At halftime of Saturday’s game versus Sam Houston State, something odd and highly unexpected happened. Despite the fact that the Texas Tech led by only two scores, almost all of the fans sitting in the stands on the east side of Jones Stadium left, never to return for the rest of the game.
Photo: Courtesy of Matthew Conner
Keep in mind that a large percentage of the fans on that side of the stadium make up the student section, which prides itself on being one of the most electric and intense student bodies in America. So one must ask, if the Texas Tech student section is so fantastic, why did 99 percent of the students leave the season’s first game at half time?
The temperature at kickoff was 92 degrees with a 15 mph breeze from the south, and cloud cover was sparse. Thus, most fans will point to the fact that the uncomfortable temperature drove them out of the stadium after the first half. This was the exact reason Texas Tech officials and fans were disappointed when Fox Sports decided to air the game in the middle of the afternoon rather than in the evening when almost all Texas Tech September games are played.
However, the temperature at Jones Stadium has been far hotter and the conditions far worse and the fans stuck it out. The 2010 season opener, played five years ago to the day, against SMU was played in afternoon temperatures in the upper 90s with humidity in the 60 percent range. During that game, the concession stands at Jones Stadium ran out of water and numerous people suffered heat exposure complications. However, the stadium did not clear out like it did today.
Saturday’s game was one of the biggest recruiting weekends of the year for not just the football team, but also for almost every coach on campus. Football is the main attraction for Texas Tech and at every home game the fans play an integral part of the recruiting process. Coaches like Track’s Tom Stone and basketball’s Tubby Smith use football games to showcase what Texas Tech has to offer.
Unfortunately, Tech fans did not hold up their end of the equation today.
Consider the list of the week’s visiting football recruits. Tech hosted, 4-star OL Jack Anderson from Frisco, TX (who picked up an offer from Alabama yesterday morning), 4-star wide receiver T.J. Vasher, DT Ivory Jackson from Amarillo, 3-star linebacker Kevin Moore, and 2017 3-star QB Avery Davis (who also is interested in Baylor), and over a dozen more recruits on Saturday.
When the recruits see Jones Stadium empty out at halftime, that sight is part of the experience they will leave Lubbock with. They will then compare that experience to other trips they make to Waco, Stillwater, Norman, or Austin, and when they look back upon their experiences do you think they will say, “You know, it was hot in Lubbock when I went so I understand why the stadium was over half empty after the second quarter”? Absolutely not.
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Plus, what message does an empty stadium send to the team on the field?
As the game started, the stadium was about 95 percent full and the energy was great, especially from the student section. But after halftime, the energy in the stadium was replaced by sloth and disinterest. And this factor also had an impact on the scoreboard.
It isn’t a coincidence that Tech scored 42 first half points in front of a packed house, and only scored 17 points in the second half when the stadium resembled a mausoleum. Of course, other factors like more running plays or the play of the second team offense also contributed to Tech’s second half scoring drop. However, the second team players deserve for people to stay and cheer for them and they likely would have played better in front of a full stadium.
Every player on the team worked hard all off-season and the backup players deserve the support of a full stadium. Davis Webb played in the fourth quarter in front of perhaps 25,000 fans. As a fan base, we should be better than that. Our players deserve better than that.
The simple truth is that we are Texans. Heat is what we pride ourselves upon and 93 degrees should not be an excuse for fans to bail on a team holding only an 11-point lead.
In fact there are no excuses. If you took small kids to the game and used them as an excuse to go home early, then a solution would be to not bring little kids to a 93 degree game being played during their usual nap time. If you didn’t like looking into the sun, wear a hat. Afraid of sunburns? Buy some Coppertone. Hungover? Stay home or nurse your way through the game like thousands before you have, by consuming as much water as you can.
The fans are the key to Texas Tech football. So start paying attention to how many times a recruit says that the “crazy” Tech fans impressed him and made him want to play for Tech.
Unfortunately, today the crowd let the university down. While many of the fans will complain about the sloppy play on offense or the disappointing defensive performance, the coaching staff and players have just as much of a right to complain about a fan base (which has supposedly been starving for Red Raider football for eight months) leaving before the Goin’ Band had finished its half time performance.
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