Kendall Rogers wrote on Rivals College Baseball that they had over 2.2 million hits on their site this past weekend. Fans from all over the country logged on to try to catch up with the latest on college baseball and the regionals. That's a lot of hits folks and further proof that college baseball is popular and gaining traction as a big time collegiate sport.
Since our focus at Rounding Third has shifted to college baseball, our hits have increased by 50% as well. I have been trying to get some overnight ratings from ESPNU and the hit count from CBS College Sports online and their great site. CBS College Sports is offering free live video feeds, audio and Gametracker to keep fans up to date on each game. It's a great resource and I'm sure their hits are out of sight as well.
Our post yesterday was intended to point out that the college game is a true viable alternative to the pro game in this tough financial time. If that is indeed the case and fans are starting to flock to web sites and games in record numbers, then the NCAA and it's member schools need to up the ante and take advantage of this uptick in fan interest.
Now is the time for Athletic Directors to lobby for an increase in their baseball budgets and upgrade facilities and really go after a new fan base. Baseball is a huge money maker in all SEC schools as well as select Big 12 and ACC schools. Schools in the West Coast and other parts of the country could get a much needed boost in revenue and make a substantial profit if they would invest in college baseball now.
Sure the ecomony is slow...but that only means value priced products and services are seeing increases in sales. When the economy is down, Wal-Mart benefits. College baseball is a value and that could mean millions in new revenue for a school if they make the effort to expand.
Rivals College Baseball's 2.2 million hits over the weekend is just the beginning. College Baseball is going to be huge...Just wait.
1 comment:
A-Fraud, Clemmons, etc turned me off to pro baseball. Only guys like evan longoria who my son played with in college keeps me somewhat interested.
I can't get enough of college baseball though. To me, college baseball is as exciting as college football. I know several of my baseball crazy friends feel the same way. The Beach gets a lot of fans at their games as does Fullerton. If more schools in California were like them, you'd have TV networks fighting over broadcast rights.
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