Duquesne renovating Palumbo
 

Turning it into a broad based complex.
https://duquesneathleticsfacilityren...use/index.html

I wonder if Dambrot knew about these plans before taking the job. It certainly won't hurt them. I thought the renovations in recent years made the arena a bit nicer from a fan standpoint (I remember visiting in 2004 for the A10 volleyball championships, before a lot of the different work they've done, and thinking how huge of a dump it was).

Assuming that they aren't doing anything to that side of the arena (I imagine it would've been included in these plans?) - it's probably a smart move to focus on the basketball side that will impact recruiting. Duquesne isn't selling out every game regardless, so invest in the amenities that can pull in some recruits and build your program.

Duquesne will never draw well in pittsburgh again. It's a pro-sports town. Pitt basketball drew like 4k this year playing the top teams in the country.

Looks like it only holds 5k

Pitt plays at the peterson which holds like 12k. The palumbo center where duq plays only holds 5k. If they ever had any success they could/should play their games at consol energy center. It's essentially on campus, holds 17k, but they usually close the upper bowl off when duqunse plays a few games there.

Really my point is duquesne will never ever draw or be a successful program barring some kind miracle. Pitt can't even sell out games when they are good playing against top ACC programs. On a scale of 0-100 of importance in pittsburgh. Pitt basketball is a 7, duquesne basketball is like 0.1

It doesn't really matter what duquesnse does or doesn't do... it's the city dynamic.

I attend every Duquesne game and their largest crowd is the UD game (even more than the Pitt game most years). They have less than 1000 for most games and fewer than 50 students in the seats. Their pep band outnumbers the students. Coach Dambrot feels it will even the playing field for recruiting. They have mostly transfers and there is a 5-7 man turnover each year.

I was there in 2006 for a high school girls regional championship basketball game. It’s a nice high school gym. :p

Let's not get too carried away. My wife has coached girls basketball for 32 years. Couldn't begin to tell you how many high schools I've been in, mostly in Pa, but, also some in Las Vegas and several major cities in Florida. The Palumbo is not a high school gym. It is not up to the standards of a major D1 program arena, but it is not a high school gym.
Also, when Pitt was one of the best teams in the Big East they consistently drew in excess of 10,000 and sold out the Peterson Event Center (over 12,500) many times a year.

Almost anyone can draw a ton of fans when they are doing well. The real test of fan support is when things aren't going well. Dayton still averaged just under 10K a couple of times in the lean years of the 1990's. So even when only winning 4 games, Dayton still drew almost 10k. The question is, where are all the Pitt fans after a few years of struggle? Most are impersonating empty seats. Why? Many factors, such as city dynamic, Pitt sports being #4 in the city (behind Stillerz, Penguins, Pirates), etc. But they do exist when they are winning.

With that said, if Duquesne somehow suddenly became nationally relevant and it lasted a few years, I believe they would be able to sell out a 5K arena, no matter what the city dynamic is, because many fans are bandwagon jumpers and leap on when they see a winner. Duquesne's issue is, can they overcome all their issues, from being number 6 (at best, maybe even lower, but behind Stillerz, Penguins, Pirates, Panther basketball, Panther football) in their city, being the number 2 school, etc. I don't see it happening, but if somehow they did, the fans would start appearing. It's human nature to follow the winners. Dayton fans are somewhat unique in their loyalty no matter how the program is doing....of course, we want/expect greatness, but we stay loyal through the downtimes, most fans and fanbases do not.

Good for them. If it helps recruiting and makes their program stronger, UD fans should be for it.

Yes, it is a pro town and Duquesne isn't what it was back in the 60's by any means, but using a pro facility (PPG) for regular college games (not just big ones like when UD comes to town) isn't the answer. It isn't a good fan experience, it isn't fun for players (as you are in an empty cave), and it weakens what you can offer as a game day experience for a recruit.

Yes, it is a smaller facility. But you can make a smaller facility a great atmosphere for players and fans.