No Tenn game in 2015 more to come

[Colt house75]

On the contrary, it very well could be the hardest thing to work around. Whether the State would end up winning in a court of law is beside the point. They could sue for an injunction and prevent the game from being played. Then it puts UConn at odds with its landlord and primary benefactor (by a significant margin). Not a desirable position in which to be, IMO.

interesting discussion but I will leave in the hands of the folks who get paid to produce a successful football product. I believe the purpose of discussion was contracting another Michigan type opponent. If the Rent is too small, then whatever venue works best, I will go with. As far as contractual obligations go, again that is outside of my paygrade. I will leave that one to Ward and staff.

IMO, selection of a site for a top tier opponent would fall in with future marketing of the program. Several things to keep in mind.
1)Who do you consider top tier to move out of the Rent locale?
- Perhaps easier said then done. Would you move a Baylor out given their recent successes or reserve judgement for OSU, AL, LSU, ND etc..... IMHO-only the top programs such as ND or future conference top tier like OSU if grounds for future CR.

2) When thinking about future CR, do you want a continued market penetration into the tri-state NYC marketplace (including Fairfield county) for purposes of the B1G and ACC and which venue gives you that best opportunity? {Yale Bowl v. Yankee Stadium etc}.

3) Financial considerations and potential contractual hoops might be the easiest of the hurdles when you consider the long term needed penetration and growth into the NYC and future development of the UCONN Football Fanbase.

FWIW: would not be too surprised if a rabbit pops out from SEC land given the SEC TV launch in August. MIZZOU........

 

[SubbaBub]

With an auto-BCS bid we could afford ti be patient. If the P-5 splits off without us we are done. You can already seen access to the better bowl games stunted. The G-5 rep will end up in Atlanta, Dallas, or Glendale and rarely if ever be part of the playoff.

The goal post moving machine is already warmed up.

Bottom line is we need to win now.

 

[SubbaBub]

IMO, selection of a site for a top tier opponent would fall in with future marketing of the program. Several things to keep in mind.
1)Who do you consider top tier to move out of the Rent locale?
- Perhaps easier said then done. Would you move a Baylor out given their recent successes or reserve judgement for OSU, AL, LSU, ND etc..... IMHO-only the top programs such as ND or future conference top tier like OSU if grounds for future CR.

2) When thinking about future CR, do you want a continued market penetration into the tri-state NYC marketplace (including Fairfield county) for purposes of the B1G and ACC and which venue gives you that best opportunity? {Yale Bowl v. Yankee Stadium etc}.

3) Financial considerations and potential contractual hoops might be the easiest of the hurdles when you consider the long term needed penetration and growth into the NYC and future development of the UCONN Football Fanbase.

FWIW: would not be too surprised if a rabbit pops out from SEC land given the SEC TV launch in August. MIZZOU...

If their stadium sells out 80k+ and they appear on SI's 'kings' list of programs.

 

[APA]

H25 - Beg to differ- Yale Bowl seats 61,446. Up until 1993 it held 10,000 more.
20,000 more than Rentschler field. Deals can always be made. If it means getting an LSU or Florida to CT, they can make it happen. If we filled the Yale Bowl it would also help justify expansion of the Rent down the road.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yale_Bowl

64,246

 

[freescooter]

Home had better not be the Yale Bowl. I'll accept the Meadowlands, Foxboro and even consider (although its capacity isn't ideal) Yankee Stadium.

I'm not sure that those 2 tweets need to be read together. We are talking with a high profile opponent about home-home (read Rentschler, not the Yale Bowl) and we are having separate discussions with teams to fill the Tennessee slots. I'm guessing that will be lesser programs but I will hold out hope for a Big 10/Big 12 mid-tier one for that slot. I also want no part of playing a "home" game at Metlife. Syracuse couldn't attract flies when they tried it. I think attnedance was around 37000. Notre Dame would probably fill the place,Penn State might but I doubt anyone else would come close.

 

[RioDog]

I take exception to this.....-it really started back in the late 60's.\early 70's first off. I think it was Grand Funk RR concert (crawled in under the fences)-can't rightly remember much. But the state of CT was to blame because the drinking age was 18....and besides- we had to go somewhere.....

IIRC Grand Funk RR was an American band...

 

[Husky25]

Notre Dame would probably fill the place,Penn State might but I doubt anyone else would come close.

Didn't 'Cuse Play Penn State in that game? How is Penn State projected to fill Metlife vs. UConn (or anyone else) when there is recent historical that they can't vs. 'Cuse?

 

[Carl Spackler]

I have no firsthand knowledge if the lease has been "amended" since this OLR document:

http://www.cga.ct.gov/2008/rpt/2008-R-0223.htm

I tend to agree w/ FCF that as long as 6 home games are played @ the Rent - a 7th "off site" game can be negotiated w/ State of CT/OPM.

Psst.....a NEUTRAL SITE or a road game, is by definition not a home game, and therefore doesn't apply. Who in their right mind thinks we're getting a place like Yankee Stadium or Met-Life for a home game?

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

I go to the Yale-Harvard game whenever I can. Forget the lack of luxury suites and the splinters you will get in your . It's a logistical clusterduck of a nightmare getting 30k to and from the stadium. I cannot fathom getting over 60k to and from..........

 

[RioDog]

... but more to the point while a game at Yale bowl would be cool for us history geeks, it really is subpar.

 

[freescooter]

Didn't 'Cuse Play Penn State in that game? How is Penn State projected to fill Metlife vs. UConn (or anyone else) when there is recent historical that they can't vs. 'Cuse?

They played Southern Cal. They are scheduled to play Penn State in 2016 I think. But tht's my point really. Why on earth are so many people wanting to play at places like Met Life as a home game when the limited evidence is that it is a bad idea. Especially Met Life, really. It is an 80,000 seat venue in an area that really doesn't support college football. So even if you get 45000, which is a bunch more than Syracuse drew for its game, you're still rattling around in a place that's too big. And you could draw pretty close to that many at Rentshler Field. Its dumb for Syracuse, it would be dumb for us. to even come close to filling it, you need to get your regular fans (and you'll lose a bunch especially from points north and east of Hartford) plus draw some casual fans from New York, and very few teams can do that because New York is a pro town. Look at the Pinstripe Bowl, too. Last year with Rutgers and Notre Dame they had a whopping 47,000, many of whom were disguised as empty seats. The other 3 years, twice with Syracuse as the host team, they've drawn 38,000 or so. Not sure what gives anyone the idea that moving a game to New York will generate attendance.

 

[Exit 4]

They played Southern Cal. They are scheduled to play Penn State in 2016 I think. But tht's my point really. Why on earth are so many people wanting to play at places like Met Life as a home game when the limited evidence is that it is a bad idea. Especially Met Life, really. It is an 80,000 seat venue in an area that really doesn't support college football. So even if you get 45000, which is a bunch more than Syracuse drew for its game, you're still rattling around in a place that's too big. And you could draw pretty close to that many at Rentshler Field. Its dumb for Syracuse, it would be dumb for us.

Because the "visiting" team with a top 20 program, storied history and large alumni base is demanding it. Maybe I am stating the obvious, but its the teams visiting (USC, Penn St, etc) the northeastern schools that are demanding the big venues.

 

[Husky25]

They played Southern Cal. They are scheduled to play Penn State in 2016 I think. But tht's my point really. Why on earth are so many people wanting to play at places like Met Life as a home game when the limited evidence is that it is a bad idea. Especially Met Life, really. It is an 80,000 seat venue in an area that really doesn't support college football. So even if you get 45000, which is a bunch more than Syracuse drew for its game, you're still rattling around in a place that's too big. And you could draw pretty close to that many at Rentshler Field. Its dumb for Syracuse, it would be dumb for us.

Thanks for the clarification...

Because the "visiting" team with a top 20 program, storied history and large alumni base is demanding it. Maybe I am stating the obvious, but its the teams visiting (USC, Penn St, etc) the northeastern schools that are demanding the big venues.

If the "visiting" team demands it, then they need to take responsibility for the lion's share of the rent and sell a greater number of tickets. If USC's fan base travels, make 'em prove it. It's just not cost effective for the "local" team (I think Syracuse has demonstrated that they are not local in anyway shape or form) to have a half empty stadium. It's a terrible atmosphere to boot.

 

[freescooter]

Because the "visiting" team with a top 20 program, storied history and large alumni base is demanding it. Maybe I am stating the obvious, but its the teams visiting (USC, Penn St, etc) the northeastern schools that are demanding the big venues.

It is still stupid. Syracuse gave up a rocking sellout to play in front of a modest totally disinterested 37000 when they played Southern Cal at Met Life. That is foolish. It was dumb for USC and it was dumb for Syracuse. It would have been equally dumb for us to move the Michigan game to MetLife. Instead of a rocking over capacity crowd at the Rent we'd have had a crowd that was roughly the same size and largely disinterested.

 

[JayRU09]

I don't know, these neutral site games, especially the USC vs. Cuse game, make it seem like the the 'home' team is just a patsy. Almost like admitting to yourself that you're just a slightly tougher FCS game on the schedule. They don't work unless if they're one offs between two teams, when it's a series and one team's 'home game' is in a stadium nowhere near campus, then it's painful to watch at times.

My $0.02

 

[FfldCntyFan]

On the contrary, it very well could be the hardest thing to work around. Whether the State would end up winning in a court of law is beside the point. They could sue for an injunction and prevent the game from being played. Then it puts UConn at odds with its landlord and primary benefactor (by a significant margin). Not a desirable position in which to be, IMO.

???

Hypothetically, if in an upcoming season had six, not seven games scheduled at the Rent and due to our proximity to the venue and that we were fortunate to have an open date that coincides with what they had planned, if the operators of Yankee Stadium were p to stage a game similar to what has happened at Jerry World or what will occur at Bristol Raceway, do you really believe that the State could step in and stop it?

Why would we be able to schedule a true road game (after having six home and five road games already on our schedule) but not a neutral site game? What if we called the game that was within 100 miles of the Rent a road game? What if we were deemed the home team in a game play 1,500 miles away at a neutral field?

As legal action can be initiated over anything I imagine that the possibility does exist that the state could attempt to bring an injunction but other than being ridiculously petty I do not see why they would and if they did it would bring quite a few laughs from the court before being dismissed.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

Didn't 'Cuse Play Penn State in that game? How is Penn State projected to fill Metlife vs. UConn (or anyone else) when there is recent historical that they can't vs. 'Cuse?

Cuse has recently played both USC (very poorly attended) and Penn St (70k seats filled in an 80k seat stadium) at Met Life.

I work with two Penn St alumni (who attended that game at the beginning of last season). Each claimed (which sounds legitimate) that the crowd was primarily PSU fans and one also stated that if Cuse didn't control the number of tickets they did to that game it most likely would have sold out.

We are likely a few years away but I personally believe that it would make sense for us to do something like this to bolster our presence in the NYC market. Something similar needs to be done outside if Boston as well.

 

[Exit 4]

It is still stupid. Syracuse gave up a rocking sellout to play in front of a modest totally disinterested 37000 when they played Southern Cal at Met Life. That is foolish. It was dumb for USC and it was dumb for Syracuse. It would have been equally dumb for us to move the Michigan game to MetLife. Instead of a rocking over capacity crowd at the Rent we'd have had a crowd that was roughly the same size and largely disinterested.

I'm not arguing that its not stupid. Its just not a one way street. UConn might have to sign up for 'stupid' if it wants to get their OOC schedule populated with a few top programs. We have smartly avoided such setups during our time in the BE. Going forward it may become unavoidable. I'm sure Warde is working hard to avoid such games...but we also need games and these other programs don't need to play us...so...our influence is limited.

 

[Husky25]

???

Hypothetically, if in an upcoming season had six, not seven games scheduled at the Rent and due to our proximity to the venue and that we were fortunate to have an open date that coincides with what they had planned, if the operators of Yankee Stadium were p to stage a game similar to what has happened at Jerry World or what will occur at Bristol Raceway, do you really believe that the State could step in and stop it?

1. I wrote "'neutral site' home game" in reference to the Yale Bowl. You introduced Gillette, the Meadowlands, and now Yankee Stadium III.
2. I would wager that the Yankees would not make Yankee Stadium available to any event outside of New York Yankees baseball until at least the second weekend of November (a la Army). The way P5 scheduling is headed, most "name" teams" are well into their Conference schedule by then and, barring a Hurricane Sandy event, won't make time for a G5 team, especially one that they could lose to, which I believe UConn will be by that point.
3. I think the State may raise a concern (weak as it may be) with any venue within New England and/or the Tri-State Area, unless the other team can conceivably be named "host" (i.e. the game with Army, a hypothetical game with BC at Gillette, Rutgers at the Meadowlands, etc.).

Why would we be able to schedule a true road game (after having six home and five road games already on our schedule) but not a neutral site game? What if we called the game that was within 100 miles of the Rent a road game? What if we were deemed the home team in a game play 1,500 miles away at a neutral field?

See 1. above. I believe the terms of the agreement with the context of the particular season would frame the state's argument...again, as weak as it may be, but just strong enough to get an injunction.

As legal action can be initiated over anything I imagine that the possibility does exist that the state could attempt to bring an injunction but other than being ridiculously petty I do not see why they would and if they did it would bring quite a few laughs from the court before being dismissed.

Given what huskymedic posted above, I'd imagine it'd be worked out somehow, but the state would have to get theirs in the end. Unless there are extraordinary circumstances and with 100s of $1,000s at stake, one party does not typically let the other out of a binding deal without some sort of consideration. Given Rentschler is a venue in the red (on paper), I would also expect that consideration to equal in the neighborhood of rent plus any anticipated loss by Ovations Company, LAZ parking, and any other 3rd party beneficiary to the term of, "UConn agrees to play all of its home football games at Rentschler Field stadium during the term of the lease..." Of Course this is just my $0.02 as an accountant (meaning I have just enough knowledge in this area to be dangerous). I'll certainly defer to a practicing contract law attorney.

 

[bobbyinaz]

I just posted this in the other thread here about MetLife and Yankee stadium but since this thread has gone in this direction I figured I'd post it here also.

At what point do the "we should play a P5 game at Gillette or MetLife" people start to ask the question, Does Gillette or MetLife want us to play a game at their stadium? UConn doesn't just pick up the phone and say we're coming so get the building ready.

I'm willing to bet that if MetLife had the chance to get a d0-over for the USC/Cuse game they would take it in a heartbeat.

I am a Giants season ticket holder and my rep starting calling me a couple weeks before the game offering as many $20 tickets as I wanted. He kept calling up until a couple days before the game when he was offering me $10 tickets. I kept telling him I had no interest in the game but, he kept calling anyway out of desperation.

The only way MetLife or Gillette has any interest in a UConn game is if it is against Penn St or Notre Dame and they won't need UConn to sell tickets to those 2 games.

 

[IMind]

We'd probably do better than Syracuse at Met Life or Gillette... probably not at Buffalo though. It was just a stupid idea. Syracuse basically disproved their stupid "NY's Team" bull- for us. That being said I don't love the idea, although I'm not opposed to one every once in a while against a top tier opponent. I like Yankee Stadium or Fenway better just because it's more of an event...

 

[UConn Dan]

@UConnFootball: The game are a little bit down the road, but look for us to announce a two-game non-conference series later this morning #bleedblue

 

[junglehusky]

@UConnFootball: The game are a little bit down the road, but look for us to announce a two-game non-conference series later this morning #bleedblue

could be home and home... but maybe not.

 

[UConn Dan]

could be home and home... but maybe not.

right I didn't like how it was worded. But Fuller said home and home in his tweet last week so that's what I am expecting.

 

[TDog9]

@UConnFootball: The game are a little bit down the road, but look for us to announce a two-game non-conference series later this morning #bleedblue

Texas Tech?