Do you remember where you were and what you were doing on the night of Friday, Oct. 13, approaching midnight? Some of you probably do, others may have a general idea and the rest of you have no idea (for any number of reasons). One thing I know nobody was doing was celebrating the first day of organized practice for the men's and women's basketball teams at John Paul Jones Arena.
Essentially the idea of "Midnight Madness," as it has come to be known at schools across the nation, is to make an event out of the official start to the men's and women's basketball seasons. The athletic departments encourage fans to pack into the schools' arenas and meet the new players. Each school's program is unique, but common events include slam dunk and three-point shooting contests, student competitions on the court and fan giveaways, with the night usually culminating in an intrasquad scrimmage.
Last year, the U.Va. basketball program apparently held a Midnight Madness program at UHall for the first time in recent memory. I say apparently because I honestly can't recall much publicity about such an event. I have been to the majority of men's basketball games my two years here, even driving back to Charlottesville during winter break to catch some games. If one fan of Virginia basketball was not properly informed of the event, maybe there were others as well who would have attended had they known about it.
According to Jon Oliver, the executive associate director of athletics, the original plan for a Midnight Madness event this year included a performance by Earth, Wind & Fire. When logistical conflicts arose over the availability of the band's gear, the athletic department decided to move the concert to the night before the first home basketball game as a reward for students and fans with tickets. The Midnight Madness program was cancelled after postponing the concert.
Regardless of the fact that a Midnight Madness event had been planned and then fell through, I still don't understand why some semblance of the event couldn't have been held without the band. The athletic department could have still set up an event to showcase the new arena, introduce the teams and get fans excited about the upcoming season without the band attached. Then, on the eve of the first regular season home game, they could have still put on the concert as another reward for fans.
Although Virginia may not have as much to celebrate as its northern neighbor George Mason with its improbable final four run last year, the Hoos definitely have a lot going for them. The fact that the event was cancelled when the concert component of it fell through shows that the athletic department was afraid of a poor turnout (which is what it got at last year's Midnight Madness). However, with the excitement surrounding the new arena and the new season, there was more reason to expect a better turnout at such a fan fest this year. (From here on, I am mostly referencing the men's basketball team, since they are assumed to be the catalyst behind the majority of fans attending a fan fest event).
As the start of the new basketball season approaches, fans are much more optimistic about the program. Entering last season, many expected Virginia coach Dave Leitao to take the program in a new direction, but most were also unsure how long such a process would take. On the surface, last year's 15-15 season was a half-game better than 2005-2006's 14-15 mark. But if you look deeper, you will see an impressive (especially for Virginia) 7-9 ACC regular season mark, as compared to 4-12 two years ago. With a huge turnaround in the tough ACC, fans should be encouraged by the potential for a transformation of Virginia basketball sooner than anticipated.
Furthermore, the sheer size of JPJ should give an indication of a better showing at a Midnight Madness event. While the new arena is bigger in part to accommodate the concerts and other events it hopes to host, another major reason for its size is to bring it up to par in the ACC in terms of arena size and provide an environment to usher in a new era in U.Va. basketball. I am not surprised that Midnight Madness was unable to draw enough people to become an annual stalwart on its own, because last season Virginia had trouble filling the over 8,000 seats in UHall for games. Now, all of a sudden, the athletic department expects over 15,000 people to pack into JPJ. If they are so sure the new arena will attract a larger audience to actual games, why wouldn't they also expect a larger crowd than last year at a Midnight Madness event?
In the end, I feel like the athletic department missed a great opportunity to start the first season in the new era of Virginia basketball off with a bang. I guess now the 'Hoos will have to save the dunks and three-pointers for actual games. See you out there.
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