The sad thing is, I think there's a serious disconnect within the powers-that-be at MT, and the fan base they're trying to capture and/or retain.
The powers see a 6-6 season, with a bowl game loss, and consider it a success - and wonder why the fans aren't supporting the team and the donor base is dwindling.
The fan base, OTOH, is tired of being continually disappointed - over and over again, for the far better part of a decade. No one wants to invest their time and money in something that continually makes them feel bad, or sends them home frustrated.
Like I said before - a game like this (or the Vandy game) carries far more weight than normal for a game that's just a simple W or L in the column. I don't care if you win 3 in November against teams from 1,000 miles away that people haven't heard of. No one cares.