Even though you're jesting, this statement is probably true to an extent. Who wouldn't rather sit on a nice seat than stand on a wet sloppy grass slope?
The problem is that increase in attendance would probably be in the neighborhood of maybe 1,000 fans per game (AT MOST) which isn't enough to monetarily justify it.
At the end of the day, that project has far more to do with aesthetics than it does attendance. I want to bowl the south end zone not because I think it will magically result in 50,000 people at each game, but because ISU needs to upgrade the facility.
I agree. I'm just saying that if the AD listed JTS as having a capacity of 43,000 instead of 55,000 (which wouldn't be lying at all) it would make our fan base look really good, and might actually raise some opinions of ISU.
I know it sounds stupid, but imagine if we had actually listed capacity at 43,000. Our attendance comes in at over 100% of the capacity. Fans of other Big 12 schools are reading that and thinking "holy ****! ISU fans really come out for their team" instead of thinking "ISU. What a joke". Just something stupid like that could alter perception of ISU in a positive way.
Perception is powerful.