Bret Simpson hopes to put the ‘Pack back in Wolfpack.

The Associate Athletic Director has created a new marketing initiative dubbed “Wolfpack Nation.” Its mission: to pack Loyola athletic events.

The campaign, which gives away free Loyola T-shirts and a bench-side view of games, began with the launch of fall sports this year. The goal of the campaign is to garner larger interest in intercollegiate sports. The athletic department is taking an aggressive initiative unparallel to other marketing projects in the past, said Simpson.

Wolfpack Nation is Simpson’s brainchild. Simpson, who is also the assistant baseball coach, thought of the idea after hearing about a similar campaign at Miami University in Ohio.

“‘Wolfpack Nation’ was something I thought of right after the hurricane,” Simpson said. “You hear people talking about ‘Red Sox Nation’ because a lot of Red Sox fans don’t live in Boston; they’re spread out across the country.

“After the hurricane it was a similar situation with students, faculty and administration of the university.”

Included in the plan is the distribution of dog tags with “Wolfpack Nation” inscribed on one side. On the opposite side is a bar code, which is scanned during every admission, and will eventually be redeemable for prizes such as iPods and gift certificates. Simpson said he learned about this technology after going to a convention in July at Miami University in Ohio.

“We used (Miami University) as an example, and they had a lot of success,” Simpson said. “Basically we want more people to come out to games. (The incentives are) another thing to get word out.”

So far, more than 230 people have signed up for the rewards program by filling out a contact sheet. “Wolfpack Nation” T-shirts were handed out to each signee.

All on-campus residents also received “Wolfpack Nation” T-shirts. Residential assistants were given the T-shirts to distribute to their residents courtesy of the Department of Residential Life.

Funding for the campaign is split among Residential Life, Institutional Advancement and the Athletic Department, which enjoyed an influx of money thanks to corporate sponsors returning and exceeding advertisement from past years, Simpson said. He would not disclose exactly how much money was invested in the campaign.

One way of filling seats is putting faces on Loyola’s sports programs, said Simpson. “We’re trying to get athletes more known,” he said. Advertisements in The Maroon include mug shots of players of note.

Previous marketing efforts

Prior to “Wolfpack Nation,” the athletic department began to emphasize incentives for fans to increase attendance.

“Last year we had the treasure chest,” Simpson said. “If you were wearing Loyola gear around campus or if you were one of first few people at games, you were given keys that opened a black chest that had awards.”

One prize last year, however, did not get handed out as promised.

An advertisement in The Maroon offered a chance to, “Take Gio’s Car.” This opportunity to win a Mini Cooper showed Athletic Director Michael Giorlando with keys in hand, extended outwards.

Simpson did not give details out as to why the giveaway did not occur, citing only “corporate issues.”

Community wide effort

Encouraging larger student turnouts is not only an issue for the athletic department but also for another campus group:

The ‘Pack Pride Committee, a student-based organization, is looking for names for the wolf mascot. Among their initiatives, they are organizing mass group walks over to Tulane’s Westfeldt Facility where LU’s women’s soccer team plays home games, Simpson said.

“It’s a good thing,” said music education senior Stephen Hudson, of the new marketing campaign. “This school generally doesn’t have a lot of school spirit for the sports teams, so it could be revolutionary in that sense.”

Factors of low turnout

Of the five intercollegiate teams at Loyola, only two play home games on campus. Baseball, women’s soccer and cross country teams play outside LU’s campus. Soccer is played at Tulane’s Westfeldt Facility, baseball at Segnette Field in Westwego (12 miles away from campus) and cross country has no home field, as they only compete in away meets.

Players believe the distance between off-campus facilities is a factor of low turnout.

“It’s far away and it’s difficult to get there,” said mathematics sophomore Kevin Fontenot, a member of the baseball team, of the 12-mile drive to Westwego. “When we have a bus (to Segnette), it gets better, the crowds are better.”

Simpson said it’s about environment, not numbers.

“I think more of what we’re trying to do is increase atmosphere; we’re definitely gearing this toward students,” he said.

Simpson said it’s a challenge getting students to go to off-campus games, but Athletic Director Michael Giorlando said Loyola has few options for facilities.

“I don’t know any place closer, particularly after Katrina,” he said about where to play baseball games. ” Idealistically, the Fly would be the place to go, in reality we would do all the leg work.”

Baseball games during the early ’90s were played at the Fly, but conditions were unbearable said Simpson, who was a member of the baseball team from 1993-96.

“It was great with lots of people at the Fly … but from a baseball standpoint it was terrible because it was the worse surface in college baseball,” he said. “Because after we left, the Jones family is having a picnic and softball game on our baseball field. We can’t do that in college baseball.”

Average attendances at games were not available by press time.

Nation’s Influence so far

Although “Wolfpack Nation” is new, Giorlando said he’s already seen its influence at Tuesday’s home volleyball game.

“Last night was outstanding,” Giorlando said. “I thought it was a great environment; I’m hoping that will feed a little bit, kids will talk about it, students will tell friends about it and will become something like a culture to support teams.”

Two hundred sixty-six people attended the volleyball game against Mobile on Tuesday.

“We’re just trying to make the university the best it can be and that’s all,” he said. “We’re hoping to provide a resource for the student body that they can be proud of, to call their own, which in return leads to better recruiting. It’s a win-win (situation).

“With the campaign all around campus, I think people know we have sports around here.”

Michael Nissman can be reached at [email protected].

Ramon Vargas contributed to this report.