Did EMU draw fans when Ben Braun was the coach (early 1990s, I believe)? When they had future NBA players such as Earl Boykins and defeated Duke in the first round of the tourney? Anyone BA older fans remember?
They played in the 5,400-seat Bowen Field House back then, and I’m sure they had some decent crowds. Times have changed as we know all too well in Athens. They’re feeling all the stuff we are, but much more acutely. TV has changed things. The internet has changed things. Fan want “big time” or they don’t have the time.
Throw in some unique-to-EMU issues and it gets really grim. EMU is a commuter school – this is not a pejorative; it’s a fact (about 85% of students are commuters). It’s a short bike ride away from UM. Ypsi’s population and EMU’s enrollment are down from where they were in the 90s.
The 90s were a golden era for EMU and the whole MAC. They had a Sweet 16 run early in the decade and that 1995-1996 EMU team was stacked. Two future NBA players is Boykins and Dial and the leading scorer wasn’t even one of them. They made the Top 25 and beat a crappy Duke team in the first round before losing to UConn. That era will likely never come back for the MAC and will certainly not come back for EMU.