Who called UAB for a stadium tour?

[Joe]

9 hours ago, MikeG said:

USF has all of it's sports played in OCS except for football. Please tell us how you have used those game days to stroll around campus and wax prolifically about your golden years going to USF.

What a bunch of total BS. Game day experience (read this carefully) SIX TO EIGHT TIMES A FREAKING YEAR is somehow the savior of our football team? Ridiculous.

Take a team like Pitt --- TOP 25 rated and even a former conference mate. Did you realize they had an on campus stadium (still do possibly though now unused) but when the Steelers and city decided to build Heinz Field -- they did so as a partnership. Quite unique and even the iron gates feature BOTH logos. Hasn't stopped them from moving on from the Big East and into the ACC or having success. The difference? They have been around over a century. Like RJS-- it is also a central location that helps ALL fans get to the stadium, not just LAZY ******* COLLEGE STUDENTS who can't be bothered to roll out of bed.

It is not essential to have an OCS - not at all. Especially living in a metropolitan area where we have options on where we can play (Old Sombrero and then RJS) versus some dumpy place like Norman OK that HAD to build aplace to play their game and started so long ago that they built the place up. All those other schools have something USF will never have-- tons of history. If you are so dead set on having an OCS-- great. But making BS statements about WHY WE NEED ONE need to stop. They are nonsense and completely refutable.

There is a lot to unpack here. Most know on here, I’m in college athletics. I formerly worked at a school that considered bulldozing their stadium and moving to a NFL venue. (Before my time). They ultimately decided against it even though it might have made economic sense.

The economics are there to show there is a benefit. Now, most reports deal with the absurd amounts of money being thrown into college athletics (specifically football) and the benefits the campus derives (donations in other areas). paying Nick Saban 10 mil a year is absolutely preposterous. When you look at how campus donations have increased heavily since he went to Alabama 15 years ago, it matters. It’s the same reason Willie Taggart got axed after 18 games at FSU. (Although this might not be the best example)

The idea that basketball or other sports can serve in the same capacity is absurd. Even the most tradition rich basketball schools (Kansas Kentucky or North Carolina) use football as an primary economic driver in the form of reunions, etc. 

That doesn’t mean they ignore other events, it just means they don’t hold as many.

I do think the OCS could have a profound effect on the students, but a bigger effect because it will require alumni to return for the game (should they choose to attend, lol)

You can argue otherwise. That’s youre opinion. I think we can all agree whatever has happened to get us where we are in 2021 is a failure of admin and football ops. There is no one answer. 

If changes aren’t made soon, it’s only going to be more difficult. 

 

[widerberg]

8 hours ago, MikeG said:

Ten years from now-- do you think there will still be an OCS argument happening? I have been arguing about this for OVER 20 years.

I do.

I'm sure the probability is hovering around 100% on that. If we do actually get an OCS, I'm sure it'll be closer to beer budget than champagne, so there's guaranteed to be a faction that reminds us that it's a waste of money, it's not as posh as RayJay so we won't get good donors or recruits, it doesn't have Lazyboy recliners, whatever. I guess it's human nature. Hopefully, though, the thing won't move around and maybe it'll have a few water fountains so we won't have to argue about those things.

[Outlaw]

8 hours ago, MikeG said:

Ten years from now-- do you think there will still be an OCS argument happening? I have been arguing about this for OVER 20 years.

I do.

10 years from now we will get another person saying an ocs is coming and will be searching for another stadium.  Let's just hope the ipf is done by then and pray for a stadium on campus.

[CousinRicky]

1 hour ago, Joe said:

 

I do think the OCS could have a profound effect on the students, but a bigger effect because it will require alumni to return for the game (should they choose to attend, lol)

 

There's the rub. If USF alums felt any connection to the school they'd be at Ray Jay. Our son-in-law is a sports fanatic and USF grad so he makes the games. Our daughter, a grad also, has no interest even though she attends some games. Our grandson has no interest in football.  Was trying to drag us out of the Temple game from halftime on.  He was into it a few years ago and the losing just wore him down. BTW, he's 10 now.  They could play the games at the Taj Majal and it wouldn't matter to him.  And our son-in-law would go if they played it at Countryside High School.  

[Triple B]

8 minutes ago, CousinRicky said:

There's the rub. If USF alums felt any connection to the school they'd be at Ray Jay. Our son-in-law is a sports fanatic and USF grad so he makes the games. Our daughter, a grad also, has no interest even though she attends some games. Our grandson has no interest in football.  Was trying to drag us out of the Temple game from halftime on.  He was into it a few years ago and the losing just wore him down. BTW, he's 10 now.  They could play the games at the Taj Majal and it wouldn't matter to him.  And our son-in-law would go if they played it at Countryside High School.  

Kinda my feeling, too, but if we do go ahead and build one, I hope Michi’s awesome “I believe” post is on point …

[John Lewis]

16 hours ago, E.T. said:

That's good to know ... understand everyone's frustration. Appreciate your comments John.

Yes, I certainly do understand everyone's frustration.

Patience will pay off here.

[John Lewis]

12 hours ago, michibull said:

I believe students would rather walk to the stadium and sit on bleachers, than catch a bus to the stadium. I believe having friends that you go to and tail gate at Engineering Building 1 will find it more convenient and more fun to go down memory lane than driving off campus to a grass parking next to Yankee stadium Jr. I believe parents deciding to take their kids to a game and walking through campus sharing memories more convenient than “just” going to a game. I believe transplant alumni that come back to Florida on vacation will find it more convenient to spend a day at campus and a game than having to split it between 2 days because they are not located on the same campus. I believe that going to a USF Bulls football game with Green and Gold everywhere and even with a football history/hall of fame dedicated to USF rather than red and pewter with a pirate ship in the end zone creates a more enticing appeal which would off set some negatives. College sports means so much more and is more personal than professional sports. I could be wrong, but this is how I was brought up and what I believe. 

HOF worthy post right there!!

[John Lewis]

12 hours ago, MikeG said:

Take a team like Pitt --- TOP 25 rated and even a former conference mate. Did you realize they had an on campus stadium (still do possibly though now unused) but when the Steelers and city decided to build Heinz Field -- they did so as a partnership. Quite unique and even the iron gates feature BOTH logos. Hasn't stopped them from moving on from the Big East and into the ACC or having success. The difference? They have been around over a century. Like RJS-- it is also a central location that helps ALL fans get to the stadium, not just LAZY ******* COLLEGE STUDENTS who can't be bothered to roll out of bed.

It is not essential to have an OCS - not at all. Especially living in a metropolitan area where we have options on where we can play (Old Sombrero and then RJS) versus some dumpy place like Norman OK that HAD to build aplace to play their game and started so long ago that they built the place up. All those other schools have something USF will never have-- tons of history. If you are so dead set on having an OCS-- great. But making BS statements about WHY WE NEED ONE need to stop. They are nonsense and completely refutable.

Love your example of using Pitt here since this is where we can show why we do need to have an OCS. You mentioned the word "partnership" and that is the perfect word to describe what the Rooney's and Pitt have. It's not the perfect word to describe what USF has with RJS. It's been well documented, and known for years, that USF is not getting what it should get out if its "deal" with RJS. 

You say that it is not essential to have an OCS and I am sure there are many other who share the same opinion. I will admit that I did share that same opinion up until about 5 years ago and that I likely posted this in some other thread, but I will do so here again to show why it's essential. These statements are not BS and completely factual.

5 or so years ago the Big XII had started to talk about expansion. USF obviously was interested and had talks with the Big XII. Ultimately, the Big XII decided that there would move on without expanding and keep their current membership at the time. Once we knew expansion was not happening I was having a conversation with Scott Kull, who had come over from TCU, and was in the Bulls Club at that time. We were discussing expansion and he flat out told me that we weren't as good of a candidate as we could be. The biggest reason for that was that the Big XII did not like the "deal" we had playing in RJS. The Big XII wanted to see USF in more control all of its revenue streams that come with playing football. The only way that would occur is if USF had a stadium of its own. Shortly thereafter, the feasibility study for an OCS was sent out to gather information for what our fans would like to see and what we could afford.

I'll end with the same question I ask many people; Would you like for USF to move to a better conference? I'm pretty sure your answer would be yes, so that is why an OCS is "essential".

[E.T.]

Thank you @John Lewis 

[NewEnglandBull]

36 minutes ago, John Lewis said:

Love your example of using Pitt here since this is where we can show why we do need to have an OCS. You mentioned the word "partnership" and that is the perfect word to describe what the Rooney's and Pitt have. It's not the perfect word to describe what USF has with RJS. It's been well documented, and known for years, that USF is not getting what it should get out if its "deal" with RJS. 

You say that it is not essential to have an OCS and I am sure there are many other who share the same opinion. I will admit that I did share that same opinion up until about 5 years ago and that I likely posted this in some other thread, but I will do so here again to show why it's essential. These statements are not BS and completely factual.

5 or so years ago the Big XII had started to talk about expansion. USF obviously was interested and had talks with the Big XII. Ultimately, the Big XII decided that there would move on without expanding and keep their current membership at the time. Once we knew expansion was not happening I was having a conversation with Scott Kull, who had come over from TCU, and was in the Bulls Club at that time. We were discussing expansion and he flat out told me that we weren't as good of a candidate as we could be. The biggest reason for that was that the Big XII did not like the "deal" we had playing in RJS. The Big XII wanted to see USF in more control all of its revenue streams that come with playing football. The only way that would occur is if USF had a stadium of its own. Shortly thereafter, the feasibility study for an OCS was sent out to gather information for what our fans would like to see and what we could afford.

I'll end with the same question I ask many people; Would you like for USF to move to a better conference? I'm pretty sure your answer would be yes, so that is why an OCS is "essential".