UK football notebook: Fans' creativity on display in suggestions for game-day upgrades

Imagine walking down 10 rows of the Blue Lot before a game at Commonwealth Stadium and asking fans at every tailgate what they want in their game-day experience.

That's pretty much what Kentucky officials did this summer with their BBN First Initiative.

The results — in the form of nearly 1,700 responses — were fascinating, impossible, conflicting and downright bizarre at times.

After acquiring the list, what I learned is that UK will never please all the fans all the time, but there are definitive trends for things that will make fans happy.

They want better Wi-Fi. They want better music (we'll get to that later). They want more bathrooms and food options. They want state traditions incorporated into game day. They want better parking.

They want nothing and everything and at the same time, please.

"The responses were unbelievable," UK Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart said recently. "We had about 1,500 emails, where our fans jumped in the middle of conversations about what we've got going on on game day. It's been really, really good."

Some ideas were inventive: a booth for fan photo opportunities with the Wildcat mascot, blue and white towels to wave at every game, having a Kentucky Colonel on horseback waving the state flag lead the team out of the tunnel.

A couple of fans suggested a Wildcat statue outside the stadium or locker room that players can tap before games. Another asked for hedges in the end zones.

Lots of people want to create a cheer like Florida's chomp or Florida State's tomahawk chop.

Since suggestions started pouring in around April, a committee of UK Athletics staff members sorted through the ideas, met with fans and tried to find ways to put some of the suggestions to work.

"We wanted to figure out what mattered to people," said Guy Ramsey, UK assistant director of new media. "No matter the suggestion, no matter what, we respond personally to each one."

There were hundreds of opinions about the UK band.

Hundreds.

Fans want better songs. They want the band to play newer music and older music. They want the band to go around the stadium before games to get fans excited.

Music at Commonwealth Stadium in general was a hot topic.

Several called for less rap music.

Of course another fan wanted more rap and less "conservative music."

Less country? No, more country. Only country music, one implored.

Another fan even offered to be the DJ at the games.

Playing off of Kentucky's Air Raid offense, one writer suggested a "more modern sounding version of Danger Zone from Top Gun" when UK's offense takes the field.

Some wanted the music to be louder. Others wanted it to be quieter.

Music wasn't the only place where varying opinions could be found.

One fan wrote in that UK officials need to find a way to stop people from bringing in alcohol.

Of course, others wanted alcohol options available at the stadium.

Several fans had strong opinions about announcer Carl Nathe's signature "First Down Kentucky!"

One said first downs are not a cause for celebration, and that other schools don't do that.

Many suggested more fireworks during games to celebrate touchdowns. Another wanted less pyrotechnics because they cause his asthma to flare up.

It was hard to miss the fan who wrote in that there could be a game where fans could bring their cats or dogs to the stadium.

There were loads of suggestions about concession options and the costs of those items, including inventive ideas like "farm-to-table concession stands."

Vegetarians wanted more options. The health conscious asked for more variety. One fan requested serving predominantly Kentucky Proud or made-in-Kentucky products.

There were opinions on the dance team not being, um, interesting enough, while others said their moves needed to be more family friendly.

People want the "Power K" back in various forms or maybe a different logo altogether, perhaps with an angry Wildcat.

All of the suggestions have been discussed and considered.

Some may take an extended period of time to put in place and others may be incorporated into the stadium renovations.

A Southeastern Conference rule change will allow for venues to play music in between downs this season, meaning UK will be trying to find ways to intimidate opponents with music or videos of players.

"The way we're approaching it this year is we've got some options," said Nathan Schwake of UK marketing, who directs the game-day experience from a booth near the press box. "We want to see what the crowd responds to."

Look for videos involving former UK players and maybe well-known UK fans to make their way into the stadium this year thanks to some of the suggestions.

There will be some horse racing incorporated into game day along with live performances of the national anthem this season.

Several local radio stations of various genres will run contests to get fans to help select game-day music.

As officials at UK have learned, nothing is too big or too small to ponder. They hope fan suggestions will continue to pour in at bbnfirst@uky.edu.

Barnhart said he's thankful for the suggestions.

He also joked that despite what some think, he's not the guy controlling everything on game day.

"I think everybody sits and thinks that I'm pressing buttons selecting music on game day," he said. "I will assure you that does not happen. I'm not picking videos. I'm not picking music."

'Camp Feel Good'

The final week of camp turned out to be the warmest and most humid, which made the Kentucky players miserable, but not the coaches.

"The weather's been good," head coach Mark Stoops said. "We need it a little hotter. We need it a little bit warmer. It's been too nice."

Offensive coordinator Neal Brown noted that UK's season opener on Saturday is at noon and the players need to prepare for warm temperatures.

"It's been an uncharacteristically cool camp," Brown complained. "I was telling our guys 'Camp Feel Good.' It was a first day it's been humid and hot. We needed a couple days like this."

Of course, the heat and humidity happened to come at a time when most players — especially freshmen — start to hit the fall camp wall.

"We've tried to push through that door, knock it down, and be mentally tougher and physically tougher and push them to the limit," Stoops said, noting that he backed off the players a bit at the end of the week.

Stoops said he gave the players off last Saturday night to give them a break. The team also went together to see the movie Lucy.

"Instead of meetings and staying up late and all that, we just went to a movie and gave them a chance to decompress a little bit," Stoops said.

This story was originally published August 23, 2014 at 5:56 PM with the headline "UK football notebook: Fans' creativity on display in suggestions for game-day upgrades."