Ok - that explains it. I figured there was more to that than I knew about. I think it would be interesting for ETSU to play Pioneer league ball for a year, versus a club year playing who knows what.

(10-18-2013 05:04 PM)missletoe9 Wrote:  If they pay attention then it should be a road game. That is if they can't get Bruton to make it a double header of some sort.

To bring ETSU into the mix would probably be next to impossible. Bruton has already guaranteed UT and VT $4 million each. Even if he offered to toss a little more of his $1.5 billion pot into a double header deal, I can't ever imagine UT and/or VT agreeing. Yea, the Bucs would be best playing on the road or having an open date that weekend, because trying to piggyback a Thursday night game off this WITHOUT a doubleheader agreement with the "big game" parties could make ETSU look petty, desperate, and like an interloper.

UT/VT don't have a say in what Bruton Smith does. Apparently you don't know how that man rolls.
When he built the dragway at Charlotte, the people of Mecklenburg County raised hell about it to the point the city council passed a noise ordinance after a certain hour to try and run the drags out of town. Bruton went to the papers, and basically said they could repeal the law or he would CLOSE Charlotte and rebuild it in another county around the area.
Mecklenburg County/Concord backed down.
If Bristol wants to hold three games, a rock concert and a Turkish Bazaar that weekend, as long as Tennessee/Virginia Tech:
A: Get paid
B: Play the main event game in front of a sellout crowd
C: Get all the national exposure that goes with it.
D: Create more goodwill in the Tri-Cities so the city councils will continue to kiss his ring
Jim Weaver and Dave Hart aren't gonna give two S#!#s what the speedway does for events surrounding theirs. Sept. 10th, 2016 is about nothing more than MAKING MONEY, nothing else matters. And if Bruton thinks by adding a 2nd/3rd game, a concert or a strippers convention at the Mouse's Ear brings more exposure to this event, then he'll do it, and everyone will follow suit.
And ETSU in the PFL won't happen, they
A: Won't vote in a member for one year
B: ETSU doesn't meet their most basic tenant of having non-scholarship football
C: Dr. Sander isn't that stupid when they can just play an independent schedule, scheduling what should be wins, a money game and a measuring stick game or two.
And everybody piggybacks off of big events when you're trying to gain new fans. That's just the reality of where ETSU is.

Lover, not trying to kick up a big debate here. But, unless the BMS people work with the ETSU people on this, I can't find enough positives. How you gonna communicate, say, a Thursday night ETSU game to those 160,000 big game fans without the BMS in on it. It would have to be an upfront package deal so that those buying tickets would see up front an ETSU game and/or a motorcycle gang rally in addition to the main attraction -- and that's what I can't see UT and VT signing off on. Of course it's all about money, and if they see ETSU as trying to make some money also, they'll object. My guess is that this sort of thing is already in the contracts signed, and even Bruton Smith can't up and violate contracts.

1. Social Media
2. Newspapers
3. Word of mouth

If you make it a package deal then great, or if ETSU gets permission to independently make an offer of discounted tickets to a Thursday night game with P.O.P. of Battle at Bristol tickets, I'm sure the speedway will allow it, especially if its' reciprocated. They're saying it'll roughly seat 150,000 fixed grandstand for the game, I believe wholeheartedly at best it'll only have 120/130. VPI fans are pissy about the cost of their tickets already, and UT fans aren't exactly thrilled with it. It's three years away so they'll have to see how the packages sell, and honestly where those two programs are. Va. Tech has been lucky being in the ACC, the conference is top heavy with FSU, Miami and Clemson then it's got some really bad teams in it, Tech included. They're where UT was at in about 2005/06, eroding away with an aging coach, not getting central Virginia recruits like they used to and stuck with a stale product that's drawing about what Ole Miss does.
And again, Bruton can pretty much do what he wants. He was willing to bulldoze a 1.5 mile oval, a dirt track and a drag strip only to move the three and rebuild them in a separate county. Contracts are only as good as the lawyers who wrote them up, and he'll break one if it benefits him.
I can promise you that UT/VPI could careless what he does to help promote the event and sell more tickets/garner interest. It's no different than Chick Fil-A and Atlanta putting on a double header weekend a couple of years ago with UT/NC State and Auburn/Clemson. There was thought with that one they would do a day/night doubleheader but they all backed off of it.
Remember, whatever ETSU can do to get its' name out there, grow, promote, and garner interest. Do whatever it takes to get new fans through the gate and into the seats, and get them back for the next week. It's a culture ETSU has never had, and will be tough for them to do without the right people in place.

So the last thing I would recommend is following Dr. Sander on Twitter. On October 14th, after the initial press conference and announcement he tweeted:

"Congrats to BMS, UT N Va Tech. They will be a great opening act for the Bucs. What U think ETSU vs. Who at BMS? great event at BMS this a.m." @docsander30

He didn't tweet that just to be tweeting it or to be coy...

(10-20-2013 07:30 PM)Buccaneerlover Wrote:  So the last thing I would recommend is following Dr. Sander on Twitter. On October 14th, after the initial press conference and announcement he tweeted:

"Congrats to BMS, UT N Va Tech. They will be a great opening act for the Bucs. What U think ETSU vs. Who at BMS? great event at BMS this a.m." @docsander30

He didn't tweet that just to be tweeting it or to be coy...

I think Appalachian State would be cool to play against at BMS, old rivalry and both teams are near by

(10-20-2013 07:30 PM)Buccaneerlover Wrote:  So the last thing I would recommend is following Dr. Sander on Twitter. On October 14th, after the initial press conference and announcement he tweeted:

"Congrats to BMS, UT N Va Tech. They will be a great opening act for the Bucs. What U think ETSU vs. Who at BMS? great event at BMS this a.m." @docsander30

He didn't tweet that just to be tweeting it or to be coy...

"great opening act for the Bucs"; "What U think ETSU vs. Who at BMS?".

What's in the works here?

I'd say stay tuned... He's not Dave Mullins...

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ETSU is can dream but they are playing in Bristol, UT vs VT =160,000, ETSU vs ?? =16,000 Nah lets get our stuff together and do it right and not chase pipe dreams. Build a foundation and lay the ground work not chase this.

I'm not saying chase anything. I'm saying if you have an opportunity to market yourself to a whole bunch of locals in one place that you know are interested in college football, do it. Out of the 160,000 you may only get 2000 that do it, but given where ETSU is starting at and the task at hand, 2,000 fans is 2,000 more than they had.