We're # 177 !!!

[vbird53]

According to the Sporting News, Wichita is # 177 on its list of best sports cities in America for 2008.

Sporting News

We're right up there with:

Beaumont, TX
Little Rock, AR
Johnson City, TN
Worcester, MA
Irvine, CA



Lawrence is # 15
Norman is # 47
Kansas City is # 55
Stillwater is # 71
Manhattan is # 76
Ok City is # 79
Tulsa is # 84
Omaha is # 93

[SHOCKvalue]

Somebody apparently looked too much at the failures of minor league professional sports in this town, versus the way above average support for Shocker basketball (attendance in the top 40), baseball (attendance in the top 15), and volleyball (attendance in the top 10).

Yeah, we're not a sports town. Guess we need some hills, a few more trailers, and a bottom 10% attended BCS football program. I bet we'd be in at least the 70's then.

[wxkid23]

We are missing football (and Juco doesn't count) and minor league baseball. College football is the big one and it's a shame it has little to no support.

And of course attendance is going to be high for those mentioned... the people around here are deprived of any other sports to go see. Minor league didn't draw well which is a shame but college football is a joke it's not here in some capacity.

And if they are basing on success the basketball program has one NCAA appearance in around 20 years and the baseball program has been in a downward spiral for the most part for the last 10 years. The volleyball is pretty good but hasn't been successful for a long period of time and really how much are the weighing in a sport like volleyball?

[Shox151]

We are missing football (and Juco doesn't count) and minor league baseball. College football is the big one and it's a shame it has little to no support.

And of course attendance is going to be high for those mentioned... the people around here are deprived of any other sports to go see. Minor league didn't draw well which is a shame but college football is a joke it's not here in some capacity.

Wichita does have College football in some capacity, not JuCo (see Friends), just not Wichita State. I'd say where Wichita is placed is probably pretty accurate, because outside of WSU baseball and basketball, the only other highly attended sporting event is the NBC world series. the Wranglers/Wingnuts is always sparcely attended, the Thunder has a decent regular fan base, but in the games i've been to over the last few years, none were close to a sell out. Wichita only cares about a winner, and thats not always enough to get butts in the seats, as the Wranlgers were good in the seasons prior to leaving.

[wxkid23]

We are missing football (and Juco doesn't count) and minor league baseball. College football is the big one and it's a shame it has little to no support.

And of course attendance is going to be high for those mentioned... the people around here are deprived of any other sports to go see. Minor league didn't draw well which is a shame but college football is a joke it's not here in some capacity.

Wichita does have College football in some capacity, not JuCo (see Friends), just not Wichita State. I'd say where Wichita is placed is probably pretty accurate, because outside of WSU baseball and basketball, the only other highly attended sporting event is the NBC world series. the Wranglers/Wingnuts is always sparcely attended, the Thunder has a decent regular fan base, but in the games i've been to over the last few years, none were close to a sell out. Wichita only cares about a winner, and thats not always enough to get butts in the seats, as the Wranlgers were good in the seasons prior to leaving.

Friends doesn't count either in the grand scheme of things. Who outside of Wichita and maybe south-central Kansas even knows who Friends is?

Im not exactly sure why the Wranglers failed. I think WSU baseball took some of the attendance but I think the failure of the city/team to upgrade the stadium had a bigger impact. That place is a dump now. One of the few stadiums in all of baseball with an actual backdrop and it's neglected. I fully except the Wingnuts to be gone within 2-3 years after the initial excitement wears off.

One consistently recognized winning program (baseball) that's not even what it used to be isn't going to get Wichita attention. I used to go out of town and people would ask about the baseball when I mentioned where I was from, I haven't been asked anything in a few years now because the baseball fails to reach the big stage (CWS). If the basketball becomes a consistent winner, which it hasn't been in 20 some years, then maybe the ranking moves up. We really need football though. All of those cities listed by the OP have us beat in visibility and winning.