New To Bronco Hoops -- Santa Clara U. BRONCO Hoops (and other sports) Forum

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[> [> Re: New To Bronco Hoops -- Ross Nelson, 14:01:02 02/14/05 Mon

Hey Tom. I think i can talk for mike and myself when i say that we are just as puzzled as you. There are over 2300 Ruff Riders @ SCU....that is half the students @ the university. It is hard to get students motivated to come and support and be as loud as they are at the games against the Zags and Gaels. We are always open for more suggestions as to how to real them in. I know @ schools like Gonzaga, the Kennel Klub receives donations and so they can have free giveaways @ the door that brings tons of people. (i.e. 1st 300 fans get a t-shirt, shot glass, spirit towel, etc).
I don't think the reason people don't come is because of promoting. I send out 1-2 e-mails a week promoting the games for not only b-ball but other athletic events. Mike, myself, and our leadership team also hang up signs in the dorms, and run through the dorms w/ flyers and put them under students doors.
But one thing you should notice, that i think mike and i have seen, is the HUGE improvement from last year. We are the new presidents and have made some big steps for Ruff Riders. Last year, we had a smaller RR section, and would only have about 40-60 people @ games (except for against the Zags) and they would sit down the entire game and not wear their t-shirt. I don't know if it's because of our strong dedication to ruff riders or the players playing better than the past few years (or a combination of the 2)...buuuuut you should still look @ the attendance. We have our Ruff Rider section pretty much full (and average around 200-250 students @ b-ball games)
We are ALWAYS up for suggestions and would love to hear more. We are also ALWAYS up for tax deductible donations to help provide for our club. We receive $50 a quarter from the school and therefore have a difficult time buying giveaways for our students.

Sooooooo....any suggestions guys?

GO BRONCOS!

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[> [> [> Re: New To Bronco Hoops -- Tom Huckaby, 14:22:49 02/14/05 Mon

Ross:

I will agree whole-heartedly that student support is MUCH better than last year, and the year before that, and the year before that. It was pretty abysmal say 5 years ago and oh yes, it is much much much better this year.

And I don't know really what can be done to change it - you guys are doing the best you can.

You do make a good point though re donations, though you have the subtlety of a mallet to the head (I am smiling and just giving you a hard time as I type this). We CAN direct our donations... and I will ask to see if it can be as specific as to be made to go to the Ruffriders. I'd sure as hell support you guys before I'd support the Athletic Department or Hoops Program in general.

In any case, keep up the good work and yes, GO BRONCOS. As much as I do like to bitterly complain and start Dump Davey campaigns, I do bleed for the school.

BTW, the theory us old men came up with is that in our day, all we had to do extracurricularly was drink and watch hoops. The campus is dry enough now such that the former goes out the window, or at least is much more difficult, no? You don't have to answer that here in public. But also, most of us had no TVs, not to mention computers, X-box's, etc. It was either study, drink or watch hoops and we tended to combine the last two, and do the first only when necessary. Thus the great attendance at hoops games.

TH

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[> [> [> [> Ruff Riders Donation Letter -- Ross Nelson, 15:26:17 02/14/05 Mon

Here is our Ruff Rider Donation Letter along w/ the address if you wish to donate.

Santa Clara Univsersity Ruff Riders
500 El Camino Real
Benson 1
Santa Clara, CA 95053

Re: Ruff Rider Fundraising
February 14, 2005

Dear Fellow Bronco Fans,

We, Ross Nelson and Mike Zozos, would like to formally introduce ourselves as the co-presidents of the Santa Clara University Ruff Riders. Ruff Riders is Santa Clara�s official student booster club and maintains a membership of more than 2300 active members. It is the largest student organization on campus. For a one time fee of $45, each student receives a t-shirt, free admission and preferred seating to all Santa Clara home athletic events through their four-year academic career.
Ruff Riders operates as a subsidiary of the athletic department. Although each member pays $45 to join the club, the Santa Clara University Athletic department uses this membership money to pay for t-shirts and admission to the athletic events. Ruff Riders sole source of funding is a $50 per quarter budget provided by the Associated Student Senate. We are in the unfortunate situation of having a club that is unable to provide benefits to all of its members.
As Ruff Rider co-presidents, we are trying to rekindle Bronco spirit. The club would like to be able to offer more events that encourage school spirit such as bus trips to away games, tailgate barbeques, pizza nights at local restaurants, and game time giveaways. However, we can not sponsor these types of events on a budget of only $150 per year.
The Santa Clara University Ruff Riders is asking for your support. Any donation would be greatly appreciated. As a registered student organization on Santa Clara�s campus, we can make your donation tax-deductible. You can make checks payable to �Ruff Riders� to the above address. Please help us reach our potential as an organization just like the infamous Kennel Club has done at Gonzaga University. We strongly believe in our ability to rally the Santa Clara students and create the same exciting atmosphere as seen during the days of the Rodents or the days of Steve Nash.
If you have any questions or ideas, please feel free to contact us. Thank you in advance for your support and as always�GO BRONCOS!!!

Sincerely,

Ross Nelson Mike Zozos
President, Club Operations President, Athletics Operations
SCU Ruff Riders �04-�05 SCU Ruff Riders �04-�05
rsnelson@scu.edu mzozos@scu.edu
858.442.6834 805.570.6746

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[> [> [> [> [> Re: Ruff Riders Donation Letter -- Tom Huckaby, 06:31:52 02/15/05 Tue

Very cool, Ross. And I kinda respect the complete lack of subtlety.

I'm gonna think about this a bit though. I am on a self-imposed donation embargo, due to my disgust with the hoops program. I was saving a big donation for the day they announce Davey's retirement.

BUT.. yours is a good cause.

Keep up the good work. Bring it in force this weekend.

TH

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[> [> [> Re: New To Bronco Hoops -- Bronco Fan, 14:29:26 02/14/05 Mon

I'd be interested in understanding how to contrbute financially to the club.

We talk a lot about recruiting on this board, and honestly, I think one thing that would really help is if potential recruits saw strong student support and a more hostile environment for all games (including non-conference).

Here's a question for you RR - what would you do with any money contributed and how would/could that relate to stronger turnout? Another question, is it possible to sponsor a pre-game party (i.e. buy kegs) for the RR?

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[> [> [> [> Re: New To Bronco Hoops -- Ross Nelson, 15:35:12 02/14/05 Mon

The last message i sent had our donation letter for ruff riders. With the money contributed we would use it for purchasing give-aways. We talked about possibly getting the silicon bracelets like the "livestrong" ones. They are popular among the college kids. But we thought it would be cool to have "Broncos" ones. My previous message talks about a few of the other things we would want to use the money for.

It is definately possible to sponsor a pre-game party. Maybe for the WCC? We have gotten some good turn outs to those. Students, for some odd reason, can't turn down kegs! :) Weiiiiird. We had one before a game and said that only ruff riders can come, and that they need to wear their ruff rider shirts. It wasn't an official "ruff rider sponsored event" because we arn't allowed to provide booze, but we had it at my house and it was sorta implied. We also do RR "flip cup tournaments." It's a drinking game involving teams and a lot of competition. We have had around 160 people at one before and about 7 kegs or so. It was a fun. Send me or mike an e-mail if you are interested in doing a pre-game.

Ross-RSNelson@scu.edu
Mike-MZozos@scu.edu