T-Shirts?

[leatherface]

Does any one know if the bookstore is selling any kind of specially designed play-off T-Shirts?

[Western_101]

Oh, I like that idea. Yes I would have to get one.

[ST_Lawson]

I haven't heard about them doing anything like this, but if I do, I'll be sure to let everyone know.

What I've seen other schools do is wait until after they're done, and then do the design around that.. That way it can say "FCS Playoffs", "Quarterfinalist", "champion" or whatever.

[Leatherneck177]

Yes if this happens, I'd be up for ordering one from the bookstore if that is who would be selling them. I don't think I've bought a shirt like that since they made them in 2002 for winning conference.

[Leatherneck177]

Which by the way, that 2002 team might have been the best team Western has had, with 2003 coming in a close second in my opinion. I know those that were there during the Aaron Stecker years might disagree.

[ST_Lawson]

Which by the way, that 2002 team might have been the best team Western has had, with 2003 coming in a close second in my opinion. I know those that were there during the Aaron Stecker years might disagree.

I think it depends on the criteria that you're looking at probably. I essentially had a front-row seat for the Stecker years (and of course, attended nearly every game since then, so I saw '02/'03 too), and while Stecker was the best pure RB we've ever had (#1 and #4 best rushing seasons, #3 on the all-time list despite only playing 2 years), and there were a couple other very solid players on some of those teams, I think we had a bit more talent spread out across the whole team in '02. The QBs in the late '90s (Hecklinski and Zanders) were decent, but Michna in '02 and '03 just tore things up. Before Michna, we'd only had one 3000+ yard passing season for a QB (in the Div. I era), Paul Singer in '88 (the first playoff team), then Michna goes and does it in back to back years, setting the season record in '03 (that was only surpassed in 2010 by Matt Barr). In '02 we had the 1-2 punch of Attley Lawson and Travis Glasford as RBs. Neither blew up quite like Stecker did, but together they were very effective, each rushing for 65+ yards per game. Stacy Coleman was our top receiver that year. I'd actually forgotten his name, but went to look it up and realized that he'd had the second best receiving season we've ever had behind Lito Senatus in 2010 (and one of only 5 1000+ yard receiving seasons ever), plus it was the first year of Reggie Gray...didn't have many yards his first year, but did have flashes of what he'd eventually become, including a long of 72.

We had three guys on defense end up with over 100 tackles as part of a defense that held opponents to an average of 18.5 ppg which is 7th on the list of Western's stingiest scoring defenses.

And then there was the special teams. 2002 was BY FAR the best year our special teams have ever had. The best punting average for a season we've ever had...Mike Scifres in 2002 (48 yards per punt). The most FGs made in a year...Justin Langan in 2002 (while being tied for #2 for highest % made). The most XPs made in a year...Justin Langan in 2002.

The only season that I think is up there with '02 is probably '98. '02 and '03 had the best offenses we've ever had, but '98 had the best defense we've ever had (12.5 points per game given up and only 9.3 per game in the regular season, which is tied for 17th best in the history of I-AA/FCS and was #1 that season in the country).
So, in '97/'98 you had a very good offense (and the best RB) with the best defense and a decent special teams. In '02/'03 you had the best offense, a decent defense, and the best special teams.
'97, '98, and '02 all ended up being 11-win seasons, all three (plus '03) seeing Western make it at least to the second round of the playoffs, back when the playoffs were only 16 teams. I think probably '02 had the best shot at making it the deepest in the playoffs however, since we had already beaten (shut out, at their place) the team that would eventually eliminate us in the playoffs and go on to win the championship.

It's pretty subjective...both sets of those two year spans saw some pretty amazing teams and players and I think you could make an argument for either.

Anyway, back to the shirt discussion...I think that every year we make the playoffs, I'd like to see a season-ending shirt. I know I'd buy it.

[Leatherneck177]

I was down there 2000-2003 football seasons. So yes I'm biased, but your hit the nail on the head. Used to be in the south end zone for all games. It really got pretty full in that end zone in 2003. Crowds were great and it seemed like Western had every game in hand midway through third quarter. Good times.

Did Western draw that way in the Stecker years?

[ST_Lawson]

I was down there 2000-2003 football seasons. So yes I'm biased, but your hit the nail on the head. Used to be in the south end zone for all games. It really got pretty full in that end zone in 2003. Crowds were great and it seemed like Western had every game in hand midway through third quarter. Good times.

Did Western draw that way in the Stecker years?

Somewhat. The problem is that honestly, I don't remember. I feel like the crowds back then were pretty good, and I know we had good crowds in the early '00s, but I also know that there was a game in '03 (Homecoming, I believe...it was against SIU, ranked #7 at the time) where we have listed that the attendance was 19,287. I remember the crowd being good, but I don't remember it being THAT huge. With that many people, literally every seat in the stadium is filled, as well as a few thousand people in the end zones and on the hills. Maybe someone else can chime in who remembers that game better than I do, but I don't know if we ever actually got more than maybe 16k people. There's multiple ways of counting attendance (see FBS teams like Eastern Michigan that pull in numbers like we do...5k-7k a game, but find creative ways of selling tickets without actually putting people in the stands to get them to the FBS minimum of 15k average once every two years). So I don't know if those numbers were "tickets sold", "butts in seats", "bodies through the gates", or what...each would likely be a different number.

Anyway, in terms of the numbers we reported officially, here's the average attendance going back to 1998 (as far back as I have numbers for):
1998 - 9618.0
1999 - 7770.8
2000 - 8572.5
2001 - 11044.8
2002 - 11801.8
2003 - 12904.3
2004 - 12788.4
2005 - 10551.7
2006 - 10701.2
2007 - 12590.0
2008 - 9623.8
2009 - 9652.4
2010 - 11095.5
2011 - 8357.2
2012 - 9648.5
2013 - 5525.0
2014 - 4525.3
2015 - 4774.2

If you look, you see a significant drop off in 2013. Part of that could be explained by the fact that the team had not been doing that well (although we'd had stretches in the late '00s where we didn't do well either but still had ~10k average). What else happened prior to the 2013 season that could account for such a significant difference in how the athletics department was counting attendance...the resignation of AD Tim Van Alstine. I don't remember 2012 having such significantly larger crowds than 2013, but according to the numbers, attendance essentially halved between '12 and '13.

But anyway, if we assume that the numbers from 1998 were at least using the same method as they were in 2002, then 2002 had a better average attendance, although the "max" was about the same...16.7k in '98, 15.3k in '02. '03 was the best attendance listed, which I believe is probably true (even if I question the actual numbers), with a reported average of 12.9k for all home games, and two games over 18k including the previously mentioned one over 19k against SIU.

Again, maybe I'm way off base on my assumptions and we did actually have that many people. Anyone else have any thoughts on that? Anyone present for the record setting '73 season where we drew 13.8k per game and 19.8k against Central Michigan?

[Leatherneck177]

I was at the SIU game in 2003, I never really bought in to that number. I remember the recorded calls we got that week from Don Patterson encouraging students to come out. Back when people actually had phones in their apartments and dorms, just right before cell phones were around.

I always figured the largest crowds that year were closer to 15k, but they were good crowds and loud.

[ST_Lawson]

Yea, I remember getting those calls from Coach P too...had forgotten they used to do that.