Why Fans Should Not Be Mad At WWE Crowd In Lafayette Cajundome

Twitter was not happy with the crowd in the Cajundome on Monday night.

I, like some of you, attended Monday Night RAW in the Cajundome this week and there was a noticeable difference with the crowd in the dome.

Now, before we going any further here, I should note that I have been attending wrestling events in the Cajundome since the days of the NWA and WCW. I actually saw Ric Flair take on Dusty Rhodes in the Cajundome as a kid.

Being a huge wrestling fan, I have attended EVERY WWE event in the Cajundome. I have been in the dome when there was not an empty seat left in the place and I have been in the dome when it was half empty for a wrestling event.

After RAW this week a friend of mine told me to check out Twitter because "Lafayette RAW" was trending on the social media platform. So, I checked out some of the tweets and people were really disappointed with the crowd's energy and excitement in the Cajundome Monday night.

I will note here that I too did notice the lack of energy in the dome Monday night, but the place was half-full. The majority of the Cajundome where the cameras were located was empty. The seats were covered with black tarps.

Why was there so many empty seats and so little energy in the building? I'll tell you why. For one, WWE does not have that MAJOR star power like it once did. Sure, they have a few "big names" on the roster, but there's no Rock or Steve Austin in the WWE these days.

Also, where was Brock Lesnar? He was advertised locally to be at RAW and all that we saw of the champ was in a pre-recorded video package. And while we're talking about no-shows on RAW, one of WWE's biggest draws now Seth Rollins, never came out from backstage.

Next, WWE introduced several up and coming wrestlers to a crowd who doesn't really know who they are. Yes, the NXT stars who debuted on RAW are GREAT, but the majority in attendance at the Cajundome had no clue who they are.

And just because you're into the NXT brand doesn't mean the majority of fans are. The average fan has very limited knowledge of WWE's NXT roster. That's just the truth.

Then there's the family issue to address here. In this new era of WWE, they are targeting families (who spend money at the merchandise booth) and the younger demographic. Kids are not going to create as much energy at a live event. And there were A LOT of families at RAW in Lafayette.

Back in the day of the "Attitude Era" WWE targeted the middle-aged male, who downed five or six beers at an event and turned the place into a rock concert. And yes, I have heard the Cajudome blow the roof off of WWE events during this era.

So, for some to say that Lafayette doesn't deserve another WWE televised event is missing the point. South Louisiana is rich in pro wrestling history and crowds here expect a lot here.

Lastly, may I ask what happened to the entertainment between matches at WWE televised events? As soon as the programming went to commercials, there was silence in the arena. WWE has got to find a way to keep the energy going when the cameras are off at their events.

Here are just a few of the Tweets talking about the crowd in the Cajundome for Monday NIght RAW.