(12-06-2016 06:28 PM)GoodOwl Wrote:  

(12-06-2016 05:29 PM)Kayjay Wrote:  If this is true, I believe you will see a number of ancillary benefits from such a move. Sustained national (and international) press coverage, a good TV and international audience payday. An opportunity to recruit internationally, in particular for place kickers and punters and a great platform for Rice to be noticed as an innovator in sports programming, similar to the benefits of the Cuba trip.

well, yeah, except that...we're likely going to get embarrassed and now by a national television audience in USA and now Australia. The damage to the university is arguably as great as the exposure. Now Stanford on the other hand, does reap the benefits at our expense. I hope that we realize a significantly better payday for this to make it more worth it. Like buyout money to get rid of Bailiff, $1.5-$2 million for a new head coach and for better assistants next year. Then it might make better sense.

As much as I'd like to pretend otherwise, expect for the diehards, unlikely that Rice would have a significantly greater opening home crowd than normal for this game at HRS. Arguably few casual fans get really excited about paying to watch a bad team get blown out at home when there's good football games being played on TV at the same time.

Except there may not be any other games on at the time. For better or worse, this could be the first game of the season, and only game on that night. I remember watching this year's Cal-Hawaii game from Australia with my friends - and being irrationally excited to do so - simply because it was the first football game on TV in almost 7 months. We'd have the night all to ourselves, and all eyes on us.