsonNagus]

They had an autograph session on the field afterward. If you aren't a member of Yea Alabama (a separate deal than Tide Pride), you couldn't get in. And you had 45 minutes and could get one item signed before having to leave.

This is disgusting and makes me dislike the University. Screw this crap, I will never give money to NIL.

 

[Ole Man Dan]

The A DAY event was so bad that some fans wanted to go thru the PORTAL.

 

[Tideflyer]

After I wrote that, I noticed that Rodney Orr over at TiderInsider estimated it at 12,000-15,000. I may not be right at 5,000 but I think I'm closer than he is.



Want to feel even sadder?

They had an autograph session on the field afterward. If you aren't a member of Yea Alabama (a separate deal than Tide Pride), you couldn't get in. And you had 45 minutes and could get one item signed before having to leave.

It's all monetized now. On my way back to my car I spoke with and/or overheard more than a few people who were confused by the format (apparently they didn't know much about the changes coming into it) or who felt like it was a waste of time to come.

It’s pretty much wrecked as far as I’m concerned, and I don’t know if it’s gone too far to be retrieved. I used to love the experience of game day in Tuscaloosa and in Bryant Denny. Now I just have no desire to. I hate that I’ve grown so cynical about something I used to love so much, particularly at this stage of my life. And that’s coming from someone with a graduate and undergrad degrees from Alabama. Just a bunch of hired hands playing another bunch of hired hands.

 

[Crimson1967]

I think eventually A Day will just be a fan day. Have all the events and the coaches and star players can give a short speech. The autograph session needs to be more open than just to the big money people.

Having a 90 minute practice open to the public isn’t very beneficial to the team. If you have to have action, maybe a skills competition of some sort. But you have a limited number of spring practices and wasting one like this doesn’t help anybody.

Some made fun of Nebraska when they were the first to cancel but now that they were the first everyone else decided to do it as well.

It’s not something I will miss but I hate it for those who do.

 

[DrollTide]

Survey says there is not much interest in whatever it was they did the other day.

The Yea Alabama thing for autographs is pernicious. It raised no money worth mentioning while also alienating the fans.

So, we continue down this path, and maybe it will improve of itself, or we go back to the old ways, play a game, accept the risk of poaching, but put on a show for the fans, the players, the TV and the recruits.

 

[Crimson1967]

I wasn’t familiar with Yea Alabama so I looked it up for membership fees. There is a student level for $5 a month and the lowest level for the general public is $18 a month. (Strange amount, why not $20). That level got you into the autograph session.

So it doesn’t take a lot of money to join. You could join for one month and quit just to get the autographs. Don’t know if a member can bring his kids if they aren’t members.

That said, it is a bad look to have it for members only. I doubt many signed up just to get autographs. Some may have seen it wasn’t open to the public and were turned off completely.