By Jack McLoone

After a year away in favor of “alternative programming,” RamTown will make a return this year on Nov. 2 at 8:30 p.m. Last year, the money typically allocated to the RamTown programming over its seven-year history was used to promote individual games with free food and t-shirts, among other giveaways.

The decision to bring back RamTown was made by Fordham Athletics in conjunction with United Student Government (USG). The two bodies have worked together to program the event, according to Joel Lawson, head of marketing, promotions and tickets for Fordham Athletics. He did not work for Fordham last year when the decision to cancel RamTown was made.

RamTown is in the same vein of other Midnight Madness events at universities around the country, which are used to kick off the college basketball season. These events are referred to as “Midnight Madness” as they are typically held in conjunction with the first day of official practice on Oct. 15, with the practice being open to the public and starting at midnight on that day. Recent flexibility from the NCAA allows teams to hold it on the Friday nearest Oct. 15. RamTown will not be in conjunction with the typical timing of those at some other schools.

“The decision to bring back RamTown was primarily based on the fact that Midnight Madness is a traditional event that every major college program has,” said Lawson. “The event is held to instill excitement about the upcoming basketball season amongst fans, particularly students.”

There will be a number of prizes available to students at the event. All students need to be signed up for Ram Rewards beforehand in order to be randomly selected. Ram Rewards was implemented at Fordham last year, and allows students to build up points for attending Fordham home games in different sports. The points can be redeemed for items such as jerseys, hats and beanies. Checking into games with Ram Rewards allows students to be chosen at random for on-court games during breaks in action.

The prizes at RamTown will include $100 American Express gift cards, Beats headphones and a trip to the location of the student’s choice, according to Lawson. Additionally, there will be an opportunity to shoot a half-court shot for free tuition.

Mike’s Deli will provide free food for RamTown and other student groups will be involved as well.

“RamTown will be one of the biggest programs of the year, giving all a preview of what to expect during the upcoming season,” said Lawson.

The hope of redistributing the funds of RamTown was to boost attendance at individual games, but average attendance was down across the board for both teams. Men’s Basketball went down from 2140 people per home game in the 2015-16 season to 1,833 in the 2016-17 season, while Women’s Basketball went from 930 to 845. The drop to the men’s team game attendance could be tied to the on-court product, however, as the team had a 13-19 record and did not have any attractive teams at home in their out-of-conference schedule. The women’s team’s record actually improved to 22-12, and a 16-3 record at home, including a 62-54 win over Davidson in the first round of the Atlantic 10 Championship.

Despite bringing back RamTown, the Fordham Athletics marketing department will still be trying to push attendance on a game-to-game basis as well, with each game having a different theme, according to Lawson.

“Many games will strut giveaways, while others have pregame or in-game activities that are equally as enjoyable for the student population,” said Lawson.
RamTown is Nov. 2 at 8:30 p.m.