Sometimes, it takes creativity when convincing people to attend school sporting events. Luckily, one player on the LSU women's volleyball team has creativity in spades.
Last Thursday, the LSU women's basketball team — the defending national champions and one of the most popular (and lucrative) college sports teams in the country right now — butchered East Texas Baptist university by a score of 99-26 in an exhibition game at LSU's Maravich Center. During a pause in the onslaught, the stadium's Jumbotron showed a couple players on LSU's volleyball team — including freshman Ella Hemmings — who wrote in bold letters on her phone, "VOLLEYBALL GAME TMR AT 8" and displayed it for the crowd to see, while she danced alongside some of her volleyball teammates.
Hemmings' genius marketing tactic worked. Not only did the ESPNW Instagram account post her promotion, but the volleyball game she was promoting — a home match against No. 15-ranked Kentucky, which LSU eventually lost in three straight sets — drew an attendance of 1,340 people, according to LSU's website.
That attendance marked a 24.3% increase from the last home game LSU volleyball had prior to Hemmings' phone promotion, and it was the most spectators the volleyball team has drawn at a home game since Sept. 6.
Although Hemmings didn't record any points in the match against Kentucky, her marketing aptitude can be credited for putting fans in seats.
The LSU women's basketball game that Hemmings showed her phone at drew 1,771 fans. Yet it was only an exhibition match. The defending champions (and current No. 1-ranked team in the country) play another exhibition match later Wednesday against Loyola, then have their regular season opener next Monday against Colorado. Their first regular season home game isn't until Nov. 9 against Queens. It's safe to assume that Angel Reese & Co. will have Maravich Center packed for that one.
Perhaps Hemmings will be there as well — and may have another genius promotion up her sleeve.
LSU's website doesn't list what Hemmings is majoring in — but one could imagine that it's marketing.
