It’s a spectacle like no other: LSU gymnastics combines jaw-dropping gymnastics with innovative marketing to produce a show for fans of all ages.
For decades, Friday nights in the PMAC have entertained some of the largest crowds in college gymnastics. The 2024 home season saw record-breaking attendance numbers as the Tigers rose to the top and claimed their long-awaited national championship.
Every year, LSU marketing gets bigger and better with promotions, giveaways, games and contests.
Grace Ghee, a graduate assistant, has witnessed first-hand the influx of support over the past two years. The Tigers’ 2025 season opener was the largest in program history, with 12,324 people ready to watch the reigning champions.
“Especially after winning the title last year, we have tried our best to enhance the in-venue experience for fans as much as possible,” Ghee said.
Gymnastics at LSU has captured fans nationwide since its origin, but last season’s success story came with a new surge of popularity.
Two of those fans are Cindy Duet and her adult daughter, Marissa Duet. The pair were invited to attend a mid-season meet last year and have been hooked ever since.
They’ve been to every home meet and even traveled to the SEC championship in New Orleans and the national championship in Fort Worth, Texas.
“The effort that LSU has put into making the introductions noteworthy with flames, lights and a great announcer sets the stage for the energy of the night to be top-notch,” Marissa Duet said. “It simply makes me feel alive.”
Part of Ghee and marketing’s job is to boost the event atmosphere and come up with ways to make the crowd a part of the show.
For this year’s Oklahoma meet, fans will be given LED wristbands for a light show inside the PMAC along with a snow globe giveaway.
“Currently working in marketing is a crazy time,” Ghee said. “Everyone is constantly stepping up their game, creating new ideas and attempting to be the first in the industry to do something new. So there is a lot of innovation happening, and everyone is racing to be at the top.”
Ghee and marketing center many of their promotions around the program’s younger audience, which makes up a big portion of their audience. This season, children and families participate in sing-alongs, handstand contests and more games in between event rotations.
The family-friendliness of Tigers gymnastics has drawn in fans for years, such as Sarah Casey, who went to meets with her husband when he was a student at LSU but didn’t come back until they had kids.
They began to watch the team compete on television when her eldest took an interest in gymnastics, and for her seventh birthday, she finally got to watch it in person.
Casey and her two daughters were a part of a sold-out crowd at the SEC opener against Florida this January.
When they got to their seats, the children were thrilled to find pom poms there waiting for them.
“They felt like they won the lottery,” Casey said.
Before meets, 7,000 of those pom poms are laid out on seats. Efforts like those can make it feel worthwhile for a fan.
“Even though you’re in the PMAC with 13,000 other people, you still feel like it’s personalized,” Casey said.
Besides all of the work done by marketing behind the scenes, many fans, including Casey’s daughter, enjoy watching the team’s bond, primarily when they cheer each other on from the sidelines.
“It’s a team sport as much as it is individual,” Casey said. “She really loved that aspect.”
The team’s connections to one another and fans are a major component of what makes a Tigers home meet one-of-a-kind.
Between out-of-the-box marketing festivities and world-class gymnasts, it’s a guaranteed good time.
