First UCF, Now FAU..... Jeez.....

[Apis Bull]

Funny.  Why didn't the renderings of the glorious, robust Big Mac that I saw in that commercial look anything like that sickly, putrid one I ate last Saturday.  

LOL.

[Knight_Light]

Answer: Because the stadium is not needed for at least another 20-odd years - and to discuss something so far down the road is a waste of time and effort. You have no idea what is on the USF agenda one way or the other. You have no idea what the region or program will be like post 2025.

I have to be honest here cee....no one...and I mean no one (as evidenced on this board) shares your sense of urgency. It ain't happenin'!  And the fact that it has no relevance for a good 20 to 25 years, underscores that.  

If you haven't pieced it together by this point...you've hit the brick wall.  Why don't we have one thread, or sub-board, dedicated to cee and the OCS.

Oh...and yes...there is a point where it is "too early to start worrying". And that point would be...hmmmm....NOW!

Wooly,

To follow-up comments from your OWN AD over the past week about the BENEFITS of an on-campus stadium...one that hasn't been mentioned is Alumni/University Friend "Giving".

Every single study shows that Alumni that are "connected" to their University and actually COMEBACK to campus to visit...are 200%-250% more likely to donate $$$$ to the school and to their Athletic Programs.

What's the #1 activity for almost EVERY school in the Nation that brings back the most Alumni?

FOOTBALL played at an ON-CAMPUS STADIUM!!!

Sadly, there are thousands and thousands of both USF and UCF Alumni who have never step foot BACK on-campus since the day they graduated.

Having an on-campus stadium will be a HUGE benefit to attract some of those people BACK to campus...where they can see the amazing growth themselves...which will entice them to start giving and supporting...since they can finally see the improvements with their own eyes.

The ENTIRE University wins when Alumni comeback to campus...not just Athletics.

That's part of the BIG picture that both UCF and USF aren't able to enjoy right now.

Starting in 2007, UCF can finally start to enjoy a HUGE benefit that 92% of all the other Div I-A Programs have...and since ours will be new, we might cherish just a little bit more.

KL

[TripleB]

Why don't we have one thread, or sub-board, dedicated to cee and the OCS.

Better yet, just move all these OCS threads to the Poo Flinging Board since the only ones who really give a crap about this now are cee and the Kanigits.

All these threads do is embolden the UCFers to come over and stick their noses on here because they are now the self proclaimed "experts" on on-campus stadiums.

[WoolyBully]

Wooly,

To follow-up comments from your OWN AD over the past week about the BENEFITS of an on-campus stadium...one that hasn't been mentioned is Alumni/University Friend "Giving".

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Sadly, there are thousands and thousands of both USF and UCF Alumni who have never step foot BACK on-campus since the day they graduated.

Look...here's some BI on the CB:

The stadium opened in 1936, with a capacity of 10,000. The first college football game was played at the stadium on January 1, 1947. Catawba defeated Maryville 31-6. Two thousand more seats were added in 1952 and an additional five thousand more in 1968, along with the facilities first press box. From 1974-76 the capacity was raised to 52,000. The current capacity was established in 1989, with a $38 million USD renovation that added the upper decks and raised the seating to 66,438. In 1983, the Florida Department of Citrus was added as a title sponsor for the facility, at a price of $250,000 USD.

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As of 2005, Orlando-area government officials and UCF officials have expressed dissatisfaction with the state of the facility. UCF has already drafted plans for a 40,000-seat, on-campus football stadium. They plan to leave the Citrus Bowl if and when the new stadium is complete. Since UCF is only a leasing tenant, they receive minimal revenue from football games. They also do not like the fact that the stadium is over ten miles from the campus, and consider it too large for the average crowd their team attracts.

City of Orlando officials are currently exploring a stadium refurbishment project. In 2004, the Capital One Bowl, held at the Citrus Bowl, bid to become a BCS game, but was not chosen, due to the stadium's aging condition. The Citrus Bowl also submitted a bid for the ACC Championship Game, but lost out to Jacksonville's Alltel Stadium. The key reasons for losing the bids are the lack of modern luxury boxes, bench seating, and capacity. If the stadium is rehabilitated, many experts believe that since Orlando is a large, tourist-based city with an abundance of hotel rooms, it could attract more events, including the Super Bowl. If it is not refurbished, many fear the stadium could eventually lose the remainder of their tennants, and risk being demolished.

In 2005, Orlando mayor Buddy Dyer contemplated inviting the New Orleans Saints to play at the Citrus Bowl after Hurricane Katrina. It would be a friendly effort to reach out to the city of New Orleans and possibly revitalize interest in the stadium. However, the idea never came to fruition.

Sooooo....the bottom line is your dissatisfaction with a stadium that was built in 1936 originally seating 10K. That's considerably different than RayJ. It was time for you to go your route...and our time is not yet. Dig it?

This is an apple....this is an orange. Comprende amigo?

And the lingering question: if an OCS is such a wonderful, mganificent thing...why didn't UCF GO THAT ROUTE YEARS AGO? WHY WAIT UNTIL NOW?

If I were a gamblin' man...I'd bet it's because UCF DIDN'T TAKE ANY ACTION UNTIL THEY ABSOLUTELY HAD TO! Nothing wrong with that....just don't mix the apples and oranges.

[USFootball]

"Have you ever toured it? It is very nice and getting better ugrades all the time."

Sorry, I just hate prefabricated buildings, I have seen the building several times, probablly a lot more than others, but dont get me wrong, the place is 1 MILLION times better than anything we had before, and Im not even talking trailers...It was and will forever be a huge asset to the Student Athletes, coaches, staff and recruits...GO BULLS!!!

[Knight_Light]

Look...here's some BI on the CB:

Sooooo....the bottom line is your dissatisfaction with a stadium that was built in 1936 originally seating 10K. That's considerably different than RayJ. It was time for you to go your route...and our time is not yet. Dig it?

This is an apple....this is an orange. Comprende amigo?

And the lingering question: if an OCS is such a wonderful, mganificent thing...why didn't UCF GO THAT ROUTE YEARS AGO? WHY WAIT UNTIL NOW?

If I were a gamblin' man...I'd bet it's because UCF DIDN'T TAKE ANY ACTION UNTIL THEY ABSOLUTELY HAD TO! Nothing wrong with that....just don't mix the apples and oranges.

Wooly,

Very good points.

Why didn't UCF do this before? Why did it take a Mayor of Orlando (UF Grad) who told us to "vacate" the Citrus Bowl for '05 and '06 to get this ball started?

Easy....it's called LEADERSHIP!

Before Orsini and O'Leary, UCF President Hitt didn't understand the importance of Big Time Athletics....it also didn't help that he had a former Football Coach as AD (Steve Sloan), who, will a nice man and used his many connections to grab some big-time games for us...didn't see the BIG picture of improving ALL Athletic Programs at UCF.

Once Orsini came into the picture (CPA, Asst AD at Navy and at Ga Tech)...new possibilities were out there...but still couldn't get a strong buy-in from UCF President.

It took the hiring campaign for O'Leary...where Orsini took the help of Board of Trustee President and from Disney World President **** Nunis to understand that STRONG ATHLETICS and give a return on investment BACK to the Academic side of the University.

Once Orsini and Nunis "sold" this idea to Hitt...it really just opened up soooo many doors for UCF.

Then (timing is everything right?) you have the Mayor of Orlando telling us about 14 months ago to "hit the road jack" for the '05 and '06 season because they wanted to do a complete upgrade construction project at the Citrus Bowl...and didn't want to work around any games (i.e. Construction costs SKY ROCKET when you try to keep 1/2 of it open...1/2 of it being worked on...takes soooo much longer...plus the liability factor of a construction site).

UCF had to re-arrange our schedule...Orsini got rid of any non-conf home games for '05...because our only option was to build a "temp" 20,000-25,000 seat stadium on-campus...or travel all the way to Disney and play in a similar stadium at Wide World of Sports.

Once the "temporary" on-campus stadium became the preference for UCF...the PERMANENT Stadium idea started to be floated.

Again...with the help of Orsini, Nunis, and especially O'Leary....President Hitt finally came on board to the idea.

One of our proudest Alumni from the Great White North...who has been giving UCF construction cost/info/benefits of an on-campus stadium for YEARS (mostly to deaf ears), became an initial consultant that lead to the plans that we have today.

Plus, with proven construction of facilities like Univ of Kentucky's Stadium (same steel construction), which were toured...plus with the Athletic "Village" Complex that will now include retail, restaurants, Dorms, Parking Garages...all tied in with the new 10,000 seat Arena 1 block away from the proposed Stadium...things just started to fall into place.

98.6% of the UCF Alumni LOVED the idea of building our OWN on-campus stadium...so we can show off our wonderful University Campus to friends and family on Football Weekends in the fall.

Plus, the fact that the largest concentration of UCF Alumni now live on the East Side of Town (close to UCF), and how the "target" market for UCF could be easily aimed at all the middle-upper class families that surround UCF for miles and miles...the idea just seemed to make too much sense.

But without LEADERSHIP (Orsini, Nunis, O'Leary and now Hitt) none of this would of been possible.

It's funny how this fairy tale story come true can all be traced back to an UF Grad who was Mayor of Orlando.

Thanks Buddy!

KL

[WoolyBully]

"Have you ever toured it? It is very nice and getting better ugrades all the time."

Sorry, I just hate prefabricated buildings, I have seen the building several times, probablly a lot more than others, but dont get me wrong, the place is 1 MILLION times better than anything we had before, and Im not even talking trailers...It was and will forever be a huge asset to the Student Athletes, coaches, staff and recruits...GO BULLS!!!

You should get in touch with Eric Soncrant. He can probably hook you up with a tour.

[ZeroBullChip]

Plus, the fact that the largest concentration of UCF Alumni now live on the East Side of Town (close to UCF), and how the "target" market for UCF could be easily aimed at all the middle-upper class families that surround UCF for miles and miles...the idea just seemed to make too much sense.

You must be talking about these people?

http://wmscnn.stream.aol.com/cnn/us/2005/11/25/vonat.fl.shop.fight.affl. ws.wmv