Texas Tech student section one of the nations’ best
What makes college football different than any other sport in America is the passion of the fans. And the student body is what ignites that passion, but in recent years, student attendance at college football games has dropped considerably. However, one school bucking that trend in a huge way is Texas Tech.
Think back to the most famous game in Tech history; the November 1, 2008 win over the No. 1 ranked Texas Longhorns in Lubbock. The full game is all over the internet if you need a refresher, but has anyone ever experienced a more impactful student section than the one that was foaming at the mouth all night long as Tech won its 500th game in program history?
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The students (most were intoxicated) were in costume, with full black body paint, and they provided just enough support for Tech to pull of the last second victory. After Michael Crabtree’s touchdown to seal the win, the fans stormed the field three times after twice thinking the game had ended.
No one who was in attendance that night — especially the students — will ever forget the jubilation of that moment proving that college athletics is a special part of the college experience. So why are other colleges struggling to draw students to their games?
One factor could be that the game watching experience in ones own living room has surpassed that of being at the game. Another theory is that fewer students can afford to attend the games with the recent economic downturn (though many schools, including Tech, have the ticket prices already built in to a student’s total tuition). But whatever has caused the students at other schools to stay home has not infected the students of Texas Tech.
According to this 2014 article from the Wall Street Journal, Texas Tech had the 8th highest student attendance average in the nation for the 2013 season. In fact, Tech saw student attendance increase every year from 2009-2013 topping out at 11,365 students per game in Kliff Kingsbury’s first season as head coach.
Averaging a respectable 9,065 students per game in 2009, the 2013 attendance was a 25.4 percent increase. What is most impressive is that the student attendance did not decline during the failure that was the Tommy Tuberville era.
The WSJ piece analyzes 80 of the 123 division 1 schools in America, and Tech also found itself in 8th place as far as the percentage increase from ‘09-’13.
A 2014 piece by Jake Trotter of ESPN.com ranked the Tech students as the best in the conference.
"Trotter wrote, “Bucking a national trend of declining student attendance to college football games, Texas Tech actually set a student season-attendance record in 2013. The first home game had 14,915 students in attendance, breaking the game record of 12,910 set in the 2010 home opener. The student clamor for tickets kept growing, and eventually the school had to open another section of seats to meet the demand. Texas Tech students know how to have a good time, too.So does their football coach. Kliff Kingsbury gave out cash prizes to the best costumes during Tech’s home game against Oklahoma State, which fell two days after Halloween. The students responded and arrived dressed up as everything from Bender from the TV show “Futurama” to William Wallace from “Braveheart.” There was also a “future Mrs. Kingsbury” donning a bride’s dress. Jones AT&T Stadium is one of the most difficult places to play in the Big 12, thanks in large part to Tech’s rowdy student crowds.”"
A November article from last year by USAToday.com listed the Tech students as the 10th best student section in the entire nation.
"Alan Seigel from USAToday.com wrote of the Tech student body, “Its…one of the most irreverent [student sections], and I mean that in a good way.”"
Tech set the school’s student attendance record of 14,915 at the 2013 home opener which was Kliff Kingsbury’s first game as head coach at Jones Stadium. That means that almost one-quarter of Jones Stadium was comprised by loud and mouthy students.
And the passion of the students does not go unnoticed by the players and coaches.
"Former tight end Jace Amaro told TexasTech.com, “It’s pretty incredible how many people come out there, even before we are warming up…” Amaro said. “It gets us fired up and really helps us get ready for the game and it psyches the other team out when you have almost 20,000 students just yelling at them on the sidelines the whole game.”"
The positioning of the student section, which runs the length of the east side of the stadium and into the south end zone, also makes a huge difference. There is no place on the visitors’ sideline where the opponent can’t hide from the taunts and comments of the Tech students.
Some traditional national powers like Michigan, Alabama, and Georgia have had to decrease their student sections and sell the unused seats to the general public. But that problem is not a concern for the Red Raiders.
"According to head coach Kliff Kingsbury, “Our student section right now – I’ve never seen one like it…Hopefully they’ll keep coming. I know our players feel that. To have their peers in the stands cheering for them, that goes a long way with them and it really shows what Texas Tech is all about to have that kind of school spirit.”"
As kickoff for the 2015 football season is now less than a week away, it is time for the students to begin to gear up to support Red Raider football. What they bring to each game may be what helps Tech return to Big 12 prominence.