“I have to go with myself,” said Brea, a 6-6 redshirt freshman guard. “I love my teammates, but I take pride in my shooting.”
Doors open for the Fan Fest at 4 p.m. on Oct. 16. The event begins at 5 p.m. Tickets cost $5 and can be purchased through Ticketmaster. There is general-admission seating.
Members of the Dayton men’s and women’s basketball teams will participate. They will profit off the event, with the exception of the international players, who are prohibited from compensating because of restrictions with their visas.
It’s the first joint name, image and likeness opportunity for the teams since the NCAA’s new NIL era began in June.
“This is definitely history because I remember my older buddies in college trying to do this,” Weaver said. “We’re living in history right now.”
The Fan Fest will also include an open gym, skills contest, dunk contest and fan prizes. Weaver was unsure who he would pick as the favorite in the dunk contest but mentioned Zimi Nwokeji, R.J. Blakney and Toumani Camara. Brea also had an opinion.
“We’ve got a lot of high-flying players,” Brea said. “I’d say either Toumani or Zimi.”
For Brea and Weaver, the Fan Fest will give them their first opportunity to play in front of a significant crowd at UD Arena. Both arrived on campus in the early months of the pandemic in 2020, Brea as a member of the three-man 2020 freshman class and Weaver as a transfer from Southern California.
Only two of the 13 scholarship players on the roster, Nwokeji and Moulaye Sissoko, were on the roster when Dayton last played in front of a packed arena in the 2019-20 season. Both players redshirted that season.
Last season, Dayton played in front of crowds smaller than 200 fans at UD Arena and often in front of no fans on the road. There will be no attendance restrictions at the arena this season.
“I’m very excited,” Brea said. “This is the first time I’m going to see the arena rocking. This is a great opportunity for us as players and for the fans as well to get to know us. I feel like it’ll be great.”
Dayton players started promoting the event this week with an assist from UD’s official social media accounts. While this event is a players-led venture and not associated with the university, the school is allowed to help the players by promoting it.
Dayton coach Anthony Grant said the coaching staff won’t be involved. He was unsure if any of the coaches will attend the fan fest to watch but supported the players’ decision to have the event.
“Hopefully, we’ll get a great turnout,” Grant said. “It’ll be an exciting opportunity for our fan base to see these guys. I don’t know if we’ll have 13,000 there, but hopefully we’ll have a good crowd that comes out and supports them. I think they’re going to have a lot of fun just being in front of in front of people, and the fans will get to know them a little bit.”
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