Arizona Football: Zona Zoo, are you reeeaaaddddyyyy????

Arizona Football Zona Zoo, it’s up to you! So many changes have been made to Arizona Stadium so that you will come, support your team and have a blast! Are you ready?

Hey you guys! Yeah, you! The Zona Zoo! The largest student section in the NCAA. The Zona Zoo was voted The Best Student Section in the country through the NCSSA Loud and Proud competition. Are you ready to stop being lame? That’s what most fans we talk too, and the media feel when it comes to Arizona Football, so this is the year, time to come back and represent.

Thanks to Athletic Director Dave Heeke, there will be much more food to buy and selections to choose from. There will be wine and beer. There will be eegees. There will be places you can go to hang out in the shade and party during the game. And on top of that, this season there is a ton of promise with a great quarterback and team.

There are no more excuses for students or fans! It is time to come to the football games and be the 12th man. It’s time to come back and plan how you are going to fill the Zona Zoo this season.

Wildcats fans, and mostly the media, pay attention when the students do not support their football team. It’s a regular occurrence. Pictures are posted with empty seats and mostly in the student section.

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To be fair, most of the pictures are taken before the game or in the fourth quarter when the team was losing, or when it was so hot, not many people could handle sitting in the section facing the sun.

Here are some tips for Arizona Athletics from a former parent of two Arizona Wildcats who were in a sorority for four years over the last ten years. They have given me so much insight. The problems they cited from their peers were numerous.

In 2017, there was a lack of alcohol or lack of opportunity to pregame in the stadium (fixed). Some of their girlfriends were not interested in sports wanting to party on University instead, but if the guys are at the game, they would have gone (ugh, that upset me but it is what it is). Having to line up two hours in advance to get seats then a lack of shade (drinking and sun made students sick and wanted to leave early – fixed). Lack of knowledge from students of traditions in the ZonaZoo with regards to how to cheer for the team, etc.

The tips:

• The players can go in person to visit the frats the week before the game as well as sororities and groups/clubs and ask the students to come to the game. Get the players involved.
• Fraternities and sororities should be encouraged to have date dashes at the football game.
• Maybe challenge students in groups to get to the game early and stay through the game to get a free drink or something…the first group to seat and keep at least 30 students maybe?
• Give out free cool Zona Zoo visors and hats for the sun, paper fans too.
• Reintroduce cheering traditions for new students and returning students (shaking keys during kick off, etc.) There used to be a time the team danced the HAKA even.
• Use Wilbur as a rallying figure more like they do mascots at baseball games. Shooting t-shirts from an air gun riding on a quad.
• Have contests only for students during the game.

Social media promotion alone won’t put fannies in the seats, it has to be cool to go to the stadium, and there is so much more that can be done. And so much progress has been made by the AD Dave Heeke, and we are very grateful.

There is a good chance most students do not remember the days when fans and students filled the Zona Zoo. If not, here is a picture of what it could look like if everyone did their part, a very very loud sea of red.

https://twitter.com/ZonaZooOfficial/status/652273791284867072

Lil B is ready! Is the Zona Zoo???

My daughter left this game early because no one would stay to the end with her, and she still, to this day, kicks herself for not staying to witness this memorable play by Anu Solomon and Austin Hill to make one of the hugest comebacks wins in Arizona history. She listened from her dorm room in La Paz while watching it on TV. Just ask former Arizona Wildcat Jared Tevis why you should come to the games, he has some great answers (see if you can find him in the video).

As Khalil Tate always says, students and fans will come if they just win. The rest usually works itself out. If Arizona were to make a rose bowl either this year or next, it would go a long way. But that shouldn’t be the case, and as Coach Kevin Sumlin said this week, fans help with the success of the team, being the 12th man in the seats. Bear Down with best intentions!