Take your pick of economic buzzwords – recession, downturn, financial creativity – and you are sure to find a sacrificial behavior that many people are adopting to deal with the reality of capital corrupting capitally.
But we’ve heard the old adage about wanting something bad enough and being willing to spend for it, and it appears that black college sports is one of those things that fans – and corporations – are willing to pay for in order to suit their emotional and promotional needs.
The marquee names in black college football have had no problems attracting advertisers to the national black college football classics and rivalry games. The Bayou Classic has no shortage of sponsors attempting to reach out to an eager national viewing audience. The MEAC/SWAC Challenge, to the delight of some and the chagrin of Florida MEAC teams, appears to be a growing sports enterprise that may evolve into a national black college football championship of sorts.
The CIAA Basketball Tournament is still one of the largest gatherings of black college alumni in the world, and presents multiple promotional opportunities for nationally branded corporations and local businesses. And whenever Tuskegee, Morehouse or Albany State show up for anything, the venue is guaranteed to be packed out.
So what kind of commitment are we looking at here? Is it that black folks and supporters of black college sports are not affected by the economy? Of course they are, but they are also affected by a spirit that moves them to build support of these programs into their regular budgeting constraints. And remember; most of the larger events require travel, lodging, and other expenditures on top of the money they give annually for donation or to purchase tickets to the games.
These aren’t just games. They are social, professional, and sometimes spiritual ways of life.
Sure, there are examples of alumni and fans not showing up for certain events. The poorly-planned Pioneer Bowl is a sterling example of when throwing something together can go beautifully unnoticed. But when its planned right and marketed like a worthwhile event – like last weekend’s inaugural HBCU Bowl, you can get 3500 people to show up in the face of bad weather and unfamiliarity with the game’s offerings.
And you can get sponsors to notice, as well.
Athletic programs are struggling, and mostly from their own ignorance about marketing and consumer engagement. But even with poor customer relations, bad product and a lack of communication, there are some habits that are hard to kill.
And love for black college sports is one of those habits.
This isn’t to say that some programs aren’t struggling. When your grassroots support turns with the cold economic weather, there’s bound to be some dead roots that have to be removed – usually in the way of coaches being fired, sports being dropped or other budget-cutting moves.
But for the most part, black colleges sports are in a great place financially, and there’s no reason to think being broke will stop folks from finding a way to support the product.
