Athletics director Bill Hayes of Winston-Salem State couldn't help but show his displeasure with the home crowd at Saturday's 59-7 win over Edward Waters.
There were around 4,500 fans at Bowman Gray Stadium on a perfect afternoon for football, but Hayes wants and needs more.
"I'm trying to get folks in those seats; and it's funny because when I first got back here, a lot of people said they were going to get behind me and this program," Hayes said. "Now that we're winning they say we know what the result is going to be, so why go? I don't understand that thinking."
Hayes said that WSSU fans are looking too far ahead and are trying to buy tickets for the CIAA championship game on Nov. 12 in Durham against Elizabeth City State. He wants fans to make it a point to help during the regular season as well.
If the 8-0 Rams make it to the Division II playoffs, Hayes is hoping to play a home game but needs to have good attendance figures to show the NCAA.
The Rams drew just over 8,000 against Fayetteville State in their first home game on Sept. 24, and then had a full stadium for homecoming against Johnson C. Smith on Oct. 1. The game attendance was listed as 22,000; Bowman Gray Stadium officially seats 17,000.
The Rams will close out their home schedule Saturday at 1:30 p.m. against defending CIAA champion Shaw, and Hayes is pulling out all the stops to attract fans.
The school will be showing their appreciation for their donors to the athletics department by recognizing them at halftime. One of Hayes' initiatives was to start a Horns Club; he has 200 members so far who have pledged $1,000 a year to help athletics. Hayes' goal is to get to 1,000 donors within the next four years.
It also will be senior day for the Rams, and while they already have clinched the CIAA Southern Division title, Hayes said that there's still plenty to play for. As a former football coach himself, Hayes knows that just because Shaw has struggled this season, that may not mean much on Saturday.
"This will be their Super Bowl and it would make their year to knock us off," Hayes said about the Bears, who are 2-6 and 2-3 in the CIAA. "I just hope we can get our fans to rally around this team and we can have a nice crowd.
"I was disappointed the other day because we've worked so hard to market this thing."
Note: The first NCAA Division II regional rankings were released on Monday, and Winston-Salem State was ranked No.4 in Super Region One. The top six teams from each of four super regions will make the NCAA playoffs, with the top two teams in each super region receiving first-round byes. Elizabeth City State was ranked No. 5 in Super Region One.
In Super Region Two, Mars Hill was ranked No. 4 and Lenoir-Rhyne was ranked No. 10.
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