**Head's Up ~ Potential Game Time change for USF Game**

[Chief00]

More clarity on decision process - not a UConn call.

Confirmed. It's a no win, you can't put football ahead of (let some soccer mom's fill in the blanks). If Dave pushed back harder bad optics and USF would just cancel.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

That said, you accommodate them to the extent possible.

Let's leave this discussion right here with this comment.

They have to deal with a Category 5 hurricane barreling down on their state <24 hours after the game is scheduled to end, we have to deal with getting up 90 minutes earlier. This isn't a difficult decision.

 

[Chief00]

Pretty easy to fault people on social media when you're not responsible for the outcomes or have all the details. Read the Mike Anthony article...

My criticism was of USF decision making logic not UConn's.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

Confirmed. It's a no win, you can't put football ahead of (let some soccer mom's fill in the blanks). If Dave pushed back harder bad optics and USF would just cancel.

There's nothing to push back on. 90 minutes earlier is completely feasible for the team, the university, and the facility. If USF asked to play this game at 6 am, we'd be in another boat, but there's absolutely no reason why the game can't start at 10:30 with a 15-minute halftime if USF thinks that's enough time to get them home safely. And if they end up stranded up here anyway, we support them and give them as much shelter and places to eat/sleep/practice as they need.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

My criticism was of USF decision making logic not UConn's.

There's actually merit to their logic - they want to get the game in because there's a LOT of financial incentive for them to play a full scheduled and possibly get to a NY6 game. There's also the component that there is no physical threat to them actually coming up and playing the game here. This move allows them to get the game in and hopefully get home in time. If the storm moves quickly on Friday and arrives early, the worst case is they're stranded in CT where at least they're safe and dry, and have a place for their players and staff to eat, sleep, and practice. The realistic worst case scenario is they board their plane home Saturday afternoon, TPA shuts down and they have to turn around and come back to Bradley. The underlying component here is CT is a completely safe place for them to be, so coming to play the game in and of itself does not endanger them in any way.

 

[sportsart]

You gotta think that it will be hard for some USF players to clear their mind of back home while playing the game.

Won't be easy to do for some. I'll take any advantage we can get. (No I'm not glad there is a storm coming)

 

[freescooter]

South FL really isn't logically thinking. Sometimes someone in management wants to try to act like they are managing a situation that in reality they have no impact on - that's what's happening here - they will just have to start hanging out in CT sooner but they will get home no sooner.

Every once in a while the Chief nails it.

 

[gampelcrazies]

Should always be 15 minutes

 

[freescooter]

Maybe we should have running time too. We played Temple in a friggin hurricane a few years ago. But we can't play USF 1000 miles away from a hurricane without all sorts of drama?

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

I can't believe some of the stuff I have seen in this thread. I'm with NY-TF1 Traveling from Texas and Harvey east bound through Mississippi headed to stage for Irma hitting Florida. One of my former coworkers and friends is hunkered down in San Juan and reports from him are that Irma is epic and extremely bad and destructive. If David benedict was able to start the game early and get USF back on a plane headed home on Saturday good for him. The destruction left in the wake of these storms is the likes of which most of us have never seen. I'm sure there is a worry about not being able to get the USF program back to Tampa for a while after the storm so they want to hustle them in before which looks like the plan.

I have an enormous amount of respect and admiration for what you do in your line of work.

I can understand the move to 10:30. Don't think it will make a difference but whatever. But cutting halftime by FIVE MINUTES, when players are supposed to be resting and getting coached is just incredibly stupid. Especially in this day and age where player safety is concerned. If they are that concerned about getting back then don't come at all and just cancel the damn game.

 

[freescooter]

I agree with Jimmy. This is silly. Here's the logic:
We are moving the game up. Because we are concerned that we might be unable to return to a DEVESTATING HURRICANE!! Leaving it the same means we might be stuck 1000 miles away from the storm and in zero danger for an extra day or so. This was a solution in search of a problem.

Here is the real reason. USF wants a much time as possible to prep for their Friday road game. Here's a thought. Move that one to Saturday.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

I agree with Jimmy. This is silly. Here's the logic:
We are moving the game up. Because we are concerned that we might be unable to return to a DEVESTATING HURRICANE!! Leaving it the same means we might be stuck 1000 miles away from the storm and in zero danger for an extra day or so. This was a solution in search of a problem.

Here is the real reason. USF wants a much time as possible to prep for their Friday road game. Here's a thought. Move that one to Saturday.

This is an embarrassing post.

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

I agree with Jimmy. This is silly. Here's the logic:
We are moving the game up. Because we are concerned that we might be unable to return to a DEVESTATING HURRICANE!! Leaving it the same means we might be stuck 1000 miles away from the storm and in zero danger for an extra day or so. This was a solution in search of a problem.

Here is the real reason. USF wants a much time as possible to prep for their Friday road game. Here's a thought. Move that one to Saturday.

I winced after the first sentence only to have my fears realized after reading the rest of your post.

 

[FDNY99]

I agree with Jimmy. This is silly. Here's the logic:
We are moving the game up. Because we are concerned that we might be unable to return to a DEVESTATING HURRICANE!! Leaving it the same means we might be stuck 1000 miles away from the storm and in zero danger for an extra day or so. This was a solution in search of a problem.

Here is the real reason. USF wants a much time as possible to prep for their Friday road game. Here's a thought. Move that one to Saturday.

It's all about being able to return home...once they shut down the airport in Tampa then USF will have to fly to Atlanta then bus it back home...nightmare all together.

 

[NEforceUConn]

My fiancé is out of town all weekend for a bachelorette party. I NEED this game.

Party like a rock star!

 

[NEforceUConn]

"............ But there are a lot of things that are going to be going down in Florida that a lot of those people are going want to be much closer to."

I guess this proves that Florida has way better weed than Connecticut.

I hope all is safe for USF, but as others stated flying into the potential disaster?

 

[JMick]

I guess this proves that Florida has way better weed than Connecticut

just wait until Maine is 100% up and running. we already get good stuff because we're close to NYC

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

So, UConn's administration did the right thing ahead of the game for USF. Now, it's time for the Huskies to do the right thing during the game for themselves and UConn. Just win Saturday. Any favorable score. Go Huskies!

 

[kibblesnbits]

The Hurricane Center is forecasting that tropical storm winds will arrive in Tampa at 8 p.m. on Saturday. 1 1/2 - 2 hours may make all of the difference in them getting back before the airport closes. It's shocking to me to see people whining about this when it's a perfectly reasonable thing to do.

 

[Chief00]

Every once in a while the Chief nails it.

The other face saving possibility is when their plan A blows up, they charter out of CT to a location closer to FL and call it progress.

 

[Chief00]

It's all about being able to return home...once they shut down the airport in Tampa then USF will have to fly to Atlanta then bus it back home...nightmare all together.

Just reading your post now - you nailed it - and after all the busing they get home later than if they hung out in CT. The contract with the charter company is an unknown to us.

 

[Woof 101]

Do I like this? Not one bit, but it is not about me. One thing I am a little disturbed with is the fact that notification of the time change was found on The Courant site and The Boneyard and still no email from UConn. The so called promotional / personal liaison company really dropped the ball on this one....

What we need now is a thread for who can put up a USF player for a night or two in case the forecast changes. We must continue to get our new low budget conference off the ground in all possible ways. Our home is open for a coach or player for a few days of hospitality if needed.

 

[huskymedic]

One thing I am a little disturbed with is the fact that notification of the time change was found on The Courant site and The Boneyard and still no email from UConn. The so called promotional / personal liaison company really dropped the ball on this one....

Got email from UConn @ 5:12p

 

[JMick]

Got email from UConn @ 5:12p

me too, and I don't even have season tickets

 

[Fishy]

Nothing happens in a vacuum.

You are flying a team from an area preparing for a catastrophic hurricane and then you are flying a team back into an area preparing for a catastrophic hurricane. And by Saturday, other areas of the southeast will also be putting more people onto the roads and into the air.

There are so many external moving parts that five minutes here could save hours down the line. It's a virtual certainty that somebody somewhere will arrive at an airport five minutes too late to get where they need to be - if the shortened halftime and the early start means that it's not USF, good.